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LED Rainbow - RGB LED PWM Controller Construction - Easy To Build

LED Rainbow - RGB LED PWM Controller Construction - Easy To Build
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Step-by-step, easy to follow instructions on the building of a LED Rainbow RGB LED PWM Controller. Only a minimal amount of parts are needed, along with a PIC processor, and you can construct one of the most amazing LED controllers available.

The system is capable of driving either RGB LEDs, or individual Red, Green and Blue LEDs to produce stunning effects.

The bare PCB, kits of components, code necessary to program into the PIC controller are all available from the http://www.pcboard.ca/kits/led_rainbow/ support site at www.pcboard.ca.

Full details on the LED Rainbow, along with user guides, display sequence summaries, programming information for the PIC processor along with full customization details are all freely available on the support web site.

If you have a well stocked bench with components, you can easily build up this project in an afternoon.
 
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Step 1Background Information

Background Information
The LED Rainbow is a dedicated Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) controller which generates color changing effects with RGB LED lighting products. The circuit controls three outputs, each which has the ability to run an LED segment, and with three segments, is a natural for the control of RGB LED arrays.

Sequences are fully customizable and are contained in the microcontroller, which has the ability to strobe, cycle and fade the lighting, creating a massive palette of over 16 million colors using Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) technology. Each output has a resolution of 8-bits, which gives each color a range of 256 intensities and when the three colors are mixed together, a full rainbow of color combinations is possible.

With a minimal parts count, the LED Rainbow is very economical for the hobbyist to build, using industry standard components and running off of a standard 12v-15v power supply. The 2" (51mm) square board is a double sided construction with a detailed silk-screen which aids in the placement of the components.

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21 comments
Feb 1, 2012. 11:31 AMHugu says:
anyone already do the layout for de pcb?...

someone can share it? thank u!
Aug 24, 2011. 1:56 PMbkeaton says:
The pinouts on the schematic appear to be mislabeled. Pin 3 should be Vin and pin 1 should be Vout, Since the pins are reversed, I'm thinking that Vcc and Vdd should be reversed as well. Also, what voltage should appear at the output terminals?
Jul 9, 2011. 6:14 PMbkeaton says:
Can someone identify what type of cap C3 is? In the parts photo it looks to be a blue tantalum. In several other photos it looks like a brown mylar. Thank you.
Jul 10, 2011. 3:19 PMbkeaton says:
Great, thanks for the reply John.
Feb 16, 2011. 11:41 AMAnt101 says:
This is a great project, and the different effects are awesome :-)
It worked first time to my amazement!
I hope to install it somewhere permanent soon., like a kitchen glass splash back or behind the tv for mood lighting. Designing the pcb was a little tricky !
Thanks for sharing,
Jan 1, 2011. 4:09 PMAntikythera says:
What's the current output ?
Jan 1, 2011. 6:29 PMAntikythera says:
thats intense! no pun intended!
Nov 15, 2010. 8:38 PMhanelyp says:
Can we get a circuit schematic diagram?
Jun 11, 2010. 10:28 PMApplecore807 says:
Whats the maximum input power: voltage and amps? and whats the maximum output voltage and amps per color? thanks
Jun 4, 2010. 5:52 AMelarkangel says:
hi! i love this one but i dont see where can i find the board circuit :S can anyone help me whit this? i really wont to do this! thanks in advance! PS: i love this!
Mar 1, 2010. 1:43 PMemmanhello says:
Awready bought mine. It workz great. It make meh happy.
Jan 14, 2009. 7:02 AMjohn_ingham says:
With the program that goes into the microcontroller, is this available separately or must I pay for it and what type of microcontroller is being used?
Feb 3, 2009. 11:12 AMdazzamatazz says:
I have designed and built a control board like the one here it will operate between 6-32 volts dc and the chip is fully programmable with anything you want it to do with 3 strings of light at about 5 amps each string. i will be posting my instructable in a couple of weeks time after i build a new board.
Feb 1, 2009. 2:05 PMTweac-it says:
Is it possible to ramp up the board to output only 2 LED strings (each @ 12- 24V)? (I know NOTHING about electronics but am trying to learn) Can microcontroller be programmed to have string "A" slowly get brighter over 30 minutes (to max output) then have string "B" do the same and finally reverse the procedure 10 hours later?
Jan 28, 2009. 12:57 PMoxy-totton says:
the site you gave has inactive hyperlinks for the ordering information so i was wondering if you know of any other LED controllers that would do the exact same thing

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Author:john.kerr(PCBoard.ca)