Meanwell LDD driver: for those who want to dim to 0 using Arduino - Page 131

Krazie4Acans · 07/26/2015, 01:45 PM

The ldd will be slightly less efficient but add long as the LEDs you use are OK with the 1000mA that will be going through them then it will work fine.

Kaiserman1967 · 07/26/2015, 01:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Krazie4Acans

The ldd will be slightly less efficient

What do you mean by less efficient? Just they will use more electricity? Get hotter? The bulbs can handle 1500mA, so they'll be fine at 1A.

Krazie4Acans · 07/26/2015, 01:57 PM

The ldd will use a little more power internally. This does result in more heat. But I wouldn't say they get hot. The most I have ever felt is luke warm from any of mine.

perkint · 07/26/2015, 04:59 PM

To add to what Krazie has said, looking at the LDD data sheet (seems to be something strange going on as I actually found it difficult to get ATM - maybe because it's midnight on a Sunday???) but dropping from 14 x 3V LEDs to 13, on a 48V PSU loses you about 2 or 3% efficiency, which as Krazie says, will become heat. But if you are treading that close to the edge, you need to rethink your design!!

Tim

Kaiserman1967 · 07/26/2015, 06:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by perkint

if you are treading that close to the edge, you need to rethink your design!!

Tim

You mean that I want to run 14 LEDs? I thought it was best to be as close to using all the Voltage possible. My design is still a work in progress, so it's flexible.

Are you saying I should stick with 13 per driver Tim?

Krazie4Acans · 07/26/2015, 06:07 PM

You do want to run the ldd close to Max. Just don't forget that the ldd uses about 3.2 volts for itself so don't leave that out of your calculations.

perkint · 07/27/2015, 06:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kaiserman1967

You mean that I want to run 14 LEDs? I thought it was best to be as close to using all the Voltage possible. My design is still a work in progress, so it's flexible.

Are you saying I should stick with 13 per driver Tim?

13 or 14 is good. The nearer you run the LDDs to their Max voltage the more efficient they are. But what I meant is if the 2 or 3% efficiency makes a big difference to your system, maybe you are running it a little too close to the edge. 2 or 3% is generally so little you will never notice. Better to be as efficient as possible since it means less wasted power and less heat, but for that little difference I would go with whatever fits my design and not worry about it

Tim

Krazie4Acans · 07/27/2015, 08:12 AM

Just to help put this into perspective, I have a couple of LDD's that are only running 4 - 3w LEDs on a 48v supply that LDD does get much warmer than the rest of the LDD's that are running a higher load. That said it still works just fine and is nothing to be worried about.

Personally I would be more worried about going over the max LED count and not under it.

Kaiserman1967 · 07/29/2015, 07:05 AM

Does anyone have any of O2's 4 up (or bigger) boards they'd like to sell? O2 doesn't have any right now and I'm in need of a board that will handle at least 4 more drivers.

Dmantz1 · 07/29/2015, 07:42 PM

Kaiserman - Where in Ohio are you located?

Kaiserman1967 · 07/30/2015, 09:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dmantz1

Kaiserman - Where in Ohio are you located?

Wooster.

iced98lx · 08/01/2015, 04:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kaiserman1967

Does anyone have any of O2's 4 up (or bigger) boards they'd like to sell? O2 doesn't have any right now and I'm in need of a board that will handle at least 4 more drivers.

I've got some 5 up's kicking around. They're SUPER old though (no sinks for having the lights go out with no signal etc). How many do you need?

Kaiserman1967 · 08/02/2015, 06:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iced98lx

I've got some 5 up's kicking around. They're SUPER old though (no sinks for having the lights go out with no signal etc). How many do you need?

I'm actually getting another 6 up from O2, but thanks!

iced98lx · 08/02/2015, 11:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kaiserman1967

I'm actually getting another 6 up from O2, but thanks!

No problem, be sure and post some the completed project!

Kaiserman1967 · 08/02/2015, 03:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iced98lx

No problem, be sure and post some the completed project!

I'll certainly do that, but it won't be "all that and a bag of chips".

Just using a 6" X 4' U-channel piece of aluminum for my heatsink. I used a 3" for my last light and it barely got warm to the touch. Of course it was only 56 watts and this one is going to be between 210 and 340 watts (Haven't decided how many LED's I'm going to use). But this aluminum probably weighs more almost triple the 3" piece. It is going to go on a 120 gal (once I find one), but will take temporary residence over my 55 gal until then.

Right now I have 28 royal blue, 40 2800k warm white, 14 uv between 405-420 nm, and up to 10 green. Trying to decide if I need any 6500k bulbs to go with the 2800, or just get more 2800 bulbs.

