Wiring Multiple LEDs
LEDs in Parallel
What happens if you want to light 20 LEDs in the same circuit? There must be a way to do this without needing a 60v power supply as would be required if you wired the LEDs in series. Well, the answer my friend -- is parallel wiring. When wiring LEDs in parallel you're creating seperate mini circuits, each with their own 6v power supply. Each circuit consists of the battery (positive, ground), an LED and a resistor.
In the schematic below there are 3 LEDs, each are part of a different mini circuit. If you removed one of the LEDs from the circuit, the other LEDs would still light brightly just as they had before. You're only limited by the current the battery is capable of supplying. So you could theoretically hook up 20 or 30 LEDs to the same 6v battery, but you would find the battery dies quicker depending on the number of LEDs you're hooking up and total amps being used by all the components in the circuit.
Below is a picture of my 3 LEDs wired in parallel (as in the schematic above) on a breadboard. It's the exact same circuit as in the Solderless Breadboard tutorial, only with two more mini circuits! Just connect the other two sets of LEDs the same way to the postive / ground rails and you're set!
Try Experimenting!
Now try hooking up multiple LEDs in series and parallel! Remembere to use V/I = R to figure out what (if any) resistor values you will need to bring the LED operating voltage within spec. There are a lot more mathematical equations involved here to figure out how long the battery can supply the power, whether you're exceeding the amps of the supply, etc.. but when using a lower voltage battery supply you're pretty safe. I wonder how many LEDs can be hooked up to a single battery? Sounds like a good topic for a future tutorial!
More Information on Series versus Parallel Circuits
For more information in Series versus Parallel wiring, check out these links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Series_and_parallel_circuits
Comments:
| 3 L.E.D |
| Posted 10/03/11 3:53AM by ajaykumargaur |
|
Hi, I have seen some circuit in the market, which have 3 color chaning LED in series and the circuit is operated from 220 Volts. I have the same but the resistance inside it gets burn on inverter, can any one help on this? |
| Electron flow vs. Current flow |
| Posted 02/04/11 6:02PM by Anonymous Techdoser |
| To answer why the resistor is connected after the led is because of a misunderstanding of the flow of electricity before the electron was actually discovered, the electrons flow from negative to positive. So if you look at the schematic and follow the path from the negative terminal of the power supply - through the resistor - through the LED - back to the positive terminal of the power supply. |
| Resistor after LED |
| Posted 10/23/10 4:03AM by Anonymous Techdoser |
| Basically speaking current flows from negative to positive so the resistor is in front of the LED. |
| Will the required current be across each led? |
| Posted 06/29/10 10:32AM by Shoaib |
| I am in doubt about the current across each parallel diode. If the required current across each diode is 25mA, How can I maintain this amount of current across each diode? |
| why is the resistor connected after the led |
| Posted 06/05/10 3:02AM by try.myx |
|
as in your circuit diagram in the wiring multple led , why is the resistor connected after the led . isnt it supposed to be in front. now im in doubt. From the way i think and understand the resistor is used to minimise the voltage. so that the led will not recieve excess of voltage from burning it. please clear me the doubt . thnx in advance |