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N8103B High-current Smoke Generator Controller / Timer

TheN8103B has a physical size of 1.75" (44.45mm) x 0.75" (19.05mm) with a typical thickness of 0.200" (5.0mm).

How to use the N8103B:

The N8103B is not a power supply. It is a switch combined with a multi-selectable timer. This module can switch up to 16 Amps of 12-volts DC, BUT, can only switch the Amperage available that is provided by the DC power supply connected to it.

Ngineering has several 12-volt DC regulated/filtered power supplies that can work very well with this controller. Information  on those power supplies is available Here

The on-board (N8050) timer circuit is factory programmed with 3 different “on times”. 3-minutes, 5-minutes and 10 minutes. These times are selected by momentarily connecting solder pad “A” to either PAD “B’, “C” or “D”.. A push-button switch wired between the pads works very well for this. We do offer custom programming for the timing function if the customer has special requirements. The main board also has a small blue LED that lights up when the mosfet “switch” is energized.

We can, for a small extra fee, custom program the timer circuit to meet customer special requirements.

Flexibility: The N8103B was designed primarily to function in a 12-volt DC environment, but it can support a wider range of voltages from 7-volts DC to 18-volts DC.

Example of use: One example of use for the N8103B would be to run a modeling smoke generator. These type of  smoke units are essentially a small heating unit that heats a type of oil in a container that produces smoke in a scale model environment. As the heater runs it gradually consumes the available oil and must be turned off to prevent damage to the heating element when it runs dry.

Other examples might be switching on a series of LED lights or turning on a small pump for a model waterfall. There are many possibilities.

Figure 1 above, shows the general layout of the N8103B module with the timer N8050 Simulator mounted on the main board.

Timer wiring:

Located at the end of the main board are 4 solder pads labeled “A” thru “D”. The “A” pad is the ground (–DC) connection and the “B” pad is for triggering a 3-minute switched “on-time” for the module. Wiring a push-button switch between these two solder pads will start the 3-minute time when the push-button is pushed.

For a 5-minute on-time, wire between “A” and “C” pads. For a 10-minute on-time wire between “A” and “D” pads.

Power Supply input connections to the board are labeled “12-volt + DC Power Input” for the power supply + DC, and “12-volt – DC Power Input” for the –DC.

Figure 2 shows an example of a device being switched by the N8103B board.. Shown are two additional wires that are connected to the board that come from the device being switched

Important: Do not mix up the connection of these two wires with the power input wires that come from the Power Supply. Circuit damage and even the possibility of a fire could occur due to the high current of this circuit.

Power wire sizes:

If your project needs to switch 5 Amps at 12 volts DC you should use 16AWG wire size.

If you need to switch 10 Amps you should use 14AWG wire.

If you need to switch 16 Amps you can use 14AWG for 3-foot runs of 12AWG for runs of up to 20 feet.

When soldering power wires to the board use low-temperature solder & flux. Apply sufficient heat for good solder joints but be careful to not overheat the circuit board.

Board mounting:

Included in this package is a double-sided sticky foam pad for mounting the main board. Just peal off the protective paper on each side and mount the board to any flat surface. Note: Six soldered electrical connections protrude through the bottom side of the main board under the Timer Module. Make sure when mounting the main board that these six connections do NOT contact any metal material which could cause a short circuit.