Oh, they are all 5w bulbs running at 1A so about 3.1 watts per LED give or take a tenth or so.

Suggestions are welcome!

theatrus · 08/02/2015, 05:41 PM

I personally prefer the higher CRI neutral whites, or a cool + PC Amber combo.

Kaiserman1967 · 08/03/2015, 06:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kaiserman1967

I'll certainly do that, but it won't be "all that and a bag of chips".

Just using a 6" X 4' U-channel piece of aluminum for my heatsink. I used a 3" for my last light and it barely got warm to the touch. Of course it was only 56 watts and this one is going to be between 210 and 340 watts (Haven't decided how many LED's I'm going to use). But this aluminum probably weighs more almost triple the 3" piece. It is going to go on a 120 gal (once I find one), but will take temporary residence over my 55 gal until then.

Right now I have 28 royal blue, 40 2800k warm white, 14 uv between 405-420 nm, and up to 10 green. Trying to decide if I need any 6500k bulbs to go with the 2800, or just get more 2800 bulbs.

Oh, they are all 5w bulbs running at 1A so about 3.1 watts per LED give or take a tenth or so.

Suggestions are welcome!

Forgot to mention this is primarily a reef tank with soft and stony coral as well as a couple clown, tang and cardinals. And an anemone that just split cuz I didn't clean when I was supposed to.

It was almost as big as a basketball!!

zachts · 08/03/2015, 06:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kaiserman1967

Forgot to mention this is primarily a reef tank with soft and stony coral as well as a couple clown, tang and cardinals. And an anemone that just split cuz I didn't clean when I was supposed to.

It was almost as big as a basketball!!

but now you have two that will soon be as big as a basket ball

Kaiserman1967 · 08/15/2015, 01:17 PM

I can't seem to find an definitive answers on Google. Does anyone know if I can run 1A of current through each pair in a Cat 6 ethernet cable? It has 4/23 on it which I would think stood for 4 pair 23 AWG, but I don't know for sure. Going to be about 6-8 ft. run from the LEDs to the driver board, unless mounting on top of the light would be better? Just want to make sure the drivers and board stay dry.

theatrus · 08/15/2015, 01:28 PM

You'll have a 0.4 volt drop (and 0.4W of heat) over the 16 ft round trip assuming 23AWG.

J'canReefMan · 09/13/2015, 06:42 PM

Hi Guys,

Here is my O2Surplus inspired LDD-H board. It is configured for a Bluefish Mini and includes a temp controlled fan using a PIC MCU. It was created using DIPTrace and is my first attempt so please be kind. Please critique and suggest improvements.

theatrus · 09/13/2015, 09:04 PM

- Add a thermal relief to the GND pin on the PIC.
- Is R1/D1 a Zener regulator? I'd avoid and use any ole LDO. MCP1700 or similar is great.
- C1 should go closer to the Vcc pin.
- What's the voltage input range? Do you need the SCW?
- Add an ICSP header for the PIC or else you're locked into one firmware.

J'canReefMan · 09/14/2015, 08:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by theatrus

- Add a thermal relief to the GND pin on the PIC.
- Is R1/D1 a Zener regulator? I'd avoid and use any ole LDO. MCP1700 or similar is great.
- C1 should go closer to the Vcc pin.
- What's the voltage input range? Do you need the SCW?
- Add an ICSP header for the PIC or else you're locked into one firmware.

Got you on the thermal relief and C1. For my application the input is 24 volts but I used the SCW to provide a plug and play way getting a regulated 12V output from a wide range of input voltages (Thanks O2Surplus). The PIC will get a header and i plan to implement a way to dim/kill the lights if the temp passes a set threshold or the fan fails (open to advise here).

J'canReefMan · 09/22/2015, 09:21 PM

Ok,

This is the finalized LDD-H based driver board I've been working on. I created it because i needed something to fit in the hood of a BioCube 8gal and still give several channels of control in addition to being scale-able for larger systems as well. I didn't re-invent the wheel but took inspiration from the contributions of others on this forum.
The board is just under 10cm x 10cm and is designed to interface with popular Bluefish Mini and the fan is controlled by an Attiny25 which gets its input from a LM35 temp sensor. The Bluefish and Attiny can be ommited however and everything controlled by a Arduino based controller. I use DipTrace which is not compatible with Eagle but I can share the Gerber files with anyone interested once I have verified functionality. Anyone here ever used DirtyPCB for their boards?

theatrus · 09/22/2015, 09:57 PM

DirtyPCB is not bad. It's exactly as advertised

I generally use OSHPark as its really consistent and mostly sources from US board houses.

