ABSTRACT

In recent years, the power quality of the ac system has become great concern
due to the rapidly increased numbers of electronic equipment, power
electronics and high voltage power system. Most of the commercial and
industrial installation in the country has large electrical loads which are
severally inductive in nature causing lagging power factor which gives heavy
penalties to consumer by electricity board. This situation is taken care by PFC.
Power factor correction is the capacity of absorbing the reactive power
produced by a load. In case of fixed loads, this can be done manually by
switching of capacitors, however in case of rapidly varying and scattered loads
it becomes difficult to maintain a high power factor by manually switching
on/off the capacitors in proportion to variation of load within an installation.
This drawback is overcome by using an APFC panel. In this paper measuring
of power factor from load is done by using Atmega328 microcontroller and
trigger required capacitors in order to compensate reactive power and bring
power factor near to unity.

KEYWORDS: Automatic power factor correction, embedded technology,

Efficiency of the system increases, Improve the power system performance.
 LIST OF FIGURES

FIG. NO. TITLE NAME PAGE NO.

1 Power Triangle 4
2 Block of PFC using ATMEGA 328 12
3 Block diagram of APFC 14
4 Voltage Transformer/Potential transformer 16
5 Carbon Film Resistor 17
6 Schematic of an LED 18
7 Ceramic Capacitors 19
8 Pin out diagram of an LM7805 regulator 21
9 Pin out diagram of an LM7809 regulator 21
10 Secondary Winding of a Ring CT 22
11 Potential transformer 23
12 Circuit Diagram of ZCD detector 24
13 Relay Module 25
14 Relay connection 26
15 Capacitor bank in circuit 26
16 Arduino UNO board 27
17 Arduino UNO Pin discription 28
18 Atmega328 IC 29
19 The main programming window of arduio 32
 CONTENT

SR NO TOPIC NAME PAGE NO

Certificate
Project Approval Sheet
Declaration
Acknowledgement
Contents
List of figures
Abstract

1. Introduction 1
2. Review of literature 2
2.1 Power factor 3
2.2 Power factor correction 4
2.2.1 Advantage of power factor correction
2.3 Disadvantage of low power factor
2.3.1 Advantage of improved power factor
2.4 Power factor of electrical loads
2.5 Capacitor
2.5.1 Power factor capacitors
2.5.2 Uses of Automatic power factor capacitors
2.6 Power factor in resistor, inductor, capacitance circuit
2.7 Power factor harmonics
2.7.1 Potential source of harmonics
2.7.2 Fixed versus Automatic capacitors
3. Proposed system
4. System Design
4.1 Principle
4.2 Circuit Description
4.3 Power supply
4.3.1 Components
4.4 Current Transformer
4.5 Potential transformer
4.6 Zero crossing detector
4.7 Relay module
4.8 Capacitor Bank
4.9 Microcontroller
4.9.1 Introduction
4.9.2 Overview
4.9.3 Summary
4.9.4 Input & Output
4.9.5 Communication
4.9.6 Programming
4.9.7 Automatic (software) Reset
4.9.8 USB overcurrent protection
4.9.9 Physical characteristics
5. Software
5.1 Software development environment
6. Hardware
6.1 Hardware
6.1.1 Schematics
7. Conclusion
7.1 Conclusion
7.2 Reference
 Chapter 1
Introduction

1 Introduction:

In the present technological revolution, power is very precious and the power system is becoming
more and more complex with each passing day. As such it becomes necessary to transmit each unit
of power generated over increasing distances with minimum loss of power. However, with increasing
number of inductive loads, large variation in load etc. the losses have also increased manifold. Hence,
it has become prudent to find out the causes of power loss and improve the power system. Due to
increasing use of inductive loads, the load power factor decreases considerably which increases the
losses in the system and hence power system losses its efficiency.
An Automatic power factor correction device reads power factor from line voltage and line
current by determining the delay in the arrival of the current signal with respect to voltage signal from
the source with high accuracy by using an internal timer. It determines the phase angle lag (ø) between
the voltage and current signals and then determines the corresponding power factor (cos ø). Then the
microcontroller calculates the compensation requirement and accordingly switches on the required
number of capacitors from the capacitor bank until the power factor is normalized to about unity.
Automatic power factor correction techniques can be applied to industrial units, power systems
and also households to make them stable. As a result the system becomes stable and efficiency of the
system as well as of the apparatus increases. Therefore, the use of microcontroller based power factor
corrector results in reduced overall costs for both the consumers and the suppliers of electrical energy.
Power factor correction using capacitor banks reduces reactive power consumption which will
lead to minimization of losses and at the same time increases the electrical system‘s efficiency. Power
saving issues and reactive power management has led to the development of single phase capacitor
banks for domestic and industrial applications. The development of this project is to enhance and
upgrade the operation of single phase capacitor banks by developing a micro-processor based control
system.
The control unit will be able to control capacitor bank operating steps based on the varying load
current. Current transformer is used to measure the load current for sampling purposes. Intelligent
control using this micro-processor control unit ensures even utilization of capacitor steps, minimizes
 number of switching operations and optimizes power factor correction. The Choke used in the
Compact Fluorescent Lamp (CFL) will be used as an Inductive load.

