DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF

A SHADOW DETECTOR ALARM USING INFRARED

BY
UKAEGBU CHIMA E.
13EH/0128/EE

Introduction

This is a project work on the design and construction of a

shadow detector circuit that produces a loud beep when
somebody crosses a protected area or door. The circuit is
highly sensitive and can detect the shadow of the moving
person from a distance of 1 meter. It does not require an
aligned light beam to switch it into operation. It is
portable and can be placed anywhere for monitoring
properties and certain protected areas of an environment.
This device could be used to can sense a moving shadow
in a confined area. It can be used to protect things from
theft by giving off a loud alarm when somebody
approaches the unit, thereby aborting the attempt of
theft. The circuit uses the light sensing property of the
Photo diode

Operation

The transmitter module of the circuit generates current drive for the
Infra Red light Emitting diode LED1 and LED2. In the transmitter the
current through the LED1 and LED2 was controller by resistance R1.
The IR beam generated by these two LEDs should be aligned to make
it fall on the PD1 Photo diode which was used to sense the IR beam in
the receiver. Therefore any interruption in the beam will be sensed
instantaneously by the receiver circuit.
Photo Diode PD1 was the important component in the receiver part
which converts the incident light beam into current. The photo diode
was paired with a current to voltage converter using an Op Amp LM324
which was used to convert the induced current into equivalent voltage
at the output. This Voltage was used to switch the Transistor Q1 ON
which keeps the collector of the Q1 at ground potential and this in turn
keeps the transistor Q2 and SCR in the off state. To summarize, when
the infra red beam is undisturbed the transistor Q1 will be in the ON
state while the Transistor Q2 and SCR will be in the OFF state thus
there will be no alarm.

When the beam was disturbed the transistor T1 goes to cut

off mode due to the absence of induced current in the Photo
Diode. This makes the transistor T2 to conduct and
therefore LED4 glows indicating intrusion and SCR fires
enabling the buzzer to produce the alarm sound. The SCR
stays ON if once fired even if the gate drive is removed by
retrieving the beam back on the photo diode. Therefore the
micro buzzer continues sounding the alarm and LED3
continues to glow after the beam interruption. Switch S2
needs to be opened momentarily to reset the system and
get it ready to detect the next intrusion. The status of the
LED4 can be used to set up the beam alignment while
initializing the system to detect intrusion. When the beam
was not aligned properly the LED4 will glow and
extinguishes if you make the right alignment for the path of
IR beam.

Block Diagram
This block diagram demonstrates the principle of
operation of a simple shadow alarm using
photodiode. The block diagram is as shown below:

CIRCUIT DIAGRAM

POWER SUPPLY UNIT

A regulated 9V/500mA power supply that can be

used for powering the basic fire alarm circuit and
its modified versions is shown above. Transformer
T1 is a 230V primary, 12V secondary, 500mA step
down transformer. D1 is a 1A bridge which
performs the job of rectification. Capacitor C1
filters the rectifier output and C2 is the AC by-pass
capacitor. IC1 (7809) is a 9V fixed positive voltage
regulator. The output of the rectifier+filter section
is connected to the input of 7805 and a regulated
steady 9V is obtained at its output. S1 is the
ON/OFF switch. F1 is a 500mA safety fuse.

Conclusion

Security alarms are system designed to detect intrusion unauthorized

entry into a building or area. Security alarms are used in residential,
commercial, industrial, and military properties for protection against
burglary (theft) or property damage, as well as personal protection
against intruders. Car alarms likewise protect vehicles and their
contents. Prisons also use security systems for control of inmates.
Some alarm systems serve a single purpose of burglary protection;
combination systems provide both fire and intrusion protection. Intrusion
alarm systems may also be combined with closed-circuit television
surveillance systems to automatically record the activities of intruders,
and may interface to access control systems for electrically locked
doors. Systems range from small, self-contained noisemakers, to
complicated, multi-area systems with computer monitoring and control.
Shadow sensors are widely used to detect the movement of a person in
a confined area using photodiode.

Recommendation

This project is designed to be used in our

homes, offices and industries or any other
place where there is need for protection of
properties against theft. It is recommended
that work should be done on the
implementation and integration of this device
into the security network in our homes and
industries.

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