Ducati Sporting Club UK > General > Idle Chat > Techy, electrical type question - IR transmitter

[TP]

Originally Posted by domski

OK, so what I want to know is... what do I need to build an IR transmitter - assuming that this is what I need to set off my lap timer.

At Brands in the pit garage, we could set it off with a TV remote.

So can I go down to the local electrical shop and buy some bits to make my own beacon??

If so, what will I need??

I can buy a 'proper' one for £40, but no doubt it's made from 50p's worth of parts.

Thanks ta

Well first up, you need a 'receiver' not a transmitter, the beacon itself transmits the signal - the laptimer recieves it to trigger the timer.

Are you familiar with soldering, PCB (printed circuit board) design? Ok, there might be some PCB designs already on the web that will suffice but are you going to be comfortable soldering it all together? Given that too much heat will kill a component, and too little won't make a good enough electrical connection.

Hrmm?

It wouldn't actually be that hard I don't think - if you know how to do all those pieces. I was an electronics technician in a former life so if you're super keen I could probably help. Just not sure if I'd have the time really.

You're right, the cost of the components would be quite cheap - it's never really the parts you pay for when buying this stuff ... you're usually paying for the knowledge that some super geeky dude has when he dreams up this stuff.

twpd has experience of PCB design, a lot more than me, so he may e of some assistance. Antonye is also pretty handy in this area - fill your boots mate.