Chapter 2
Review of Literature

2.1 Power Factor:

 Power factor is an energy concept that is related to power flow in electrical systems. To
understand power factor, it is helpful to understand three different types of power in electrical
systems.
Real Power is the power that is actually converted into useful work for creating heat, light and
motion. Real power is measured in kilowatts (kW) and is totalized by the electric billing meter in
kilowatt-hours (kWh). An example of real power is the useful work that directly turns the shaft of
a motor Reactive Power is the power used to sustain the electromagnetic field in inductive and
capacitive equipment. It is the non- working power component. Reactive power is measured in
kilovolt-amperes reactive (kVAR). Reactive power does not appear on the customer billing
statement.
Total Power or Apparent power is the combination of real power and reactive power. Total
power is measured in kilovolt-amperes (kVA) and is totalized by the electric billing meter in
kilovolt-ampere-hours (kVAh). Power factor (PF) is defined as the ratio of real power to total
power, and is expressed as a percentage (%).

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 (𝐤𝐖𝐇)

Power factor = 𝒙𝟏𝟎𝟎
𝐓𝐨𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 (𝐤𝐕𝐀𝐇)

Or

Power factor cos φ is defined as the ratio between the Active component IR and the total value
of the current I; φ is the phase angle between the voltage and the current.

Figure 1 Power Triangle.

2.2 Power Factor Correction:

 Power factor correction is the process of compensating for the lagging current by creating a
leading current by connecting capacitors to the supply. A sufficient capacitance can be connected
so that the power factor is adjusted to be as close to unity as possible.
Power factor correction (PFC) is a system of counteracting the undesirable effects of electric
loads that create a power factor that is less than one (1). Power factor correction may be applied
either by an electrical power transmission utility to improve the stability and efficiency of the
transmission network or, correction may be installed by individual electrical customers to reduce
the costs charged to them by their electricity service provider.
An electrical load that operates on alternating current requires apparent power, which consists of
real power and reactive power. Real power is the power actually consumed by the load. Reactive
power is repeatedly demanded by the load and returned to the power source, and it is the cyclical
effect that occurs when alternating current passes through a load that contains a reactive component.
The presence of reactive power causes the real power to be less than the apparent power, so the
electric load has a power factor of less than one.
The reactive power increases the current flowing between the power source and the load, which
increases the power losses through transmission and distribution lines. This results in operational
and financial losses for power companies. Therefore, power companies require their customers,
especially those with large loads, to maintain their power factors above a specified amount
especially around ally 0.90 or higher, or be subject to additional charges. Electrical engineers
involved with the generation, transmission, distribution and consumption of electrical power have
an interest in the power factor of loads because power factors affect efficiencies and costs for both
the electrical power industry and the consumers. In addition to the increased operating costs,
reactive power can require the use of wiring, switches, circuit breakers, transformers and
transmission lines with higher current capacities.
Power factor correction attempts to adjust the power factor of an AC load or an AC power
transmission system to unity (1) through various methods. Simple methods include switching in or
out banks of capacitors or inductors which act to cancel the inductive or capacitive effects of the
load, respectively. example, the inductive effect of motor loads may be offset by locally connected
capacitors. It is also possible to effect power factor correction with an unloaded synchronous motor
connect across the supply. The power factor of the motor is varied by adjusting the field excitation
and be made to behave like a excited. Non-linear loads create harmonic currents in addition to the
original AC current capacitor when over

2.2.1 Advantages of Power Factor Correction:

There are several advantages in utilizing power factor correction capacitors.
 These include:

• Reduced demand charges.

• Increased load carrying capabilities in existing circuits.
• Improved voltage
• Power system loses

2.3 The disadvantages of a low power factor:

Power factor plays an important role in AC circuits and power dissipation in the power system
is dependent on the power factor of the system. We know that the power in a three phase AC
circuit is:

P = √3 V × I cosφ
And the current on a three phase AC circuit is:

I=
Also the power in a single Phase AC circuit is:
P = V × I cosφ
And the current on a three phase AC circuit is:

I=

It is evident from the equations for the currents that the current is proportional to cosφ i.e. power
factor. In other words, as the power factor increases the net current flowing in the system decreases
and when the power factor decrease the net current in the system increases.

