PLC based energy saver

Published on 18 May 2022. Written by Arihant Sethia

The importance of saving energy has been in the priority book for over a decade now. With non-renewable resources running out fast it is important to save every bit of power. From government-level campaigns to rules, a lot of things have come out for a decade now. But still, most of us forget to switch off the lights when we exit a room. Although not done by knowing a lot of energy is wasted in this manner every day. So we are going to tackle this issue with the help of PLC and some sensors.

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SLNOTE


The PLC or the programmable logic controller comes with a lot of applications in our daily life. From controlling big manufacturing processes to the net power used in a small household the PLCs are of limitless abilities. This digital computer works on already set thresholds and characters and makes life easy for people. Today our energy saver will use the abilities of a PLC to save the energy otherwise wasted. This can be applied to even an office or school atmosphere. We will now look at the components used in the system and how it works to save energy.

Project implementation:

The energy-saving system we are building today will switch the power on and off based on the number of people in the room. Once everyone leaves the room the lights and fans are automatically turned off. Likewise, when someone enters the room the power is switched back on. A couple of IR sensors are employed in this system to find the presence of people in the room. Once the IR sensor doesn't sense the presence in the room the PLC switches off the input power completely. The power input to all the devices is given through the PLC to ensure it is turned on and off based on the presence of people in the room.  The power supply is given as DC and this is converted into an AC with the help of an SMPS.

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Programmable logic controller (PLC):

The PLCs are small logic controlled digital computers. There are used in a variety of domestic and industrial setup. Today there is a variety of these available with varying numbers of input and output ports.

IR sensors:

IR sensors play a major role in this system. The sensors used here sensing the movement and presence of people in the room to switch input power on and off. The number of sensors should be based on the area of the room.

SMPS:

The SMPS is an electronic device that performs switching of the current. In this way, DC from an input is converted into AC. This is in turn connected to the PLC so that the input is given based on the message from IR sensors.

SLDYK
Kit required to develop PLC based energy saver:

• PLC
• IR sensor
• SMPS

Technologies you will learn by working on PLC based energy saver:

• PLC

Any Questions?