Simultaneous control of multiple line-loads each
connected separately in series with a designed unit
Control using Radio Frequency and a Mobile device
B N P Cooray W S K Perera
Department of Physics Department of Physics
University of Kelaniya, University of Kelaniya,
Kelaniya, 11600, Sri Lanka Kelaniya, 11600, Sri Lanka
nuwangi.pramu@gmail.com kelum7575@gmail.com
Abstract— A unit which can be connected separately in series
with each load to control multiple line-loads simultaneously using
Radio Frequency (RF) and a mobile device has been developed
during this study. Series connected remotely controllable
regulators are not widely available commercially and the few
available do not have the facility to control the multiple line loads
using a mobile application along with a RF remote controller and
also they are very expensive and even require an alternative wiring
system. The designed regulator provides the convenience of
controlling the current flow through appliances connected to a
single line power supply. A triac is used to control the power
supplied to the load, since it can control the current flow in both
halves of an AC current. The gate terminal is triggered by using a
diac. A Switch Mode Power Supply, powers the active components
of the regulator using the voltage drop across the triac. The
Bluetooth (HC-06) and RF (315 MHz RF receiver) modules are
programmed to receive inputs from the user to switch ON/OFF or
control the voltage supplied to appliances such as fans and light
bulbs. The Graphical User Interface enables the user to control the
appliances easily and much faster than in normal usage of
mechanical switches. The timer which allows the user to define
time intervals for predefined output levels, can set desired levels of
outputs for the appliances. This feature is not currently available
in normal regulators. The suggested method facilitate
simultaneous use of RF and the mobile devices as well as the ability
to control several appliances with a single unit enabling energy
conservation and ease of use. The cost of designing the unit with
discrete components being less than US$ 17, it can be concluded
that the model is cost effective since this method suggests two
modes of control of the appliances along with timer settings. [1-9].
Keywords—Android; Arduino; Bluetooth; mobile application;
remote; RF; smart phone; SMPS; timer
I. INTRODUCTION
Ceiling fans speed controllers and light dimmers are
commonly found regulator types for controlling inductive and
resistive loads. Remote control regulators add more comfort for
the living environment since they facilitate control of devices
from a distance without having to move around and help to
conserve energy in the demanding world.
In previous studies there have been developments of units
which enabled the control of appliances either via Bluetooth
(BT) or Radio Frequency (RF) but none of them provided the
978-1-5090-3474-1/16/$31.00 ©2016 IEEE 318
S R D Kalingamudali
Department of Physics
University of Kelaniya,
Kelaniya, 11600, Sri Lanka
kalinga@kln.ac.lk
facility to control appliances with both technologies.
Furthermore these units are not supported with single line power
controlling with multiple line-loads. The very few regulators
available commercially, even without these facilities, are very
expensive.
Hence the aim of this study is to design a series connected
remote controlling regulator system with RF and Bluetooth
capabilities to control resistive and inductive loads. It can be
operated using either a Live or a Neutral connection. So this
single line power controlling device can easily replace manual
regulators without changing the electrical wiring system. The
unit is designed to operate with both RF and Bluetooth
technologies to enable easy usage of appliances through two
modes of control. The development outline of the design is
shown in Fig. 1.
The regulator was designed by programming the ATMega
328P-PU with Arduino. The RF module which is used, is a 315
MHz transceiver with an inbuilt analogue to digital convertor,
so that the designed unit does not require the use of analogue to
digital convertors externally. The receiver can be operated using
5 V DC with a sensitivity of 98 dB. Since this study is suggesting
two methods to control the output levels i.e. with RF and
Bluetooth technology, first the controller identifies the digital
signals received by RF receiving board and then the Bluetooth
receiver. This is programmed to control a triac (BT139) with the
use of optocouplers (MOC3021) to control the power supplied
to the fan or light bulbs.
A triac is used to control the power supplied to the load, since
it can control the current flow in both halves of an AC current.
The gate terminal is triggered by using a diac. The advantage of
this regulator is that a single line powers all the active
components of the device without using an additional electrical
wiring system with neutral connection. Specially designed
Switch Mode Power Supply (SMPS) is used in the device to
avoid the use of a bulky transformer. It converts electrical power
more efficiently than a conventional transformer power supply
with minimum power dissipation. An LCD module was used to
display the outputs of the device.
The Bluetooth (HC-06) and RF (315 MHz RF receiver)
modules are programmed with Android and Arduino
respectively to receive inputs from the user. These inputs are
used either to switch ON/OFF or to control the speed and
intensity of the fan or bulbs respectively. The respective
modules connected to the microcontroller receive the emitted
digital signals from the smart phone via Bluetooth connection
and the radio signals from the RF remote controller (315 MHz
RF transmitter).
The user-friendly interface enables the user to control the
appliances easily and is much faster than in normal usage of
mechanical switches. A timer to set desired levels of outputs for
the fan is presented in this study, which allows the user to set
time intervals for predefined output levels. This feature is not
currently available in the normal regulators. The timer can be set
to vary the speed of the fan in desired time intervals or to switch
ON/OFF the appliances. The suggested timing controller
functionality is very similar to the function of an alarm clock in
a smart phone. Hence, it can be used very easily.

