DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF MICROCONTROLLER TIMER SOCKET OUTLET

DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF MICROCONTROLLER TIMER SOCKET OUTLET

CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND INFORMATION
As the world becomes concerned with conserving electric power and the fuels that generate electricity, there is a growing need for the conscientious homeowner to keep an eye on and minimize their power usage.
Vampire or standby power is loosely defined as the “electrical power consumed by appliances while they are switched off (but are designed to draw some power) or in a standby mode. This only occurs because some devices claimed to be “switched off” on the electronic surface, but are in a different state from switching off at the plug, or disconnecting from the power point”. Switching off at the power point is effective enough to control the vampire power, there is no need to disconnect all the devices from the power point [1].
Some devices utilize vampire power in a useful manner to provide persistence features such as maintaining clock settings between active sessions, convenience features such as powering the necessary hardware to respond to remote controls, and to eliminate long initialization times by keeping the hardware in a semi-powered state. Other devices have no beneficial use of vampire power, such as a powered but disconnected mobile device charger or an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) with no active system connected.
With advancement of technology, things are becoming simpler and easier for us. Automation is the use of control systems and information technologies to reduce the need for human work in the production of goods and services [2].
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The case of the MICROCONTROLLER TIMER SOCKET OUTLET helps in conserving the
vampire power. Electrical and electronic appliances are connected to the socket outlet and
programmed to be in power for a specific duration based on the user’s discretion. This goes a long
way in conserving energy as the device(s) is/are disconnected after the specified duration. It is very
useful in cases whereby the user has to keep in touch of what he or she had connected earlier and
due to the multitasking nature of human beings, we tend to forget what had been connected to
attend to other things in the household or wherever we find ourselves.

1.2 AIM AND OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT
The aim of this project is to;
Design and construct an automatic socket outlet with an operational timer incorporated into it using
a microcontroller.
The objectives of this project are as follows:
1. To conserve electrical power domestically.
2. To reduce and subsequently prevent electrical hazards in the home front.
3. To control the use of electrical power domestically.
4. Through conservation and control of electrical power, electricity bills are reduced.

DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF MICROCONTROLLER TIMER SOCKET OUTLET