We are always happy to report on smart solutions from our customers. In today's case, Captain Tango has developed an interesting DIY solution for dimmable floor lighting.
The premium version of our Sidebase already has a light outlet for the Floor Light. However, the light source itself has not yet made it into series production (shame on us!). Captain Tango has developed a solution for himself, which he has kindly shared with us.
The light cover comes with the necessary electrical connections but no light bulb. The first step was thus to find an appropriate light bulb, that would physically fit and ideally use 12 V as this voltage is widely available in the cockpit. I found some nice LED bulbs with the perfect dimensions and the appropriate connectors.
The switch controlling the floor light is located on the Main Instrument Panel (MIP). It is a 3-position switch allowing to set the light to the Off, Dim, or Bright position. By default the switch on the EFIS panel is not wired to anything and is relatively accessible.
However one of the challenges is that it is an On/Off/On switch, whereas the logic for the floor light is Off/On (dim)/On (bright). After consultation with VIER IM POTT I followed their recommendation to use a relay to implement the required logic. After prototyping with individual 12 V relays I decided to purchase a 2-relay board for the final implementation as it has a slightly smaller footprint and keeps things tidy.
For the dimmer I chose to use a small DC motor speed controller to provide the necessary Pulse-Width Modulation (PWM) to dim the LED lights. This allows adjusting the desired illumination for the "Dim" switch position. Once satisfied with a particular setting, the dimmer knob is left in that position.
After verifying the desired functionality, all components were placed in a small electronics project box. As an extra convenience everything can be wired together using screw terminals. No need for any soldering.
The controller box is located right behind the MIP. Outside of the controller box a small screw terminal block is used for connecting to the switch on the MIP. The two round DC connectors provide the connections to the 12 V DC source and to the floor light in the side base. This allows to easily disconnect the controller if need be.
Captain Tango’s main project is a full-size Airbus A320 home cockpit, built as a retirement passion and completed in September 2021. Running the ProSim A320 suite on Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020, the cockpit features detailed avionics and controls for maximum realism. He continues to refine and upgrade the setup.
Visit his website:
https://www.flightpathsimulation.club
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