Solder-Smoke-B-Gone

Automating the use of a Solder Fume Extractor

Nathan Daniels

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Description

Solder-Smoke-B-Gone is synonymous with safety and simplicity. This project automatically turns a solder fume extractor on when you are doing your soldering, and off when you’re not. When a solder stick is in the holder/dock the fume extractor is off, when the solder stick is out of its holder/dock the fan is activated ready for your fume free soldering!

Not all solder contains lead, however regardless of this, it is safest to ensure that the smoke from your long hours of soldering is appropriately extracted with the right equipment, but who wants the hassle of manually turning this equipment on an off when you’re concentrating on your next invention for the Hackaday Prize?

Details

How does it work?

Using an infrared (IR) emitter and a infrared (IR) receiver a cheap proximity sensor can be created using off-the-shelf parts connected to an Arduino. The proximity of the solder stick to the emitter/receiver pair triggers a secondary IR emitter, which is used to toggle an IR enabled power socket that is connected to the solder fume extractor.

IR proximity and/or IR control are not necessarily associated with the latest technologies, but they are definitely reliable, cheap, and feature low power consumption making this project ideal for a battery or USB power supply.

If safety, simplicity, power savings, and an automated working environment appeal to you, then the Solder-Smoke-B-Gone project is one that is easily built by beginners and the experienced alike.

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