- Wideband SWR meter - Transmission lines have a certain characteristic impedance, typically 50 or 75 Ohm for coaxial cable, and about 300 to 450 Ohm for open-wire balanced feedline. Such an impedance stating means that the cable is naturally suited to carry a ratio of voltage to current according to this impedance - for example, a 50 Ohm coaxial cable should carry 1A for every 50V applied to it, and the phase of voltage and current should be the same.
- Switch-out SWR Bridge - The circuit uses a double pole changeover switch (Measure or Operate), a SWR C/O switch Forward & Reverse, three 50 ohm resistors rated at 1/4 RF power, one RF diode (OA81), two 1nF capacitors, a series meter calibration variable resistor (10K) and a meter (100uA).
- Power and SWR Meter - The circuit uses bright LED's to display the power and SWR in binary coded format. This results in a very compact test instrument.The SWR/Power meter is powered by two internal "AAA" battery cells. The meter automatically powers itself down after a period of inactivity to conserve battery life.
- A Simple SWR Meter For QRP - This circuit should work with QRP rigs in the HF bands, although I have made no attempt to try it on other than 20 and 40.
- A Wifi (V)SWR Meter - The circuit on this page serves as a Voltage Standing Wave Ratio meter or VSWR meter for the VHF-UHF-SHF frequency range. This includes the Wifi (802.11b/g), 2m, 70cm and 13cm Radio Amateur bands.
SWR Meter Circuits #01
Variable DC Power Supply 5-15V
This is a variable DC power supply that is similar I used to power my FM Transmitter. After suffering long problems with mains hum, this design using a pi filtered C-L-C approach. This circuit offers excellent ripple rejection.
See at the above schematic, the specific inductance of the ferrite (core)is important. A core should be chosen to work within the specific frequency as stated by the manufacturer. L1 is a powder core and has 32 turns of 0.75mm wire.
The transformer of this Variable DC Power Supply has a 240V primary and has a secondary rated 24V at 2A. The bridge rectifier contains 4 diodes, their current rating needs to be high with respect to the transformers output current; if not the current may damage the diodes. I used MR751 which is rated 6 amps, but another good choice is 1N5400. C1 is the mainfiltering capacitor, the supply is further smoothed by the combination of L1 and C3. C2 and C4 are decoupling capacitors; their action further reduce ripple factor.
The regulator, U1 utilizes the action of zener diode ZD1 which is in parallel with the potentiometer, R1. The tuning action of R1 produces a variable regulator output. The output voltage is variable from the regulator output to the regulator output plus the zener voltage. E.G. A 7805 regulator and 10V zener give an output adjustable from 5 to 15 Volts. The regulator may be changed to provide different output voltages as may the zener. the zener should be rated a minimum of 1.3 Watts. All the parts should be available at local electronic shops.
Parts List of the Variable DC Power Supply:
T1 Transformer 10:1 Secondary 24V @ 2A
BR1 Bridge Rectifier 50V PIV 2A rating
C1 4700u (35V)
C2 0.001u
C3 2200u (35V)
C4 0.001u
C5 4.7u (25)
C6 0.01u
R1 10k potentiometer
L1 see text
U1 7805 N.B. This may be changed for different output voltages e.g. 7812 for higher output voltage
ZD1 15V zener @ 1.3W
More Variable DC Power Supply
Uninterruptible Alarm Power Supply
Although this Power Supply was designed for the Modular Burglar Alarm - it has other applications. It provides an output of 12-volts - at a current of up to 1-amp. In the event of a mains failure - the back-up battery takes over immediately. And when mains power is restored - the battery recharges automatically.
The 7805 needs the larger heatsink because it has to dissipate a lot of energy - especially when called upon to recharge a flat battery. Its heatsink is at 9v1 - and must NOT be connected to ground. The 7812 never has to dissipate more than 2-watts - so its heatsink can be smaller.
Many of the components, which are shown lying flat on the board, are actually mounted standing upright. The links are bare copper wire on the component side of the board. The heatsinks are folded strips of aluminium, about 2mm thick. Use a well-insulated panel mounted fuse holder for the mains supply to the transformer - and fit it with a 1-amp fuse.
Use a genuine alarm type back-up battery. They are maintenance-free. Their terminals can be held at 13v8 for many years - with no apparent ill effects. They have a life expectancy of about five years. However, they tend not to recover from a very deep discharge. If you wish - you can use a smaller or larger capacity battery.
Uninterruptible Alarm Power Supply
24 VDC Power Supply with maximum Current 5A
Here's a 24 VDC power supply circuit with voltage input 20-30 Vcc. This power supply produces voltage output 13.5 VDC maximum current 5A.
The features capability of this 24 VDC power supply are protection against short circuit current, over temperature, over output voltage, and inversion polarity.
See 24 VDC Power Supply schematic below.
Parts list of the 24 VDC Power Supply
C1 = 33uF 35V
C2 = 10 nf 50V
C3 = 10nF 50V
C4 = 33uF 35V
D1 = 1N5400
D2-D3 = 1N4004
D4 = Zener Diode 15V 5W
IC1 = IC2 = 7812
Fuse = 5A
Simple Rain Detector
Here's a simple rain detector circuit. It uses a sensor made of a small piece of etched PC board and a simple SCR circuit to detect rain and sound a buzzer. The SCR could also be used to activate a relay, turn on a lamp, or send a signal to a security system.
Rain Sensor and Alarm
The sensor made of a small piece of PC board etched to the pattern showen in the schematic. The traces should be very close to each other, but never touching. A large spiral pattern would also work. A loud buzzer used as an alarm.
Rain Detector Parts List
R1 = 1K 1/4 W Resistor
R2 = 680 Ohm 1/4 W Resistor
D1 = 1N4001 Silicon Diode
BZ1 = 12V Buzzer
S1 = SPST Switch
SCR1 = C106B1 SCR 106CY
SENSOR = See Notes
MISC = Board, Wire, Case, PC Board (For Sensor)
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