Switch Mode
Power Supply

Regulator
Circuit
RTC Module

ATMEGA 328P-PU ATMEGA 328P-PU Bluetooth Android Application

RF Remote RF Module Micro Controller Micro Controller Module to control the
Controller

Light Controller Fan Controller

Fig. 1. Development Outline

Fig. 2. Current Control Circuit

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 II. PROCEDURE
A. Current control circuit
The current controlling circuit is designed so that it can be
controlled using the logic levels applied to light bulbs and fan
controls. The circuit design is shown in Fig. 2. Through
optocouplers, ATMega 328P-PU controls the charging time of
the capacitor. When the charging voltage reaches the break over
voltage of the diac, it breaks down and the capacitor discharges
through the diac producing a sudden pulse of current, which fires
the triac into conduction.
The relays act as AC switches, which can be controlled using
a DC level produced by microcontroller. Power levels were
determined by the values of the resistors. L-C Radio Frequency
Interference (RFI) suppression network is used in the design to
eliminate the disturbances generated by external magnetic and
electric fields. The wire-wound coil and the capacitor provide
the RFI suppression network.
B. Switch mode power supply (SMPS)
Since the model uses a microcontroller, the 230 V AC input
must be reduced to 5 V DC to supply power for the
microcontroller circuit. For this, an SMPS has been designed to
be used without changing the existing wiring. Fig. 3 shows the
arrangement of the SMPS. The circuit was designed using
minimum number of components to make it simple as well to
reduce the manufacturing cost.
The voltage drop across the triac in the power controlling
circuit is converted to DC using a 1N4007 diode and a 2∙2 μF
buffering capacitor. Using a self-oscillating circuit, MJE 13002
transistor is switched on so that it produces a high frequency
pulse, which is fed into the switching coil of the transformer.
MJE 13002 is a transistor which is designed to be used in high-
voltage, high speed, power switching in inductive circuits. Two
windings of the fly-back transformer act as magnetically
coupled inductors. The output from the secondary winding of
the transformer was passed through a high-speed switching
diode 1N4848 and a capacitor for rectification. The main
advantage of this method is a small voltage drop across the triac
sufficient to get a regulated 5 V output for the control
Fig. 3. Voltage Regulator
320
electronics. So no external voltage is required to drive the
SMPS. The power consumption of the SMPS is very low [10-
11].
C. The timer
The regulator incorporates a timer to turn off the power after
a given period. It was designed using the Timer Module of
ATMega 328P-PU microcontroller. The microcontroller was
programmed to issue a signal to the triac driver to stop after a
certain period to cut off the power delivered to the load. The
timer module determines the cut off time by counting to a
specific value, which has been loaded into a register of the
microcontroller. The timer can also be controlled by the mobile
application, which helps the user to control switching and speed
controlling by defining time intervals through the interface and
sending the signals via Bluetooth. The timer, which allows the
user to define time intervals for predefined output levels, can
set desired levels of outputs for the appliances. This feature is
not currently available in the normal regulators. The timer can
be set to vary either the speed of the fan or intensity of a light
bulb in desired time intervals or to switch the appliances
ON/OFF. The suggested timing controller functionality is very
similar to the function of an alarm clock in a smart phone.
D. Remote control unit
A four button 315 MHz RF transmitter was used to control
the regulator. The transmission distance of the remote control
unit is about 50 m-100 m in open field. The four buttons on the
remote controller produce four data bits to the output pins of the
receiver board, which correspond to each of four buttons. The
four buttons of the remote are separated for the four appliances
i.e. one fan and three light bulbs in this model. When a button
is pressed, first the program will check the status of the
appliance and then set the value as programmed.
E. Bluetooth and mobile application
For the conversion process of the serial port to Bluetooth,
Bluetooth (HC-06) module is used. Bluetooth (HC-06) receiver
module is used in the Arduino circuitry to receive the user
inputs via smart phone. This model comes with Bluetooth
version V2∙0 and it has an operating voltage level of 3∙3 V. The
model allows the device to send and receive the Transistor-
Transistor Logic data via Bluetooth technology without
connecting a serial cable. The input from the master module,
i.e. the smart phone is controlled by the mobile application so
that it sends digital signals directly to the slave module, i.e. HC-
06 module to control switching status and/or speed. Hence, the
input is not required to be controlled by Arduino programming.
Only the inputs are taken according to the pin connections and
given to the output pins.
The two functionalities of RF and Bluetooth modules are
synchronized to ensure that there are no conflicts between
modules while controlling appliances simultaneously using the
two methods. A delay in the time interval is given so that before
each input is processed, the status of the appliances is checked.
Additionally, the RF receiver module listens to the incoming
communications from the master for the status of appliances at
predefined time intervals.
 The timer function is done by the Bluetooth function with
the use of the smart phone. But the status of timers are given to
Arduino through slave module and the Arduino is programmed
to synchronize the clock with the smart phone to ensure that the
details on timers and time tracking is not lost due to any power
failures [12-14].
show “Not Available” when Bluetooth is not activated in the
smart phone.
If the connection is successful, it will display as “Connected”
and if the connection is not made but Bluetooth is activated in
the smart phone this will display as “Error”. “Error” status will

