what kind of power converter do i need to connect a laser pointer to a wall outlet?

  • Thread starter Thread starter James
  • Start date Start date
James said:
what kind of power converter would i need to connect 3 of these laser
pointers to a 110 volt wall outlet?
http://store.yahoo.com/surpluscomputers/5headlaspoin.html
Click to expand...
You'd need a 4.5V DC supply. There are some "wall warts" that would
supply that. The problem is getting the power to the pointer. You
would need something the size/shape of the three button cells, with
contacts on each end and leads to the power supply, perhaps through a
hole in the back of the pointer. If you're not handy with tools it
might be quite a job, if you wanted to preserve the looks of the pointers.

Virg Wall
 
i don't care about the looks, im thinking i will just solder the power on or
use aligator clips or somthin. whats a wall wort?
 
OIC, is my link in my first post the best price you think or could i get one
way cheaper for my specific voltage requirement?
 
OIC, is my link in my first post the best price you think or could i get one
way cheaper for my specific voltage requirement?
Click to expand...



You meant the pointers or the power supply?
I didn't see a link to power supply so I assume you mean
pointers...
$2 is a great price for a pointer, wasn't too long ago that
similar would've cost $20-$50, though I wonder how powerfull they
really are if they can run for any reasonable amount of time from
3 watch-sized batteries.

What is "your specific voltage requirement"?
Oh, you mean running from a 110V AC wall outlet?
No, it'll be much cheaper to buy a ~ 4.5V wall wart.
 
James said:
i don't care about the looks, im thinking i will just solder the power on or
use aligator clips or somthin. whats a wall wort?
Click to expand...

Virg Wall replied:

A "wall wart" is a combination wall plug and transformer/rectifier.
They can be had cheaply with various output voltages and capacities.
There are also "universal" units which can be set for several output
voltages. They normally have an output power plug to fit the unit to
which they supply power, but that can be cut off. Watch the polarity!
Connect, (solder), the leads to the +/- terminals that contact the stack
of three "button" cells, and connect the three "pointers" in parallel.

Virg Wall
 
sorry, here is the power converter link. is this too expensave?
http://store.yahoo.com/byra/premactodcco.html
also can i use that to power multiple lasers or would i need to get
indiviaual wall worts for each laser?


pointers.

A "wall wart" is a combination wall plug and transformer/rectifier.
They can be had cheaply with various output voltages and capacities.
There are also "universal" units which can be set for several output
voltages. They normally have an output power plug to fit the unit to
which they supply power, but that can be cut off. Watch the polarity!
Connect, (solder), the leads to the +/- terminals that contact the stack
of three "button" cells, and connect the three "pointers" in parallel.

Virg Wall[/QUOTE]
 
James said:
sorry, here is the power converter link. is this too expensave?
http://store.yahoo.com/byra/premactodcco.html
also can i use that to power multiple lasers or would i need to get
indiviaual wall worts for each laser?
Click to expand...

Here's one for $3.50--5V at 1.2A. Part No. DCTX-512 Enough for a half
dozen pointers connected in parallel.

http://www.allelectronics.com/matrix/DC_Wall_Transformers.html

All Electronics is in Los Angeles and they charge $8.00 S/H.

Their catalog at the above site is pretty complete. They have lots of
interesting electronic stuff!


Virg Wall
 
would that fry these 4.5 v devices?


VWWall said:
Here's one for $3.50--5V at 1.2A. Part No. DCTX-512 Enough for a half
dozen pointers connected in parallel.

http://www.allelectronics.com/matrix/DC_Wall_Transformers.html

All Electronics is in Los Angeles and they charge $8.00 S/H.

Their catalog at the above site is pretty complete. They have lots of
interesting electronic stuff!


Virg Wall
--
A foolish consistency is the
hobgoblin of little minds,........
Ralph Waldo Emerson
(Microsoft programmer's manual.)
Click to expand...
 
would that fry these 4.5 v devices?
Click to expand...

I'd be a little concerned about any of the unregulated wall
warts, since they may have an unloaded voltage quite above their
rating. Clearly the laser pointers do not need much current so a
4V adapter might be better than 5V, but then an overcurrent could
be corrected with a resistor, so to that extent a higher voltage
provides more flexibility.
 
Would I need to put a resister between each laser pointer or just from the
wall wart to the first laser pointer? Do you know off hand which resister I
would need?
 
Would I need to put a resister between each laser pointer or just from the
wall wart to the first laser pointer? Do you know off hand which resister I
would need?
Click to expand...

Not just from the wall wart to the first pointer, you'd be
powering these in parallel so ideally you want a resistor inline
for each pointer.

I do not know what the current range is for those small laser
pointers, nor the voltage range, but if you have a multimeter you
could measure current used when powered by the batteries, and
measure output of the wall-wart, then calculate resistor value.
 
Could I just go by what the ad says? It says it takes 3 batterys at 1.5 volt
each. Woudn't that mean 4.5 volts so I would need a .5 volt resistor?
 
Could I just go by what the ad says? It says it takes 3 batterys at 1.5 volt
each. Woudn't that mean 4.5 volts so I would need a .5 volt resistor?
Click to expand...

Not necessarily, button-cell batteries should provide a bit of
current limitation in themselves, and this being a
cheap-as-it-gets implementation it could be merely a rough stab
at the specs of the laser just to get it to work with the 3
cells. I would not feel comfortable assuming that feeding it
4.5V at unlimited current is OK... but maybe it is, I don't know
so I'd be taking the readings. On the other hand, maybe it'd be
even more powerful at 6V? Without specs you can only guess or
try it.

If you ordered an extra pointer you could play around with it and
if it got damaged, you still have the others to work with.
 
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