How to Make a Touch Lamp

Thread Starter

um0123

Joined Jul 5, 2009
4
I want to make turn an empty coke bottle into a touch lamp, wherein you touch the cap to turn the light on and off (and possibly have dimmer levels). Problem is i only have an elementary knowledge of soldering and circuitry. Any Help is appreciated, i need to know what parts to get and how to solder them.
 

ELECTRONERD

Joined May 26, 2009
1,147
I know of a circuit that uses the "piezoelectric effect." Either you can apply voltage to make it oscillate and therefore produce sound, or you can do the inverse; by pressing against it and developing a small voltage on the output. So when you press against the piezoelectric buzzer it activates a switch to turn on the lamp.
 

Thread Starter

um0123

Joined Jul 5, 2009
4
I don't know if the coke bottle is a good candidate to a lamp. If you plan to use incandescent lamps, there may be heat issues.
it is to be a small LED lamp, so its not like an actual lamp, but more of a novelty.


I know of a circuit that uses the "piezoelectric effect." Either you can apply voltage to make it oscillate and therefore produce sound, or you can do the inverse; by pressing against it and developing a small voltage on the output. So when you press against the piezoelectric buzzer it activates a switch to turn on the lamp.
Im not sure what you are saying here. Are you saying that i can make it make a sound when i touch it and the sound turns on the lamp? That might be extra unnecessary work.
 

ELECTRONERD

Joined May 26, 2009
1,147
No, if you have this piezoelectric buzzer, you can make it sensitive enough so that when you shout or clap it will turn the lamp on. But that isn't what you want, is it? Instead you can simply tap this buzzer a little and the piezoelectric effect will creat a voltage on the output of the buzzer. When this happens, a circuit will detect this voltage and throw a switch to turn the lamp on. Then when you tap the buzzer again it will throw the switch again and turn the lamp off. You could hide the buzzer under the cap and when you tap the cap there will still be enough force to produce voltage on the output of the buzzer.
 

Thread Starter

um0123

Joined Jul 5, 2009
4
No, if you have this piezoelectric buzzer, you can make it sensitive enough so that when you shout or clap it will turn the lamp on. But that isn't what you want, is it? Instead you can simply tap this buzzer a little and the piezoelectric effect will creat a voltage on the output of the buzzer. When this happens, a circuit will detect this voltage and throw a switch to turn the lamp on. Then when you tap the buzzer again it will throw the switch again and turn the lamp off. You could hide the buzzer under the cap and when you tap the cap there will still be enough force to produce voltage on the output of the buzzer.
but that just creates more problems, cuz then i will need to know how to make a touch buzzer instead of a touch lamp. I dont want to have to touch the cap really hard, just a tap, like a real touch lamp.
 

Thread Starter

um0123

Joined Jul 5, 2009
4
Hello,

There are special chips for making a touch lamp.
Take the LS7638 or 7639.(see datasheet).

Greetings,
Bertus
Thanks for the reply, but i have mediocre knowledge in electronics. I cant read that scematic at all beside telling you where the resistors, transistors, capacitors, and diodes are. I just need a simple piece that i can solder in line with a piece of metal that i can touch.
 
Touch lamp circuits are available from many hardware stores. I picked one up at Home Depot to fix a touch lamp that had stopped working, I think it was made by Lutron but I may be mistaken. It also had the three levels of light output.

They are easily wired into a lamp...
 
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