Headlamp with 18650 battery In the previous article we looked at a very good modern chip - a lithium battery charge controller, now it's time to apply this circuit to
Headlamp with 18650 battery

Headlamp with 18650 battery

In the previous article we looked at a very good modern chip - a lithium battery charge controller, now it's time to put this circuit into action by upgrading several flashlights. Next, see a couple of applications of memory boards with TP4056 in flashlights:

Batteries taken from old ones cell phones, found with identical capacities, balanced and soldered into a block. In the first option, 1.5 A, in the second, 1 A. They charge quickly - about 1-3 hours, depending on the current used.

Next, I started converting another old camping flashlight for a 18650 lithium battery, I drew a signet for it, it came out almost like the original, but smaller. I tried charging, it works. I'll collect the whole lantern.

But I finished another old camping lantern. It is possible to change lenses for different focusing of the light flux. I replaced the acid battery with a 18650 type battery and added a charger on the same TP4056, the capacity of the used battery is 1.3 A:

Another case. They gave me a good case from an ancient incandescent flashlight, rechargeable from the mains.

The gel battery built into it was hopelessly dead for a long time. After some thought, it was decided to build into it a block of parallel lithium batteries, 4 pieces of 800 mA each, and expand the functionality by integrating two LEDs into the housing for 60 mA and 150 mA.

In place of the removed retractable plug, an additional aluminum radiator plate was cut out and an SMD LED with an operating current of 150 mA was screwed on. And in place of the former light bulb, an 8 mm round LED rated at 60 mA was installed.

There was a lot left inside free space, accordingly, a ready-made memory was built into the flashlight, again based on TR4056. The LEDs on the charger board fit perfectly into the hole of the former power LED. For these charge indication LEDs, a conical indicator was machined from plexiglass and glued into the case. The result is a compact and resource-intensive (3.2 A) pocket flashlight with recharging from 5 V.

Protective plexiglass was also added to the body to protect the LED from dust. And this is a disassembled body, for a clearer visual acquaintance with the contents of the converted flashlight. There is still empty space left; it is quite possible to add a boost converter for recharging a cell phone.

In this way, old electronic structures and devices can be given the opportunity to continue to serve, using a modern electronic base in a new technical quality. And all this can be done with a small, cheap 4056 microcircuit. I was with you Igoran.

Headlamp with 18650 battery

IN modern times More and more equipment is used as batteries lithium ion batteries. They do not have a “memory effect”, unlike Ni-Cd. They can deliver high current.

I decided to convert two old flashlights to use 18650 lithium-ion batteries, since I have a large number of them. And it’s not difficult to get them from repair companies that repair laptops.

For the conversion we will need a number of components:
- actual flashlights;
- ;
- ;
- plexiglass;
- a piece of thin plastic;
- ;
- wires, hot glue, tools.

The flashlights are a convenient size for installing two 18650 batteries. In principle, we can describe the modification of one flashlight.

My charge controller boards are different. On one Mini-USB, on the second Micro-USB.
These boards can be purchased in China for 15-20 rubles per unit. They are also sold in radio stores and radio markets. I have boards without protection (BMS), but we can handle it.

We disassemble the flashlights and take out all of them, except for the switches and LEDs.

Now we take thin plastic, I have ABS from an old battery. It turned out that it was black, but it’s not scary, it will also look great on a blue flashlight.

We cut the windows so that they fit tightly into the place where the charging plug used to extend.

We cut out the required size for the window and holes for the connectors of our charge boards. It is not necessary to glue them, they should fit tightly and I will strengthen them later.

Since our boards do not have discharge protection, boards made from batteries are used in this situation mobile phone. You can buy one with protection, but I don’t have those in stock right now. Therefore, I resort to a slightly labor-intensive solution.

We solder the wires from our BMS to the batteries. We put the charge controller boards in place and support them. I used pieces of wine cork as spacers. We strengthen everything with hot glue, but you can do it without it.

