A light sensor, also called a twilight switch or photo relay, is used to automate the street lighting system and at the same time (the light will turn on and off depending on how dark it is outside on a day-night basis). The scope of its application can be very diverse: a lawn in a country house, an entrance to a country house and even an entrance to an apartment. Next, we will talk about how to properly connect a photo relay for street lighting with your own hands, having examined step-by-step photo instructions, diagrams and a visual video example.

The principle of operation of the device

So, first, let's look at how the twilight switch works so that you catch the features of its connection, which we will provide below.

The design of the photorelay includes three main elements: a photocell, a comparator and a relay.

As for the photocell (and it is mainly a photodiode, phototransistor or photoresistor), its main purpose is to analyze the intensity of light. If it gets dark or bright outside, the photocell will let you know about it, on the basis of which the light will turn on / off. The comparator is the so-called system response threshold. If the voltage supplied by the photocell exceeds the setting, the comparator will turn on the relay, and accordingly the lamp. A relay (or triac) is an output device that switches the load (in our case, this is a light bulb).

Simply put, the principle of operation is as follows: when the light level decreases, the resistance on the photoresistor changes, as a result of which the voltage rises and the relay operates. The result is that the lamp to which the device is connected turns on until it starts to get light.

Video review of the detector from Feron, model SEN27:

Device characteristic

Connection diagrams

Before moving on to installing a light control switch (another popular name) instead of a regular light switch, you need to figure out how to connect the wires to the lamp and sensor terminals. So, the scheme for connecting a photorelay for street lighting can be presented in two versions: using a junction box and without using it. The first option is usually used when it happens, because. in this case, you will need to bring a new line out of the junction box.

The wiring looks like this:

As you can see, connecting a photo relay to a lamp is practically the same as. As well as in the usual version, the phase is broken, and zero goes directly to the lantern. The only difference is that the neutral wire must also be wound into the photosensor itself.

If you have already made repairs in the house and do not want to ditch the wall for a new line, you can use the second option for connecting the photorelay with your own hands - directly:

In this case, all 3 wires: phase, zero and ground are brought inside the case and pressed with terminals. Both the first and the second installation method are correct. Having chosen the appropriate option, you can proceed further - to installing a photocell with your own hands.

Step by step installation instructions

I would immediately like to move away from the topic a little and advise you to simultaneously connect the photorelay and. Together, these two devices will allow you to turn on the lamp when it gets dark, only if a person has appeared in the detection zone. If there is no one on the site, then the bulbs will not light up, which will significantly save electricity.

The method of installation depends on what protection class and type of fastening of the twilight light switch you bought.

To date, there are various manufacturing options, namely:

• with fastening on a DIN rail, on a wall or on a horizontal surface;
• outdoor or indoor use (depending on);
• photocell built-in or external.

In the instructions, we will provide, for example, the installation of a photo relay for street lighting with a wall mount. Connection is carried out at the stand for convenience, especially since this is just an example.

So, in order to connect the photorelay to the lamp yourself, you must complete the following steps:

That's all I wanted to tell you about how to install and connect a photo relay with your own hands. We also recommend that you watch a visual video lesson, which shows in detail the whole essence of wiring.

Instructions for connecting a Feron photo relay

Finally, it should be said about which manufacturers of twilight switches are of the highest quality. To date, it is recommended to give preference to products from companies such as Legrand (legrand), ABB, Schneider electric and IEK. By the way, the latter company has a fairly reliable model - FR-601, which has many positive reviews on the forums.

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