Electricity is an integral part of the daily life of modern society. One of the most important aspects of a comfortable stay at home is lighting. To turn on or off the light in the room, you can use a special sensor that responds to sounds. Recently, such acoustic devices are in great demand, since they make life easier for households.
What is a sound sensor on and off lighting
The sensor is a device equipped with a special design with a built-in bulb. There are modifications in the form of a cartridge, but the most common varieties are in the form of a small box made of plastic.
Reacts to sound signals, thanks to which it is possible to control the lighting in an apartment or a country private house. The role of the trigger sound signal most often is clapping.
Sound sensors can be programmed for various other sounds, because not everyone is comfortable clapping their hands, for example, hands are often busy or dirty.
The advantage of installing a sound sensor is also to reduce energy costs, as many households are lazy and do not turn off the light in the room if they are not needed. In addition, moving from room to room will become more comfortable and safer, since you can turn off lighting devices just before the exit. According to statistics at home, people often get injured due to the turned off light in the dark.
Types of acoustic light sensors
There are several varieties of sound sensors that are used in domestic conditions.
- Sensor equipped with photocells. It automatically monitors the level of illumination in the room automatically and, if necessary, turns off and turns on the lighting itself.
- Standard sound devices.
- A universal high-frequency sensor that responds not only to sound waves, but also to the movement of a person in a room.
Each of these varieties has its own technical features, as well as advantages and disadvantages of use.
Before buying a high-frequency sensor, you need to decide what it is for and what its goals are. The choice should be balanced, since equipping the house with such technologies is not a cheap pleasure.
Device purpose
Typically, such equipment is installed in different rooms for different purposes.
- In rooms where a person rarely appears, for example, a pantry, a bedroom for guests, etc.
- In warehouses and other industrial premises, where it is not always possible to independently turn on the lighting using a stationary switch.
- Every year, more and more often, the function of the "smart room" is equipped in office rooms, government offices, large concert halls, etc.
- In summer cottages, in garages, sheds, basements, as well as in places where it is not possible to install an ordinary traditional switch.
There is not always an urgent need to install such technologies at home. But if the household wants to make their home more comfortable for living, economical and technological, it is better not to find a way.
It is recommended to install devices not only due to energy saving and unobstructed movement around the house at night - this approach significantly increases the working resources of lighting devices and bulbs.
Principle of operation
Acoustic sensors for lighting control according to the principle of operation are divided into two types:
- The device responds to any noise - this is the most common form.
- Equipment that responds to sound commands. The range of such models is small, as a rule, home-made sensors are installed at home.
Devices that respond to any noise
Acoustic sensors are most often installed in corridors or stairwell entrances. During movement, a person must make sounds that are recorded by the sensor. Collaboration with lighting is based on the following principles:
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The shutdown delay function can be built into the sensor by the manufacturer or supplemented after purchase by yourself.
In the first case, the system can also be equipped with a delay function, but not a shutdown, but a turn on. This approach reduces the number of false positives for lamps, for example, with short-term noise.
Equipment that responds to commands
We are talking about louder sounds, for example, a distinct clap. The working relay of such a device is an ordinary noise relay, only the threshold for its operation is yours and it is divided into two or more commands.
Example: if you clap your hands once - the light comes on, clap two times - all the lights went out. It can be installed in residential premises, but in a house with young children it is not always convenient to clap or make any other loud sounds.
Technically more difficult to implement, the device can respond to sound commands. For example, how the browser responds to the phrase “Ok Google.”
Criterias of choice
Specialists have developed several rules and recommendations, listening to which you can choose the right sound sensor to turn on lighting devices in specific cases:
- If the equipment is to be installed outdoors, the device must be equipped with an IP degree of protection of at least 55, and preferably 65. If the sensor is under a canopy and moisture does not get on it, you can limit yourself to protection class 44. If the device is intended for rooms where there is no increased humidity and dust, the degree of protection can be even less.
- Accounting for the power of lighting devices. When installing a sound sensor, it is also important to choose the right lamp power. It is not difficult to do this, it is enough to find out the power of the main lighting device in the room and choose a sensor whose power is with a small margin.
- The radius of action is also of great importance, since this factor allows you to take into account the maximum interval to which it will respond. As a rule, this indicator ranges from 6-50 meters. For small rooms, you need to choose sensors with minimal performance.
- Photo relay equipment.Most modern models are additionally equipped with them, since this unit can further reduce energy costs.
Even when buying, you should pay attention to the manufacturer, since often it is from this indicator that the device's service life and correct operation depend.
Advantages and disadvantages of a sound sensor for turning on the light
Like any other electrical appliance, acoustic light sensors have their advantages and disadvantages. The advantages of the equipment include:
- A tangible reduction in energy costs and the acquisition of new lamps, since it has already been scientifically confirmed that the potential of lighting elements is significantly increased.
- This is not to say that the cost is very small, but to equip the house with such technologies is affordable for families from any category of the population.
- Large radius of action, which allows you to pre-recognize sounds and turn on lighting in a timely manner.
In addition, turning off the light does not occur immediately after the person leaves, but after 20-30 seconds. This is a significant plus, as a person will not be unexpectedly in pitch darkness.
Among the shortcomings, it is worth noting the impossibility of installing in noisy rooms, as well as a large number of false positives in budget models of acoustic sensors for switching on the light.
