Web Controlled Relays Vs Reprogrammable Logic Circuits: A Discussion
by Vikram Kumar Digital marketing SEORelays are amazing devices in their own right. They are simply
electrically operated switches but when used creatively, you can create
all sorts of complicated functions and logics using simply relays.
Relays have found extensive use in many day to day applications and
simple fail safe measures.
However, they are also particularly
suitable for student robotics projects. Relays are great for such
applications since they are easy to learn and have no learning curve.
Many robotics components are a little complicated for a beginner to
grasp from the get go and relays are the only major exception (other
than obviously resistors, capacitors, etc. but they are certainly not as
versatile as relays).
Use in robotics
Your robotics
project can implement relays in a variety of different ways. But in
order to control them effectively, you might need to use a relay
controller. This is usually a dedicated circuit exclusively used to
control relays. If your implementation uses a number of relays, it may
be better to use a relay controller to exercise control over the device.
You can also leverage the power of the internet and use a web
controlled relay.
Web controlled relays are unique in that they
are basically IoT or Internet of Things devices. You can set predefined
circumstances that the system can check over the internet and operate
the relays accordingly. If you do not want to implement a full IoT
system, you can choose instead to simply send your commands over the
internet to the web controlled relay.
The different types of relays
Relays
can be of many categories; you can identify them by their
specifications, usually listed in their names themselves. A SPST relay
means that it is of a Single Pole Single Throw type, meaning that the
relay has one input port for a control line and one output port.
Similarly you can find DPDT relays which, you guessed it, have Double
Pole Double Throw configuration with two input lines and two output
lines. These systems can be combined in any number of ways and
increasingly complicated systems to create complex logic systems that
you can then use to initiate certain actions.
Relays as logic elements
Relays
being switches can be compared to transistors. Therefore, if you cannot
or do not want to implement control circuits, you can theoretically do
the entire thing using just relays. Relays can be used as logic devices
very easily but they simple cannot beat the portability and efficiency
of an integrated circuit that is consumes less power and can implement
more complicated logic systems with greater ease.
Why relays cannot replace IC transistors
Also
by using microcontrollers and other logic systems, you retain the
ability to reprogram the system if you design it that way. If you build
the logic using relays, you are basically hardcoding the logic itself
and will not be able to change or reprogram the logic without taking the
circuit apart. Therefore, you cannot really make a compelling argument
about using relays to build logic over a reprogrammable circuit board.
Good applications for relays
What
relays are good for however are high current or voltage applications
that cannot be directly controlled using microcontrollers or integrated
circuits. Think electric motors or other traction systems. They require
high current for operation and a microcontroller pins simply cannot
provide that kind of power without burning out the silicon. Using the
microcontroller to operate a relay which then switches the motor or even
controls the motor speed by modulating the current it flows is a better
choice.
We see that there are obvious benefits of using relay controllers and web controlled relay in any electronics project; student robotics project are particularly suited to web controlled relays that can be used to simplify circuitry and also teach basic programming. For applications that have large number of relays, you will have better success and ease with a Relay controller .
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Created on Dec 31st 1969 18:00. Viewed 0 times.