home Audience 5 Pinout of rgb led strip. The device and connection diagram of the RGB LED strip. Key Features of RGB Tape

Pinout of rgb led strip. The device and connection diagram of the RGB LED strip. Key Features of RGB Tape

The controller for the LED strip with a remote control is a sought-after element of a modern interior. Such illumination can highlight a certain area in a living space and create very interesting media facades. Due to their beauty, practicality and low price, such lighting devices quickly gained popularity, so many people have a question about how to install and configure them.

Introduction to Ribbons

Tapes are often installed in a ceiling niche above a specific area in the apartment (for example, above a sleeping place or dining area). Many tenants cannot say exactly what color they need, moreover, over time, the same backlight can get boring. In such a situation, the RGB controller for the LED strip will help out, with which the backlight can be adjusted individually.

The name RGB itself stands for three words - Red, Green, Blue, that is, red, green and blue. It is difficult to choose one color from such a poor offer of color solutions, so many masters recommend installing controllers. Thanks to these devices, residents will be able to adjust the colors to their liking, for example, yellow, orange, purple, as well as adjust their intensity.

Before you buy LED strips, you need to understand a little about their classification. Usually there are two of them:

SMD 3528;
SMD 5050.

Both types of tapes differ in size and parameters: the first side dimensions are 3.5 mm by 2.8 mm, the second - 5 mm by 5 mm, which is reflected in the names themselves. The abbreviation SMD stands for Surface Mounted Device.

Another important feature is the power of the luminous flux. For SMD 3528, it is lower, since in such a tape the LEDs are single-chip, while in SMD 5050 they are three-chip. The second type will shine brighter, but it will consume 3 times more power.

An important parameter is the number of LEDs per 1 meter of tape, where there can be 30, 60, 120 or 240 pieces. The more LEDs, the brighter the backlight will shine. But ribbons with a lot of small bulbs will cost more. Experts advise not to purchase too bright devices, since 60 diodes per 1 meter are enough to illuminate a niche in the ceiling. To decorate furniture, you can purchase the simplest tape with 30 diodes. Such recommendations are optimal for any interior.

To install lighting in a ceiling niche, for example, you can take a SMD 5050 type tape containing 60 diodes per 1 meter. It has the following characteristics:

the color of the diodes is RGB, that is, multicolor;
the number of diodes - 60 pieces per 1 meter;
power - 14 W/m;
voltage - 24 V.

Also on the package will be presented the abbreviation IP with numbers adjacent to it. This characteristic indicates the degree of protection. For example, the box says IP33, which means the following:

The first digit 3 indicates the degree of protection against ingress of foreign bodies and other contacts with the lighting device. On a scale of 0 to 5, it indicates protection against fine particles up to 2.5 mm in size.
The second number 3 indicates the degree of protection against water. The LEDs are protected against sloping splashes at an angle of up to 60 degrees.

The tape is wound on a reel (or reel), its standard length is 5 meters, so it is best to purchase two reels, since it often takes from 5 to 8 meters, and sometimes more, to illuminate various niches. The device is conditionally divided into several small sections, each of which has 6 LEDs. The segments are a completely independent lighting device that will light up when connected to the network.

The LED strip is very plastic, so it can be mounted in niches of any complexity and shape, not to mention straight lines and transitions. On the reverse side of the LEDs there is a sticky double-sided adhesive tape, thanks to which the colored design will firmly adhere to any surface.

The tape can be shortened as needed. To do this, it always indicates the location of the cut with a scissors icon and a line. Failure to follow this rule will lead to the fact that if the separation is not where it is needed, the working tracks will be damaged, which means that the LED strip will be damaged.

Installing LEDs in a niche

In the existing niche in the ceiling, it is necessary to install a colored LED backlight. The perimeter of the niche is 8 m, there is 10 m of tape in the skein, therefore, it will need to be shortened to the desired length strictly along the section of the cut.

It is best to attach a plastic appliance not to a wall or a niche box, but to a cable channel previously purchased for this purpose. If the perimeter is greater than the length of the whole skein, then about 10 mm should be retreated from the edge of the glued tape and another one should be attached. It turns out that wires should hang freely along the edges of each segment, four for each.

