Saturday, March 7, 2009

Solid state relay



This week we just studied about the Solid state relay which plays a big role in our project(computer interfacing-"push botton").


What is Solid state relay(SSR)?


Solid state relay(SSR) is an electronic switch, which, unlike an electromechanical relay, contains no moving parts. The types of SSR are photo-coupled SSR, transformer-coupled SSR, and hybrid SSR. A photo-coupled SSR is controlled by a low voltage signal which is isolated optically from the load.


Operation

Voltage applied to the control line of an SSR causes the LED to shine on the photo-sensitive diode. This produces a voltage between the MOSFET source and its gate, causing the MOSFET to turn on. An SSR based on a single MOSFET, or multiple MOSFETs in a paralleled array works well for DC loads.
There is an inherent substrate diode in all MOSFETs that conducts in the reverse direction. This means that a single MOSFET can't block current in both directions. For AC (bi-directional) operation, two MOSFETs are arranged back to back with their source pins tied together. Their drain pins are connected to either side of the output. The substrate diodes then are alternately reverse biased in order to block current when the relay is off. When the relay is on, the common source is always riding on the instantaneous signal level and both gates are biased positive relative to the source by the photo-diode.
It is common to provide access to the common source so that multiple MOSFETs can be wired in parallel if switching a DC load. There is also commonly some circuitry to discharge the gate when the LED is turned off, speeding the relay's turn-off.

Friday, March 6, 2009

wHat do We hAve???

We are currently making our project regarding the topic "computer interfacing using C". In this project,some materials that we used are:::::


Resistors


A resistor is a two-terminal electronic component designed to oppose an electric current by producing a voltage drop between its terminals in proportion to the current.

Resistors are used as part of electrical networks and electronic circuits. They are extremely commonplace in most electronic equipment. Practical resistors can be made of various compounds and films, as well as resistance wire (wire made of a high-resistivity alloy, such as nickel/chrome).


PCB


PCB is an interactive printed circuit board editor for the X11 window system. PCB includes a rats nest feature, design rule checking, and can provide industry standard RS-274-X (Gerber), NC drill, and centroid data (X-Y data) output for use in the board fabrication and assembly process. PCB offers high end features such as an autorouter and trace optimizer which can tremendously reduce layout time.


Capacitors


A capacitor or condenser is a passiveelectronic component consisting of a pair of conductors separated by a dielectric. When a voltagepotential difference exists between the conductors, an electric field is present in the dielectric. This field stores energy and produces a mechanical force between the plates. The effect is greatest between wide, flat, parallel, narrowly separated conductors.


Transistors


A transistor is a semiconductor device commonly used to amplify or switch electronic signals. A transistor is made of a solid piece of a semiconductor terminals for connection to an external circuit. A voltage or current applied to one pair of the transistor's terminals changes the current flowing through another pair of terminals.The transistor is the fundamental building block of modern electronic devices, and is used in radio, telephone, computer and other electronic systems. Some transistors are packaged individually but most are found in integrated circuits.


TRIAC


A TRIAC, or TRIode for Alternating Current is an electronic component approximately equivalent to two silicon-controlled rectifiers (SCRs/thyristors) joined in inverse parallel (paralleled but with the polarity reversed) and with their gates connected together. The formal name for a TRIAC is bidirectional triode thyristor.


Heatsink


A heat sink (or heatsink) is an environment or object that absorbs and dissipates heat from another object using thermal contact (either direct or radiant). Heat sinks are used in a wide range of applications wherever efficient heat dissipation is required; major examples include refrigeration, heat engines, cooling electronic devices and lasers.


Drill bits


Drill bits are cutting tools used to create cylindrical holes. Bits are held in a tool called a drill, which rotates them and provides torque and axial force to create the hole. Specialized bits are also available for non-cylindrical-shaped holes.

Again??? With Application???

Interface in Computer Science Field

Interface generally refers to an abstraction that an entity provides of itself to the outside. This separates the methods of external communication from internal operation, and allows it to be internally modified without affecting the way outside entities interact with it, as well as provide multiple abstractions of itself. It may also provide a means of translation between entities which do not speak the same language, such as between a human and a computer. Because interfaces are a form of indirection, some additional overhead is incurred versus direct communication.

The interface between a human and a computer is called a user interface. Interfaces between hardware components are physical interfaces. This article deals with software interfaces, which exist between separate software components and provide a programmatic mechanism by which these components can communicate.


Interfaces in practice

A piece of 'software' provides access to computer resources (such as memory, CPU, storage, etc.) by its underlying computer system; the availability of these resources to other software can have major ramifications—sometimes disastrous ones—for its functionality and stability. A key principle of design is to prohibit access to all resources by default, allowing access only through well-defined entry points, i.e. interfaces.[citation needed]

The types of access that interfaces provide between software components can include: constants, data types, types of procedures, exception specifications and method signatures. In some instances, it may be useful to define variables as part of the interface. It often also specifies the functionality of those procedures and methods, either by comments or (in some experimental languages) by formal logical assertions.

The interface of a software module A is deliberately kept separate from the implementation of that module. The latter contains the actual code of the procedures and methods described in the interface, as well as other "private" variables, procedures, etc.. Any other software module B (which can be referred to as a client to A) that interacts with A is forced to do so only through the interface. One practical advantage of this arrangement is that replacing the implementation of A by another one that meets the same specifications of the interface should not cause B to fail—as long as its use of A complies with the specifications of the interface .