Basic Electronics Talks I - DC Power
From CCCKC
Basic Electronics Talks I - DC Power
This is the first of a series of talks intended to gave an introduction to basic electronics. The basic idea is to introduce basic electrical components one at a time, discuss what they are, what they do, and some examples of how they can be used. I was thinking we could start simply at the battery/voltage source and introduce some simple electrical properties and conventions then move on to resistors, capacitors, etc. up through transistors, logic gates, FPGAs, to however advanced we would want to get. We'd probably cover a a single component in each talk and we'll probably have some hands on stuff to build on a breadbord for each as well.
We plan on giving one 30 minute talk every other week at 8:15pm after the Thursday general meeting. The first talk is scheduled for March 26th 2009.
This first talk will cover the DC power supply and will give a basic introduction to some fundamental electronics concepts. This is a primer of sorts for the other talks because a basic understanding of the fundamentals should further your understanding of the subsequent talks. Here's a tentative outline of what we'll cover:
Basic Concepts:
- What is voltage?
- What is current?
- How does current flow?
- What is ground?
- Basic schematic symbols for supplies
Application:
- How are current and voltage related (Ohm's Law V = I*R)?
- What is power (P = V*I)?
- What is shorting and why is it bad?
Examples:
- Typical battery types/capacities
- DC power supplies
Activity:
- Making a simple DC regulator for your projects
We'll construct a simple 7805 based voltage regulator powered off of a 9-Volt battery at the end of this talk. I'll have breadboards and wire kits available for $6 each (the wire kit isn't needed for this first project and I'll probably invest in some bulk solid core wire for people to use on the next project). I'll also have a kit of parts for this lab for $3. This kit will include:
- A 7805 Voltage Regulator (+5 Volts Output)
- A 9 Volt Battery
- A 9 Volt Battery Clip
- A 330 Ohm Resistor
- An LED for indicating power is applied (red, green, or yellow)
- 2 10 uF Capacitors
Please contact Craig Berscheidt <craig.berscheidt@gmail.com> if you will be attending the talk and need a breadboard and/or kit of parts so we can get a basic idea of how many we'll need.
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