Since multi-color LEDs are selected for illumination, the cuts are equipped with four wires, three of which (red, green and blue) indicate colors, and the fourth (black) is a common output. Single-color backlight has only two wires. If there are metal screws in the place where the LEDs will be located, then it is recommended to isolate them with electrical tape.

Power supply for RGB

In order to connect the LED backlight to the network, you must definitely purchase a power supply. It is strictly forbidden to connect RGB directly to a 220 V network, as this will lead to an instant burnout of the backlight. This unit must be purchased with a voltage corresponding to this indicator for LEDs, that is, 12 V or 24 V.

It is easier to connect a single-color tape, since it is connected directly to the block itself. With RGB, the situation is different, since a controller is needed here. It will act as a color regulator. If it is not used, the color change function will be lost. The controller, like the unit itself, must have the appropriate output voltage.

The power of the power supply must match the power of the LEDs. The manufacturer usually indicates this indicator for 1 meter of tape, for example, 14 V. It is easy to calculate that 112 V will fall on 8 meters, which means that the unit must be 112 V. It is necessary that it has a current margin of about 20- thirty%.

A high-quality power supply must have high output voltage stability, have a built-in EMI filter and protection against voltage surges, overloads or short circuits. Its body should be made of perforated metal, which contributes to good ventilation and the absence of overheating. If its temperature during operation has reached 70 degrees, then the load should be reduced.

The power supply is installed taking into account the free space around it, which will provide it with natural ventilation. If this is not possible, then it will be necessary to consider the issue of installing forced ventilation. When you need to install two blocks for RGB, you should not place them close to each other.

backlight controller

The controller for LED backlighting must be selected taking into account the power and output voltage. All other characteristics (functionality, programs and other additional features) are designed solely for the taste and needs of users. The device is installed next to the power supply. The controller should also be accompanied by a remote control that has a compact form and touch control buttons.

Network connection

To connect the power supply, it is necessary to supply power (220V) from the switch to the terminals of the block "phase" (L) and "zero" (N). To the terminal "Earth" it is necessary to bring the conductor of the supply cable (PE). The controller is connected by output terminals to input terminals as follows:

+V - DC+;
-V-DC-.

If you neglect the polarity when connecting the controller, then it will simply fail.

At the very end, you can connect the RGB tape itself. Everything is as simple as possible here: the red wire is connected to output R, green - to G, blue - to B. If you mix up the outputs and wires, then nothing bad will happen, the backlight will work properly, but when setting colors from the control panel, interesting inconsistencies may occur , for example, tenants want to highlight the ceiling in blue, and it will shine in green.

It is important to know that only a five-meter tape or shorter can be connected to the controller. This is due to the fact that each LED strip is designed for a certain maximum current. If you connect a five-meter tape with a few more meters of the same, then the current will increase, and the diodes will burn out very quickly. When it becomes necessary to connect a long tape, then it is strongly recommended to purchase an additional RGB amplifier.

After the work done, it remains only to check how the built-in backlight works. To do this, simply press the power button on the remote control, after which the ceiling will light up in red (standard mode). In the second and third modes, the backlight will be blue and green, respectively.

The remaining modes will allow you to select other colors, such as yellow, orange, purple, pink, blue, light green, etc. This stage of checking RGB operation is considered the final one, it indicates that the LED strip is installed correctly.

Multi-color LEDs, or as they are also called RGB, are used to indicate and create a backlight that dynamically changes in color. In fact, there is nothing special about them, let's see how they work and what RGB LEDs are.

Internal organization

In fact, an RGB LED is three single-color crystals combined in one package. The name RGB stands for Red - red, Green - green, Blue - blue, according to the colors that each of the crystals emits.

These three colors are basic, and any color is formed by mixing them; this technology has long been used in television and photography. In the picture above, you can see the glow of each crystal separately.

In this picture you see the principle of mixing colors to get all shades.

Crystals in RGB LEDs can be connected as follows:

With common anode;

With a common cathode;

Not connected.

In the first two options, you will see that the LED has 4 pins:

Or 6 conclusions in the latter case:

You can see three crystals clearly visible under the lens in the photo.

For such LEDs, special mounting pads are sold, they even indicate the purpose of the conclusions.