Eclipse Integrated Development Environment was used to

create the Graphical User Interface for the application and the
application package was designed for Android Version 4∙2
Jellybean and the newer versions considering the wide usage of
Android systems in the modern world.
The header displays the name of the application along with [a]
the application logo.
Figs. 4 and 5 show the main page, i.e. the first page. The
main page includes a set of buttons for the appliances (fan and
three bulbs). Only four main buttons were designed for testing
purposes in the mobile application. But more buttons can be
added to support the hardware according to the user preference. [b]
Codes can be reset to match the requirements of the user.
Fig. 6 shows the second page, i.e. the timer-setting page.
This page includes three main buttons:
i. Timer List
ii. Add Timer
iii. Cancel Timer
The Timer List button displays the previously set timers to
the user for each appliance upon clicking. Add Timer button
allows the user to add new timers to set values of the outputs to
control switching and speed controlling. Cancel Timer button
allows the user to cancel the set timers. Fig. 4. Main Page of the Mobile Application (i)

[a]. Connect Button

[b]. ON/OFF Button
[c]. Set Timer Button
[d]. UP/Down Buttons
[e]. Speed Status
[f]. Bluetooth Connection Status
[g]. Selection Menu
[h]. Timer Setting Menu
[i]. Action Setting Menu
[j]. Alarm ON/OFF selection Button
The Connect button allows the user to connect the mobile [c]
application to receiver module HC-06 after pairing is done. The
ON/OFF buttons are used to switch ON/OFF appliances on
clicking. The main page also contains separate buttons to set [d]
timers for each appliance. Below these buttons, there are two
Arrow Up and Arrow Down buttons to speed control the fan [e]
and the speed status is displayed below these buttons. These
speed control buttons are only activated when the application is [f]
connected to the mechanical unit via Bluetooth. The connection
status is displayed at the bottom of the page. The status will Fig. 5. Main Page of the Mobile Application (ii)

