IR Remote Lamp Controller
Thomas Chia
Microcontroller Based Project Proposal
Western Washington University
2006-2007
Introduction
The IR remote control has become a family room staple since its conception in the 1950’s.
From televisions to cable boxes, people instinctively reach for the remote for the operation of
these devices because it made their operation more efficient and convenient. But one electronic
device in the living room that is still wildly controlled manually is the lamp. Therefore the
proposed project is an IR remote lamp controller unit. A standard lamp can be plugged into the
unit and the unit will then plug into the wall outlet. The user will then be able to turn the lamp
on and off, control its brightness and set a sleep timer with a standard universal remote. In the
idle state the unit will display the time since it must be in plane sight of the user. This unit
should add another level of convenience to the family room that is long over due.
Unit Description
A preliminary sketch of the unit is shown in figure 1. As can be seen from figure 1 the electrical
chords will be coming and going from the back of the unit.
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To Wall Outlet
From Lamp
7 Segment
Display
IR Reciever
On/Off
Sleep Timer
Brighter/Dimmer
Figure 1. Preliminary Sketch of the IR Remote Lamp Controller
As mentioned in the introduction the current time will be displayed in the idle state, and when
the “brighter” or “dimmer” button is pressed it will show a value corresponding its brightness.
When the sleep timer is pressed it will also show an appropriate display, very similar to a
television. The volume up and down buttons on the remote will control the light intensity, the
sleep button will control the sleep function and the power button will control the turn the light on
and off. Figure 2 shows the functional block diagram of the lamp controller unit unit.
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120VAC Wall
Outlet
IR Remote Lamp Controller
Manual Control
Buttons
DC Power
Source
IR Receiver
Traic
Control/DC
Power Supply
Circuitry
MCU
IR Signal
7 segment
Display
Incandescent
Lamp
Figure 2. Functional Block Diagram of the IR Remote Lamp Controller
Benefits
Being able to dim a light source cuts down on power consumption, and allows greater flexibility
of lighting conditions. The user also does not need to buy expensive three-way light bulbs which
only have three brightness levels to choose from. Being able to control a lamp via a familiar
device like a universal remote adds convenience while still being user friendly.
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Competing Products
There currently are remote light dimmer products available for dimming lamps, but none of
which have the clock display feature. Two products currently on market which closes resembles
IR remote lamp controller are the Monster Light Dimmer Module and the Lutron Table Lamp
Dimmer with Remote. The Monster Light Dimmer Module retails for $99.99 USD shown in
figure 3, can controlled via RF or IR. This unit however can only be remote controlled with the
two of the company’s remotes; the Z-wave RF controller which retails for $60.00 USD or the
monster Home Theater Remote which retails for $599.99 USD. The Lutron Table Lamp
Dimmer with Remote is shown in figure 4. As can be seen from figure 4 this unit comes with its
own IR remote and retails for $99.99 USD. Though these two products are very similar to the
proposed project, they do not have the 7 segment display which I feel will give it a distinct edge
by making it more user friendly.
Figure 3. Monster Light Dimmer Module
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Figure 4. Lutron Table Lamp Dimmer with Remote
Development
Upon approval of the project, the unit will be developed using the using the MC9S12DP256
evaluation board because of its availability and familiarity. The software devolvement tools that
will be used are the Noral Debugger and CodeWrite; all of which are provided by Western
Washington University. The first step of the project development will be the construction and
testing of hardware. Once this is verified the software will be developed and tested. The last
phase will be the assembly and final testing of the prototype.
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Demonstration
The finial product will be demonstrated at final project demonstrations in June of 2007 in ET 340
at Western Washington University. A typical incandescent lamp will be used as well as a typical
universal remote. Observers will also be able to experiment with the final product.
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