One cannot ignore RGBW - LEDs, their difference lies in the fact that in their case there is another crystal that emits white light.

Naturally, it was not without tapes with such LEDs.

This picture shows a strip with RGB LEDs, assembled according to a common anode scheme, the glow intensity is adjusted by controlling the "-" (minus) of the power source.

To change the color of the RGB tape, special RGB controllers are used - devices for switching the voltage supplied to the tape.

Here is the RGB SMD5050 pinout:

And there are no ribbons, there are no special features for working with RGB ribbons, everything remains the same as with monochrome models.

For them, there are also connectors for connecting the LED strip without soldering.

Here is the pinout for a 5mm RGB LED:

How the color of the glow changes

Color adjustment is carried out by adjusting the brightness of the radiation of each of the crystals. We have already considered.

The RGB controller for the tape works on the same principle, it has a microprocessor that controls the negative output of the power supply - connects and disconnects it from the circuit of the corresponding color. The controller usually comes with a remote control. Controllers come in different capacities, their size depends on this, starting from such a miniature one.

Yes, such a powerful device in a case the size of a power supply.

They are connected to the tape according to the following scheme:

Since the section of the tracks on the tape does not allow connecting the next section of the tape in series with it, if the length of the first exceeds 5 m, you need to connect the second section with wires directly from the RGB controller.

But you can get out of the situation, and not pull an additional 4 wires 5 meters from the controller and use an RGB amplifier. For its operation, you need to stretch only 2 wires (plus and minus 12V) or power another power supply from the nearest 220V source, as well as 4 "information" wires from the previous segment (R, G and B) they are needed to receive commands from the controller, so that the whole structure glows the same way.

And the next segment is already connected to the amplifier, i.e. it uses the signal from the previous piece of tape. That is, you can power the tape from an amplifier that will be located directly next to it, thereby saving money and time on laying wires from the primary RGB controller.

We adjust RGB-led with our own hands

So, there are two options for controlling RGB LEDs:

Here is a variant of the circuit without the use of arduin and other microcontrollers, using three CAT4101 drivers capable of delivering current up to 1A.

However, now controllers are quite cheap, and if you need to adjust the LED strip, then it is better to purchase a ready-made version. Arduino circuits are much simpler, especially since you can write a sketch with which you will either manually set the color, or the color selection will be automatic in accordance with the specified algorithm.

Conclusion

RGB-LEDs allow you to make interesting lighting effects are used in interior design, as a backlight for household appliances, for the effect of expanding the TV screen. There are no special differences when working with them from ordinary LEDs.

Mounting a multi-color LED strip (RGB) is somewhat more complicated than in the case of a mono-color strip, due to the presence of an RGB controller (and possibly an RGB amplifier).

The fact is that budget RGB controllers usually have a power of 72 - 216 W, that is, they are designed to connect a maximum of 15 meters of SMD5050 60 (300) LED strip with a power of 14.4 W / meter (14.4 x 15 = 216) . That is, to connect, say, 20 meters of tape, the power of such a controller is no longer enough. To increase the power of the RGB signal from the controller, you will have to use an RGB amplifier.

The second point: serial connection of more than 5 meters of tape is NOT recommended by manufacturers. Therefore, you will have to feed the tapes in parallel, which is not always convenient. In this case, RGB amplifiers again come to the rescue (connection diagrams for RGB amplifiers).

So, you have decided on the length and power of the RGB tape. Let's move on to the selection of components: a power supply and an RGB controller.

Choosing an RGB controller and power supply

RGB controllers differ in appearance, preset programs, remote control, supply voltage and power. From a technical point of view, when buying an RGB controller, it is important to pay attention to only 2 characteristics: supply voltage and power.

Concerning operating voltage, then it should be the same for the LED strip, power supply and RGB controller. Usually it is 12V or 24V.

Power The RGB controller must not be less than the total power of the LED strip (the RGB controller does not require a power reserve). For example, 1 meter LED strip SMD5050 60LED 12V consumes 14.4 watts. Then, to power 5 meters of such a tape, 5m x 14.4W / m = 72W is needed. Accordingly, you can choose any RGB controller you like with a voltage of 12V and a power of at least 72W.

In any store you will be told that the power supply is always bought with a power reserve of 15-20%. For example, in this example, a 12V 100W power supply is suitable for you.