321

[g]
[h]
[i]
[j]
Fig. 6. Timer Setting Page of the Mobile Application
be displayed whenever the receiver module is down i.e. HC-06
is not responding or offline.
Setting the timer has been designed so that the user is given
the opportunity to set time for different time intervals as
preferred. For each timer setting, the application checks for the
nearest time value and the set value is compared with the
current value to change the status of the lights or the fan [15-
17]. Then the status is updated at the relevant time intervals.
III. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Following are the main features of the designed unit which
make it unique compared to the existing regulators.
The designed module can be directly connected to the load
without accessing the Neutral wire and the appliances can be
controlled using RF module as well as an Android application.
The fan regulator contains four power levels to switch OFF
and speed control the fan between three states LOW, MEDIUM
and HIGH. These power levels are predetermined with the use
of an external preset. This can be modified to get more speed
levels by simple changes to the circuitry design and program.
The four button RF remote control used in the unit to control
the regulator, enable the user to control appliances without
pointing to the regulator providing a large range since RF remote
does not require line-of-sight.
The Bluetooth module and the mobile application allows the
user to control the appliances via wireless technology. The user-
friendly interface design of the application gives easy control of
the appliances and it includes a button to set timers to switch the
appliances ON/OFF as well as speed control the fan. This
function is not available in the commercially available regulators
and this provides a huge advantage in reducing the daily power
322
consumption. With the timer function users can set timers to
switch ON/OFF or speed or intensity control of appliances in
advance so that they need not move around. Even if a user
forgets to turn off an appliance after use it can be set to switch
off automatically after a certain period of time. This will be an
energy saver not only in domestic environments but also in
business, office and laboratory environments.
The application is coded in such a way that new appliances
can be introduced without much effort. One unit supports eight
appliances, which is beyond expectations when today’s
requirement is considered. Eight electronic appliances, which
are needed to be controlled in one room, can be connected to one
unit.
The current controller circuit is designed with discrete
components and uses a chemical etching method. Thus it is
impossible to create several circuits to fit in a commercially
available sunk box. Therefore, speed or intensity of only one
appliance can be controlled from a single module. This can be
modified for more appliances by changing the size of the used
sunk box so that more space can be obtained to add more
circuitry within or the circuits can be modified to fit into a
smaller space by shrinking the circuit when it is designed with a
more advanced technology.
IV. CONCLUSION
The cost of designing the unit with discrete components
being less than US$ 17, it can be concluded that the model is
cost effective since this method suggests two modes of control
of the appliances along with timer settings.
Use of the RF remote control improves the operating range
of the design. The user can operate the regulator without line-of-
sight. Operating range roughly is about 50 m-100 m.
The mobile application allows the user to control appliances
via Bluetooth, which has a range up to 10 m normally.
Considering all these, this user friendly and cost effective
design rise over the currently available designs providing more
advantages to the user.
The module is in an OFF state when it is not in use. Also
activating the timer to control speed or intensity levels rather
than keeping the appliances running is useful in saving energy
especially in offices and domestic environments.
This device can also be modified to be used as a light
dimmer. The unit can be developed to be used with Wi-Fi
technology so that the user can control appliances through
computer or mobile accessing through internet as well. With
modifications the device can be connected with a surveillance
camera feed and could be used to maximize security and
conserve energy. The unit can be used with an AC or a fan with
improvements by adding temperature sensors so that the fan or
the AC will be automatically switched ON/OFF according to
predefined temperature settings. These can be used in factories
as well as in laboratories where temperature needs to be
monitored and altered at predesigned levels.
 ACKNOWLEDGMENT [8] K.Y. Lee, and J.W. Choi, “Remote-controlled home automation system
via bluetooth home network,” SICE Annual Conference in Fukui, Japan,
Authors wish to thank Mr. R. P. K. Wijewardena, Mr. A. pp. 2824-2829, August 2003.
Srimal and Mr. K. L. B. Perera for the technical assistance. [9] Y.G. Belgi, P.G. Avatade, P.V. Deshmukh, A.M. Sakhare, A.J. Shinde,
and J.M. Patali, “Android based appliances control system,” International
Journal of Emerging Technology and Advanced Engineering, vol. 3 (12),
pp. 681-683, December 2013.
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