We solder the switches, my switches break the plus. The black flashlight has a circuit board with an LED. The switch has two on positions, one of which I set to a single LED, and the second position turns on the main LEDs. The blue flashlight has one switch position.

We assemble the flashlights and solder the reflectors and move on to the next stage.

The next step is to cut out two records from transparent plastic, for me it is plastic from a CD box. We sand it with sandpaper until the surface is matte, this makes the light from the LED more pleasant.

We glue it to the place where the slide used to pull out the power plug used to be. You need to glue it on one half of the flashlight. Suddenly you will need to disassemble the flashlight.

Many people are familiar with lanterns, ttype "Era" or "Cosmos" FA21M, as well as their numerous clones under other names. WITH30 watt halogen lamp and 6 volt/4.5 ampere hour lead gel battery. They are still sold now, just like many years ago - except that the lamp has been replaced by an LED panel...

Actually, the problem with such flashlights lies in the lead battery and high power. Their power is categorically excessive for a home/garage/car, etc. – unless in a field or on the water such a spotlight makes sense. The dimensions are also excessive - it’s unclear where to put/put this dinosaur...
As a result, everyone who bought such a flashlight or received it as a gift (they liked to give them on February 23, hehe...) sooner or later put them aside, and when, on occasion, they took them out, they discovered that the battery was hopelessly degraded - the flashlight charges quickly , lights up after that for a couple of minutes, and goes out...

The cost of a new battery is completely unreasonable, it often exceeds the cost of the assembled flashlight, so such flashlights are often sent to scrap.However, the huge body gives DIYers room for creativity. You can put an LED lamp there, you can fill it with lithium batteries so that it burns continuously for six months, you can insert a PWM controller and much more.
True, the lantern will still remain hefty and awkward...

I picked up such a flashlight at a dacha dump, complete set in a box - someone apparently had it lying around at their dacha until the battery completely degraded, and after finding out the price for a new one, it was thrown into the trash. And I decided to make a compact flashlight out of it to illuminate the route when swimming on a boat at night. The peculiarity of the rework is the use of native halogen lamp– firstly, it already exists, which means it’s free, and secondly, it shines really powerfully. Converting this flashlight to an LED is not very advisable - the geometry of the reflector, designed for an incandescent lamp, is not very suitable for a diode...

We unscrew the extra bulky plastic from the flashlight - the black “crown” around the reflector, the handle, throw out the battery, remove the switch, and then use a hacksaw blade to cut off the “head” - this is exactly what we need:

Here's what happens:

We cut out a cover for the head from any plastic and place it on 5 M2 screws with nuts.

Oddly enough, holding this freak in your hand is quite comfortable. I only made a rope lanyard so that the lantern would hang on it if it slipped out of my hand.
But fantasies will - you can at least attach a three-kopeck door handle, even screw in a bolt and, if necessary, screw an empty tube onto it with a pressed-in nut, which acts as a classic lantern handle - whatever you like. You can even add an elastic band and make a headband of incredible power...

Lithium batteries, now it's time to put this scheme into action by upgrading some flashlights. Next, see a couple of applications of memory boards with TP4056 in flashlights:

The batteries were taken from old cell phones, found with the same capacities, balanced and soldered into a block. In the first option, 1.5 A, in the second, 1 A. They charge quickly - about 1-3 hours, depending on the current used.

Another case. They gave me a good case from an ancient incandescent flashlight, rechargeable from the mains.

There was a lot of free space left inside, so a ready-made memory was built into the flashlight, again for TR4056. The LEDs on the charger board fit perfectly into the hole of the former power LED. For these charge indication LEDs, a conical indicator was machined from plexiglass and glued into the case. The result is a compact and resource-intensive (3.2 A) pocket flashlight with recharging from 5 V.