How to connect up to 5 meters of RGB LED strip

Four colored wires from the RGB strip labeled "R (red)", "G (green)", "B (blue)", "+ (black)" are connected to the similarly labeled terminals of the RGB controller. Next, two wires ("+" and "-") from the power supply are connected to "+" and "-" on the RGB controller. And only after that the power supply is connected to a 220V outlet.

Wiring diagram for up to 5 meters of RGB tape

Scheme of parallel connection of RGB tape from 5 to 15 meters

If the power of the RGB controller allows, then you can connect as many LED strips as you like in parallel. In this case, the length of each connected tape should not exceed 5 meters.

If the power of your RGB controller is not enough to connect the entire LED strip, you must use RGB signal amplifiers (link to instructions at the end).

How to connect 20 meters of RGB LED strip

Often, for contour lighting of the ceiling, you have to connect about 20 meters of RGB tape. See the video for connection instructions:

Correctly connecting an rgb tape is not as difficult as it seems. To do this, you need to know: connection diagrams, subtleties, which components should be present in the connection diagram. We will talk about all this and much more in this article.

Mounting tools

To connect the LED strip with your own hands, you must first prepare the tools and materials:

Scissors.
Soldering iron.
Rosin.
Solder.
Heat-shrink tubing.
Crimp for tips.
Connectors.
Power tool for fastening rgb-tape.
Insulating tape.
An aluminum profile with a high coefficient of thermal conductivity, which will serve as the basis for fastening the LED strip.

Connection accessories

The electrical circuit for connecting a multi-color tape should include the following structural elements:

power unit;
controller;
rgb amplifier.

To make it clear the purpose of each of the above devices, as well as how to choose them correctly, we will describe them in more detail separately.

power unit

The operating voltage for LED strips can only have two options: 12V and 24V!

To choose the right power supply for the rgb tape, you should pay attention to the following important parameters when choosing:

voltage, issued by the block, must correspond to the power supply of the led strip;
power the power supply must match the energy consumed by the tape;
moisture protection device must match the installation site.

An incorrectly selected power supply unit overheats greatly and very often fails!

On the market today there are the following models of power supplies :

A small unit in a sealed aluminum case, as a rule, has excellent moisture-resistant characteristics, but its price is quite high.
Compact unit in a sealed plastic case.
The open-type block in a perforated case has the largest dimensions of all models, and also requires additional protection against moisture ingress. Among the advantages can be noted its power, thanks to which you can connect the entire LED strip.
The mains power supply has a relatively small power and does not require additional installation. For several LED strips, separate blocks of this type must be installed.

The choice of power supply by power should be carried out as follows:

The instructions for the tape indicate the power per 1 running meter;
We multiply this indicator by the total length of the entire multi-color ribbon;
It is necessary to add another 30% to the result obtained, which will be a power reserve.
After the above calculations, we will have a power supply indicator, which is necessary to connect the LED strip.

Controller

It is a key structural element of the rgb tape connection scheme and performs the following functions:

Remote inclusion of a led-tape.
LED brightness adjustment.
Choice of any glow color.
Controlling the speed of changing and pouring colors.
Mixing primary colors to create new shades.
Launching the color change program.

The appearance of the controllers is shown in the photo.

RGB controllers are selected based on the following criteria:

Compatible with selected LED strip.
Desired control method.

Depending on the specified criteria, controllers are divided into types:

Wi-Fi controlled controllers using a tablet or mobile phone.
Controllers for rgb tape with infrared remote control.
Controllers without a remote control are mainly used when there is no need to frequently change the settings of the LED strip.

To choose the right controller, you should take into account the following important parameters:

Controller Rated Power calculated by the formula:

M k \u003d D l * M l * K m, Where:

M k - the required power of the controller;

D l - the total length of the Led tape, measured in meters;

M l - the power of the tape, which is measured in W / m;

Km is the power factor of the device.

Controller power supply voltage must match the LED strip.

As for the rgb amplifiers, they are used to connect an LED device with a length of more than 5 meters. We will talk about the features of connecting rgb amplifiers below.

Popular connection schemes

After analyzing many options for connecting rgb tapes, we have identified a number of the most popular schemes. To implement any of the connection schemes in practice, you will need knowledge about.

