A time switching system using ATMEGA328 microcontroller towards solving problem of electrical power wastage

Published Online June 2019 in MECS DOI: 10.5815/ijigsp.2019.06.03

A switch is a device that interrupts the flow of an electric current in a circuit either automatically or manually. A switch is an electronic device that controls or directs the flow of electric current in a circuit. Typically, a switch allows or disallows the flow of electric current to a connected load. A switch is a binary device that either completely ON (CLOSE) or completely OFF (OPEN) an electrical circuit. There are basically two types of switches. These include mechanical and electronic switches. A mechanical switch makes a physical contact between two metal plates for the current to flow and separate from each other plate to interrupt the flow of current. On the other hand, an electronic switch is a device that switches an electrical circuit, interrupting the current or diverting it from one conductor to another. All mechanical switches are manually operated while electronic switches are automatically operated using a solid state device such as a microcontroller or a microprocessor. Generally, electronic switches are fasters in response than the mechanical switches. Among the electronic switches is a timing switch that controls the flow of an electric current on the basis of pre-set time by the user. A timing switch is an electronic device that controls the connection and disconnection of electrical appliances based on pre-set time. According to Reference [4] a timing switch is paramount in areas where the measurement of time is fundamental to successful operation without unpredictable human input. It is quite evident that for proper organization, events should be done in a specific time (Ref. [6]). A good timing switch is tasked to activate ON or OFF an event at a pre-defined time. It is quite useful in everyday life. Some advanced electronic timing switches are commonly used for military purposes. A timing switch is of great importance in microwave ovens, computer systems, school laboratory experiments, electrical heaters, to mention but a few.

This research design was involved two fundamental aspects of computer technology; the software design, and the hardware design. It was designed around a microcontroller chip (ATMEGA328). This is a timer that gives adjustable timing controls of appliances’ operations. The developed time switching (TS) system turned AC load ON or OFF with preset time and it was programmed using C programming language. According to Reference [7] C programming language as one of the high-level programming languages has now become a widely used professional language for various beneficial values. These values include: easy to learn and write, use English-like words and symbols, structured language that is problem-oriented, it produces efficient programs, it can handle low and high-level activities and it can be compiled on a variety of computer platforms.

The uniqueness of this switching system using ATMEGA328 microcontroller was in its functionalities to automatically switch ON an initially OFF electrical appliance and at the same time to automatically switch OFF initially ON appliance connected to its output after a preset time. The developed system was relatively cheap, reliable and easy to operate when comparing to power wastage and cost of electricity.

• II.    Research Motivation

• A.    Statement of the Problem

It has been observed at FCT College of Education, Zuba community that government officers leaving office’s electrical appliances such as fans, airconditioning (AC), refrigerators, television set and radio set ON after closing hours. This poor attitude had cost the institution millions of naira to settle the electricity bills and embarrassing the institution as the Power Holding of Nigeria (PHCN) officers disconnected the power supply.

The College community is characterized by electrical power wastage as many lighting bulbs, street-lights, electrical fans are always ON even when not needed. It is on these identified problems that this research focused on the design and implementation of a time switching (TS) system using the ATMEGA328 microcontroller. The time switching (TS) system had the capability to control the ON and OFF states of any electrical appliance connected to its output based on the pre-set time.

• B.    Research Justification

This research would help:

• 1.    Graduates would be creative and self-employed,

• 2.    Generation revenue to the government as youths that have electronic shops selling the developed time switching system is taxed;

• 3.    The problem of electrical power wastage could be tackled successfully,

• 4.    The cost of electricity bill payment by powering the appliances OFF when not in use would be solved.

• C.    Research Objectives

The specific objectives of this research are to:

• 1.    design of a time switching (TS) system using an atmega328 microcontroller

• 2.    implement the designed time switching system

• 3.    test the implemented time switching system

• III.    Literature Review

In the system, Reference [3] designed and built a circuit which mainly met the requirement of controlling the house appliances through any remote control device that was portable in the periphery of the room. The system was developed around a microcontroller (89c52) and IR remote transmitter. The developed system was able to control a load of excess energy from a remote area. A password to operate the system was also included. However, missing the remote control and obstruction of the signal were identified as problems to this design. Also, if the users could not remember the password, how to control the electrical load and prevent electrical power wastage becomes a problem. However, this new time switching system has the capability to store the pre-set time in an ATMEGA328 memory, and there was no problem of signal obstruction.

In Reference [2] a switching system was developed. The aim was to control electrical home appliances like fan, electric bulb using clap. A PIC18F2550 microcontroller and Adafruit TPA2012 (audio amplifier) were used to receive an input command from the users through a clap to control the electrical appliance. The developed system was able to control an electrical appliance. There was the likelihood of forgetting to clap so as to switch OFF the electrical appliances after use. Also, the PIC18F2550 microcontroller consumes more power and generates more heat than the ATMEGA328 microcontroller. However, the developed switching system would not require a clap rather it would operate the electrical appliance based on the pre-set ON and OFF times by the users.

According to Reference [5] energy consumption especially electricity was considered one of the most serious problems in households these days. It was because the amount of electricity consumed was more than the amount people actually need. This meant that there was an overuse of electricity which resulted from the inconvenience of moving to the switch to turn OFF the lighting point or any appliances and it was often that closing the light was forgettable. Reference [5] developed a switching device to turn appliances ON and OFF through the Internet on smart devices such as smartphones and tablets. The result indicated that the system was very effective with an uninterrupted connection. However, the system was ineffective where there were Internet connectivity problems and was not cost effective as smartphones are not cheap. This developed time switching system was cheaper than Reference [5] system as an Internet connection would not be required.