Discuss the article CONVERTING FLASHLIGHTS FOR LITHIUM BATTERIES

Selecting and purchasing a flashlight is a difficult and tedious task. At least for me. I approach this matter with all meticulousness and responsibility. It is necessary to take into account all the advantages and disadvantages of the product. Type and capacity of batteries, parameters, weight, degree of waterproofness and much more. So that he does not fail at the most inopportune moment. I wanted to buy a small pocket flashlight, waterproof, powered by a single 18650 battery. However, I could not find the desired product in local stores. I was already thinking about ordering from an online store and, after waiting 2-4 weeks, getting what I needed... But suddenly I came across something that almost suited me. Almost. The flashlight had the dimensions I needed and all the necessary qualities, but there was one “but” - it ran on three AAA batteries (pinky).

Having a special container with four constantly charged 18650 batteries in my backpack, I absolutely do not want to use other batteries. Moreover, such small and not capacious ones as little ones. But there is always a way out! Having examined this flashlight in the store, a modification scheme immediately emerged, and without thinking twice, I purchased it with the goal of remaking it in my own way in the near future.

Will need

A burr machine with a cutting disc (or an emery machine).
Soldering iron, tin and flux.
Plastic tube (for housing insert).
Aluminum self-adhesive foil.
Scissors.
Stationery knife.
File.
Sandpaper (or sanding cloth).
Secondary glue.

Flashlight conversion

The main problem is that the flashlight’s “native” power supply (the housing in which three AAA batteries are located) is slightly wider, and one and a half centimeters lower than the 18650 battery.

This means that the body of the flashlight itself will be too small in height for 18650. In terms of voltage, 18650 is almost identical to three little finger batteries, 18650 produces 3.7 volts, and three little finger batteries give a total of 3.6 volts (1.2 × 3 = 3.6) . This means that if the body is too small, you need to lengthen it. It was quite problematic to find a suitable insert tube that would fill the extra space between the battery and the walls of the flashlight. In the end, I was never able to get a suitable insert... I just took a more or less suitable tube that included 18650 and, installing it on a drill, removed the excess thickness from the rotating workpiece from the outside with coarse sandpaper! So, let's disassemble the flashlight. Unscrew the front and back parts of the flashlight from the middle one and set it aside. Using a burr with a cutting disc, we saw the middle part of the flashlight body into two equal halves.

We sand the sawn edges with sandpaper so that they become even and smooth.

Next, we insert the liner tube into the front part of the flashlight with a reflector screwed onto it, and put it on top back with a bottom screwed onto it with a button. The result is a new, elongated body that fits the width of 18650.

Now let’s adjust the height, insert the battery into the case, measure out the excess on top, take out the liner and cut off the measured edge with a utility knife.

Also in the design of the flashlight, inside the body, there are two metal rings and a metal strip that connect the plus and minus on the switch button. Naturally, after lengthening the body, the metal strip became too short for the new design. We also had to adjust the rings to fit the liner tube.

The layer of soft plastic was quite easily and quickly removed with a file from the edges of the liner, where the ring should sit.

The second, the front ring, was inserted inside the front of the flashlight, where the reflector, lens and LED are located, so there was no need to mess with it. Let's do it simpler with the metal strip connecting the rings; Simply stick a strip of self-adhesive aluminum foil onto the liner.

We put the back ring on the prepared back part of the liner.

Now let’s take a look at the “head” of the flashlight. On former block power supply, with little finger batteries, there was a small bulge on the positive contact that was in contact with the positive. On the 18650 battery, both contacts are flat, so I had to solder the same spring to the positive contact of the front part of the flashlight as is on the negative, rear part.

Now let's collect new building together.

All the details fell into place like family! All that remains is to drip super glue into the joints between the liner and the sawn edges of the body to restore the tightness. There is still space left, or rather, it turned out to be a groove that was formed after installing the sawn ends of the old case on the liner. This is an individual matter for everyone; Before gluing all the parts, you can fit a piece of tube with suitable parameters to this place. I decided to just wrap a little tape and black insulating tape there; Might be needed somewhere.

So we "translated" this device from three batteries to one equal in voltage, thereby saving yourself from the tedious charging of the power supply with small and low-capacity batteries.

The above changes did not in any way affect the quality of the flashlight (brightness and water resistance). Except that it has become one and a half centimeters longer.