Standard wiring diagram

The procedure for mounting the circuit consists of the following sequential steps:

The controller is connected to the low-voltage connectors of the power supply.
As a rule, the "+" connectors are connected with a red wire, and "-" with a black one.
An LED strip is connected to the controller, which has 4 outputs: three of them are for controlling red, green and blue colors, and the fourth wire is for general power supply of the device.

Connection option for two LED strips

Features of this connection option are the following important points:

To connect, you need two power supplies and an rgb amplifier.
The scheme is simple, however, during installation, you need to carefully monitor that the wires are connected according to the color marking.
The connection option is also acceptable for a 10 meter led strip .

When connecting several LED strips, you should not make the mistake shown in the photo:

This is due to the fact that a low power voltage will reach the LEDs located at the far end, as a result, the multi-color tape will glow unevenly.

In other words, if the circuit provides for the connection of several LED strips, then they should only be connected in parallel.

Connecting an rgb tape 20 meters long

This connection uses two power supplies. However, if the power of one unit is enough, then all the elements can be connected according to the following scheme: controller-amplifier-power supply.

What else can you connect to?

The excellent characteristics of LED devices make it possible to connect them to the following types of equipment:

TV (LEDs enhance the effect of perception when watching TV);
Music center (rgb tapes allow you to create color effects when playing music);
Automobile. LED strip is an indispensable element of car lighting tuning.
Computer.

A few words about how to connect an LED strip to a computer. The computer's power supply can be an uninterruptible power supply. To connect, you should use the molex 4-pin connector. It is enough to solder the wires of the rgb tape to the connector and connect it to the corresponding output of the power supply.

We talked in as much detail as possible about the main criteria and nuances of connecting and using rgb tapes. We hope that the information presented in the article will be interesting and informative material for you.

Video

And for more confidence in the material presented, you can watch a video from YouTube. This video shows quite well how to properly connect LED strips.

The most modern lighting devices are LEDs: LED lamps, spotlights or modules. Although there are designs in which the elements are connected in a strip, these are LED strips. They are produced in various brightness and colors, there are also multi-color RGB tapes (R - red "red", G - green, "green", B - blue, "blue"), allowing you to change the color of the tape using an RGB controller.

Application of multi-color tape

RGB tape, due to the ability to change color and brightness, is used in many places and design solutions:

The main or auxiliary lighting of the room. In combination with a central chandelier, it makes the illumination more uniform, and independently creates romantic lighting or, in combination with a remote control with appropriate capabilities, provides color and music effects;
In the bedroom, hallway and kitchen provides emergency and full lighting. You can switch modes manually, by a timer or by a motion sensor;
Shop window lighting. The shade of light is chosen at the request of the designer;
Computer modding. Color may vary depending on temperature or CPU usage;
Phytolamp. This is a convenient, but disadvantageous option - only two colors are used: red and blue.

RGB led strip design

The LED strip is a flexible strip on which there are two, and on the RGB led strips there are four conductive strips. Between these strips there are three series-connected LEDs and a current-limiting resistance in groups. The circuit elements are used in the form of SMD - surface mounted device (surface mounted device). Such designs differ in the size of the LEDs, expressed in 0.1 mm.

SMD5050 or 5*5mm elements are installed in multicolor led strips. Unlike smaller LEDs, they have three LEDs in one package. In monochrome designs, these elements are connected in parallel, and in RGB designs, each output is connected to its own conductive strip and has its own glow color. The exception is devices in which a PWM controller is installed in each element. In such devices, there are only two conductive strips. The control is carried out using a digital signal.

In addition to the usual RGB tapes, there are RGBW devices. In them, in addition to multi-color, there are white LEDs. With their help, increased brightness and a greater amount of light reflections are achieved.

Color Management

In multi-color stripes, the brightness of each color is controlled separately. This achieves a large number of shades. When all LEDs are turned on at full power, the tape begins to glow white.

RGB controller is used for control. It can be equipped with a different type of control panel:

Built-in or remote on wires. It is used where constant color adjustment is not required, for example, in shop windows;
With IR remote. The most simple and inexpensive. The disadvantage is that such a remote control only works within the line of sight;
With radio control. Allows you to control the light even from the next room, but if you lose the remote control, you have to change the device;
With WiFi and Bluetooth. Allows you to control using your mobile phone. Can be used in the "smart home" system.

