Ok this is going to be my new home for my solar tracker made with the circuit from greenwatts LM339



After some deliberation I have decided to build my circuit on a bread board first and the move on to a pcb cut on my CNC router

First question I have in this circuit diagram we have the LM339 with a black dot with in the component (fig 1 Am I right in thinking this is pin one.

fig 1

If this is correct how do I find pin one on the component

fig 2

I should rename this post solar tracker for dummy's he he

thank you james

 

Take a look here. This document will clear things up for you. But anyway on your bread-board picture. You will find pin 1 at postion f-18
http://www.nteinc.com/faqs/IC_Pin1_Chart.pdf

 

Thank you for the post and the link

James

 

Well Today I did start to TRY and make my circuit on the breadboard from circuit diagram and the pcb layout but I got very confused with Jumper wires go here and there this being connected to this and that being connected to this. so after about two hours I pulled everything out and turned my attention to drawing the PCB board

I also found it hard to read the colour's on the resistors so diverted to using my multimeter! much better idea and I even found a good link for the math part http://www.hobby-hour.com/electronics/resistorcalculator.php

has any one got any tips on making a breadboard circuit from a circuit diagram

I've nearly finish drawing my circuit ready for cutting out.

the above image is not to scale

I do have other question regarding the LM339 chip and it's relationship with the circuit diagram but I will ask those questions later on in my project.

Head spinning stuff this electronic and circuit building.

James

 

...so after about two hours I pulled everything out and turned my attention to drawing the PCB board

That's a bad move. You really need to be very comfortable with your circuit on the breadboard before moving to the PCB. Even the pros will experience problems at that step, moving from breadboard to PCB. Solving the problem often requires a step back to the working breadboard circuit to tweak a resistor here or a capacitor there. Skipping the breadboard altogether makes it more likely you will build a nonfunctional PCB, i.e. a paperweight.

IF you are strictly copying the PCB from a well-documented project, so that you don't really need to understand it so much as build it, I might be persuaded to skip the breadboard step. But most of the time it is invaluable. I don't think many here will say they regret time spent breadboarding before building.

 

I also found it hard to read the colour's on the resistors...

I use a well-lit work area and a magnifying glass to speed up this chore. It's SO much easier.

 

...has any one got any tips on making a breadboard circuit from a circuit diagram

You may get a lot of comments on this, as I suppose everyone is different.

For a small circuit like this, build it up around the "main" IC, in this case your LM339. Power connections come first, positive on top and negative below (assuming your breadboard is horizontal). Inputs to the left and outputs to the right. Leave plenty of room initially, condense it later if you need to. Remember that the numbered breadboard rows are interconnected on either side of the central valley. Leave the board unpowered until you've triple-checked things, and be prepared to disconnect quickly if something smokes!

Oh, and if the drawing gets complicated it helps to check off the interconnects as you reproduce them on the breadboard.

 

Ok I've started my breadboard AGAIN, I'm sure I will have many questions along the way but my primarily question is why is their two 12v power supplies (two 12v battery's).

Hear is the link to the circuit diagram
http://solartracker.greenwatts.info/solar_tracker_LM339_schematic.htm

Can I split one battery with two positive and negative connections

This may be a silly question but please remember I called my self greenJames for a reason
James

 

...my primarily question is why is their two 12v power supplies (two 12v battery's).

It's a way to get two directions from the same motor. Another - and more common - way is an H-bridge motor controller. It's a slightly more complex circuit but would eliminate the need for 2 batteries. It's widely used for robotics and and all sorts of DIY projects, so you'll have no trouble finding lots of information on it.

 

so how would i add this to the circuit I'm building
or should i be looking at a different circuit altogether ?

James

 

I can't comment on your second question, but you could keep the left hand side of the circuit and replace the right-hand side motor control with an H-bridge. The outputs of your comparator would drive the H-bridge instead of the darlington transistor arrangement shown there now.

 

Thank you wayneh I will build it first and then start playing around with different circuits I think as I have another solar tracker I want to build for the main tracker (this one is just for my 12 year old son) The other tracker uses arduino but I have yet to find the coding to make it work

here is the link http://www.kokoras.com/solartracker/en/

GreenJames

 

Like this h-bridge circuit

http://www.electro-tech-online.com/members/kevinng-albums-op-amp-comparator-picture55793-2.jpg

 

so now I curious can this circuit be used as a stand alone solar tracker if not would some one explain how I integrate this into the LM339 circuit

I've bought two 12v battery's today 12V-2.1Ah General purpose lead acid battery which I'm looking at a solar panel to charge it

James

 

so now I curious can this circuit be used as a stand alone solar tracker if not would some one explain how I integrate this into the LM339 circuit

I've bought two 12v battery's today 12V-2.1Ah General purpose lead acid battery which I'm looking at a solar panel to charge it

James

Yes its a stand alone tracker, it wont work with the LM339 as it needs a collector load resistor, try an LM358

http://www.electro-tech-online.com/members/kevinng-albums-op-amp-comparator-picture55793-2.jpg

 

Ok so I've taken the plunge and down loaded the eagle software I tried Designspark but found the library limited

Now I've nearly finish the PCB but I cant find two items in the part library

LM1458
and a symbol for a motor

Is there anyone that could help me

James

 

Morning all well I've just about finished my drawing but I really do need some help on three Items first two are related to the schematic I have done.

First I cant work out how to add a motor (work load) to my drawing and secondly I have two errors I cant solve please see images below

I have spent most of the morning drawing this circuit plus eagle crashed once so I have to draw it again from scratch stupid me. Yes the wife is saying your spending to much time on that computer!!

I have now included the drawing for help and advice

GreenJames

 

Looking at your drawing you have no motor just a short circuit link, is that one of the faults?

 

Yes Dodgy I cant work out how to get a motor from the Library (cant find it any where)

but more to the point I cant work out the power connection conflict on the LM1458

as you say it may have some thing to do with no load on the circuit

James

 

You could just use a lightbulb or low ohms resistor to stand in for the motor for now.

It may be complaining that you're using the LM1458 with a single supply, so that the negative rail is at 0V instead of, say, -12V. You could try putting +6 on top and -6 below, to see if that is it.