Also, are you reading the tach signal from the fan? Might as well wire it up with a pull-up.

08/02/2015, 05:41 PM	#3266
theatrus 100-mile-commuter Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: almost nevada Posts: 4,721	I personally prefer the higher CRI neutral whites, or a cool + PC Amber combo. __________________ Custom electronics purveyor. blueAcro.com Current Tank Info: 90g SPS+mixed reef (10 yrs): LEDBrick LEDs, 40g custom sump, Ca reactor, chiller, Vortech, lots of custom electronics

08/15/2015, 01:28 PM	#3270
theatrus 100-mile-commuter Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: almost nevada Posts: 4,721	You'll have a 0.4 volt drop (and 0.4W of heat) over the 16 ft round trip assuming 23AWG. __________________ Custom electronics purveyor. blueAcro.com Current Tank Info: 90g SPS+mixed reef (10 yrs): LEDBrick LEDs, 40g custom sump, Ca reactor, chiller, Vortech, lots of custom electronics

09/13/2015, 09:04 PM	#3272
theatrus 100-mile-commuter Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: almost nevada Posts: 4,721	- Add a thermal relief to the GND pin on the PIC. - Is R1/D1 a Zener regulator? I'd avoid and use any ole LDO. MCP1700 or similar is great. - C1 should go closer to the Vcc pin. - What's the voltage input range? Do you need the SCW? - Add an ICSP header for the PIC or else you're locked into one firmware. __________________ Custom electronics purveyor. blueAcro.com Current Tank Info: 90g SPS+mixed reef (10 yrs): LEDBrick LEDs, 40g custom sump, Ca reactor, chiller, Vortech, lots of custom electronics

09/22/2015, 09:57 PM	#3275
theatrus 100-mile-commuter Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: almost nevada Posts: 4,721	Meanwell LDD driver: for those who want to dim to 0 using Arduino DirtyPCB is not bad. It's exactly as advertised I generally use OSHPark as its really consistent and mostly sources from US board houses. Also, are you reading the tach signal from the fan? Might as well wire it up with a pull-up. __________________ Custom electronics purveyor. blueAcro.com Current Tank Info: 90g SPS+mixed reef (10 yrs): LEDBrick LEDs, 40g custom sump, Ca reactor, chiller, Vortech, lots of custom electronics

07/26/2015, 01:45 PM	#3251
Krazie4Acans Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Posts: 360	The ldd will be slightly less efficient but add long as the LEDs you use are OK with the 1000mA that will be going through them then it will work fine.

07/26/2015, 01:57 PM	#3253
Krazie4Acans Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Posts: 360	The ldd will use a little more power internally. This does result in more heat. But I wouldn't say they get hot. The most I have ever felt is luke warm from any of mine.

07/26/2015, 04:59 PM	#3254
perkint Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Robin hood country, UK Posts: 817	To add to what Krazie has said, looking at the LDD data sheet (seems to be something strange going on as I actually found it difficult to get ATM - maybe because it's midnight on a Sunday???) but dropping from 14 x 3V LEDs to 13, on a 48V PSU loses you about 2 or 3% efficiency, which as Krazie says, will become heat. But if you are treading that close to the edge, you need to rethink your design!! Tim

07/26/2015, 06:07 PM	#3256
Krazie4Acans Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Posts: 360	You do want to run the ldd close to Max. Just don't forget that the ldd uses about 3.2 volts for itself so don't leave that out of your calculations.

07/27/2015, 08:12 AM	#3258
Krazie4Acans Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Posts: 360	Just to help put this into perspective, I have a couple of LDD's that are only running 4 - 3w LEDs on a 48v supply that LDD does get much warmer than the rest of the LDD's that are running a higher load. That said it still works just fine and is nothing to be worried about. Personally I would be more worried about going over the max LED count and not under it.

07/29/2015, 07:05 AM	#3259
Kaiserman1967 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: Ohio Posts: 28	Does anyone have any of O2's 4 up (or bigger) boards they'd like to sell? O2 doesn't have any right now and I'm in need of a board that will handle at least 4 more drivers.

07/29/2015, 07:42 PM	#3260
Dmantz1 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: NC Posts: 61	Kaiserman - Where in Ohio are you located?

08/15/2015, 01:17 PM	#3269
Kaiserman1967 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: Ohio Posts: 28	I can't seem to find an definitive answers on Google. Does anyone know if I can run 1A of current through each pair in a Cat 6 ethernet cable? It has 4/23 on it which I would think stood for 4 pair 23 AWG, but I don't know for sure. Going to be about 6-8 ft. run from the LEDs to the driver board, unless mounting on top of the light would be better? Just want to make sure the drivers and board stay dry.