In addition to adjusting the color of the entire tape at the same time, there are devices in which each LED is equipped with a PWM controller that adjusts the color of its LED. In such designs, various color and light effects are possible: color overflows, running lights, star rain and others.

LED strip control with Arduino

One way to control multi-color LED devices is with Arduino boards. In such boards, a programmable microcontroller is installed, to which various sensors and output devices are connected. According to a given program, such devices control the color and brightness of the LEDs. They are equipped with analog outputs for controlling a conventional RGB tape, and digital outputs for a tape with PWM controllers.

RGB Tape Power

The most common supply voltage is = 12V, but there are bands for 24, 110 and 220V. They differ in the number of LEDs connected in series in a group.

Before you connect the rgb tape, you need to determine the required power of the power supply, taking into account the 20% margin. The power supply of such devices is carried out from power supplies of different capacities:

Up to 25W (2A). Such devices are similar to the power supply of a tablet or mobile phone; they are plugged into an outlet;
Up to 100W (9A). These are devices in a plastic case. They can be hidden in a closet or in a niche, in a plasterboard wall;
Over 100W. These are devices in a metal case with built-in coolers. At installation it is necessary to provide access of air. They make noise during operation, so it is more expedient to use several low-power devices instead of one powerful device in the house.

Cross-section of wires for connecting LED strips

When connecting such devices, the power supply must be placed next to the tape. This is due to the voltage drop in the connected wires.

For example, to connect 5 meters of RGB SMD5050 tape, voltage 12V, power 14.4W / meter, total power 72W and current, according to the formula I \u003d P / U \u003d 72W / 12V \u003d 6A, a wire cross section of 0.5 mm² is sufficient. But with a wire length of 10 meters, the voltage drop will be 4V, so you need to choose a cross section of at least 4 mm².

Information. To connect devices located at a distance from each other, separate power supplies and RGB repeaters are used.

It is allowed to connect tapes in series no more than 5 meters. With a longer length, the voltage drop on the current-carrying strips increases, the brightness decreases towards the end, as well as their heating. This will result in device failure.

Wire connection

For connection on conductive strips there are contact pads - extensions to which wires are connected. They are attached in two ways: soldering or connectors.

Soldering wires

To connect the strip by soldering, flexible stranded wires with a cross section of not more than 0.5 mm² are required. Larger wires can break the pads.

Flux is used only neutral. The procedure is as follows:

if the tape is covered with a layer of silicone, you need to remove it without damaging the conductive layer;
with a soldering iron with a power of not more than 15W, tin the contact pads;
cut off pieces of wires of the required size;
remove the insulation from the wire by 5 mm and tin it;
cut off a piece of heat shrink tubing 25 mm long and put it on the tape;
solder wires;
put a heat shrink tube on the place of soldering and warm it up with a building hair dryer or a lighter.

Attention! Acid must not be used - it can destroy the conductive strips or cause a short circuit.

Connecting with connectors

In addition to soldering, the connection is made using special connectors. This is less reliable, but easier and faster way. In addition, when connecting or repairing a tape installed in a hard-to-reach place, this is the only way.

Connectors are produced in different shapes: straight, angled, T-shaped, with wires, for connecting to the network and without, for connecting strip segments to each other.

Tape repair

In case of failure of individual sections of the strip, there is no need to change the entire tape as a whole - it is enough to replace the damaged section. This is done using short, 10-15 mm, pieces of wire or connecting connectors.

Degree of water resistance

Tapes are produced with different degrees of protection against adverse environmental influences:

IP20/IP33. These are open lanes. They are used in dry places where water splashes are excluded. This is the illumination of a false ceiling, a computer keyboard or a replacement for a table lamp;
IP65. Covered with silicone only on the front side. They are used to illuminate baseboards, the working area in the kitchen and other places where splashes are possible, but water jets are excluded;
IP67/IP68. Completely covered with silicone. They are used in any conditions, including in water: in pools and aquariums.

Multi-color RGB LED strip is a new modern type of lighting that allows you to decorate the interior with a variety of lighting effects.