2.3.1 The advantages of an improved power factor:

Higher power factors result in:

• Reduction in system losses, and the losses in the cables, lines, and feeder circuits and
therefore lower cable sizes could be opted for.
• Improved system voltages, thus enable maintaining rated voltage to motors, pumps and
other equipment. The voltage drop in supply conductors is a resistive loss, and wastes
power heating the conductors. Improving the power factor, especially at the motor
terminals, can improve the efficiency by reducing the line current and the line losses.
 • Improved voltage regulation.
• Increased system capacity, by release of KVA capacity of transformers and cables for
the same KW, thus permitting additional loading without immediate expansion.

2.4 Power Factor and Electrical Loads:

In general, electrical systems are made up of three components: resistors, inductors and
capacitors. Inductive equipment requires an electromagnetic field to operate. Because of this,
inductive loads require both real and reactive power to operate. The power factor of inductive loads
is referred to as lagging, or less than 100%, based upon our power factor ratio.
In most commercial and industrial facilities, a majority of the electrical equipment acts as a
resistor or an inductor. Resistive loads include incandescent lights, baseboard heaters and cooking
ovens. Inductive loads include fluorescent lights, AC induction motors, arc welders and
transformers.
Typical average power factor values for some inductive loads:

Load PF %
Induction Motor 70-90
Small Adjustable Speed Drive 90-98

Fluorescent Lights
Magnetic Ballast & Electronic Ballast 70-80 & 90-95resp.
Arc Welders 35-80

2.5 Capacitor:
A capacitor (originally known as condenser) is a passive two-terminal electrical component used
to store energy in an electric field. The forms of practical capacitors vary widely, but all contain at
least two electrical conductors separated by a dielectric (insulator); for example, one common
construction consists of metal foils separated by a thin layer of insulating film. Capacitors are widely
used as parts of electrical circuits in many common electrical devices. When there is a potential
difference (voltage) across the conductors, a static electric field develops across the dielectric,
causing positive charge to collect on one plate a negative charge on the other plate.

Energy is stored in the electrostatic field. An ideal capacitor is characterized by a single constant
value, capacitance, measured in farads. This is the ratio of the electric charge on each conductor to
the potential difference between them. The capacitance is greatest when there is a narrow separation
between large areas of conductor; hence capacitor conductors are often called plates, referring to an
early means of construction. In practice, the dielectric between the plates passes a small amount of
leakage current and also has an electric field strength limit, resulting in a breakdown voltage, while
the conductors and leads introduce an undesired inductance and resistance. Capacitors are widely
used in electronic circuits for blocking direct current while allowing alternating current to pass, in
filter networks, for smoothing the output of power supplies, in the resonant circuits that tune radios
to particular frequencies, in electric power transmission systems for stabilizing voltage and power
flow, and for many other purposes.

Capacitors also require reactive power to operate. However, capacitors and inductors have an
opposite effect on reactive power. The power factors for capacitors are leading.
Therefore capacitors are installed to counteract the effect of reactive power used by inductive
equipment. (Hammond, P 1964).

2.5.1 Power Factor capacitors:

Power factor capacitors may conveniently be switched on and off with individual motors.
This assures that the capacitor is energized only during the times when the motor is energized
- when you need power factor correction. For this type of application, typically a Fixed
Capacitor Bank is used. This is the simplest and most economical form of power factor
correction. Depending on the manner in which you connect the capacitor, you may or may
not need to include fuses Harmonics will reduce the life of power factor capacitors. Whenever
there are harmonic producing loads on the power system, the capacitor bank should include a
capacitor protection reactor that will detune ‖ the capacitor bank to a frequency where no
harmonic energy exists. Instead of the capacitor protection reactor we intend using a
microcontroller to detune the capacitor bank to a frequency where no harmonics energy can
exist thereby improving the correction of Power factor.

2.5.2 Uses of Automatic Power Factor Capacitors:

 When the load conditions and power factor in a facility change frequently, the demand
for power factor improving capacitors also changes frequently. In order to assure that the
proper amount of power factor capacitor kVARs are always connected to the system
(without over-correcting), an Automatic Type Capacitor System should be used for
applications involving multiple loads. A microcontroller automatic compensation system is
formed by:

• Some sensors detecting current and voltage signals;

• An intelligent unit that compares the measured power factor with the desired one and
operates the connection and disconnection of the capacitor banks with the necessary
reactive power (power factor regulator);
• An electric power board comprising switching and protection devices;
• Some capacitor banks.

2.6 Power Factor in Resistor, Inductance and capacitance circuit:

In a purely resistive AC circuit, voltage and current waveforms are in phase, changing polarity
at the same instant in each cycle. Where reactive loads are present, such as with capacitors or
inductors, energy storage in the loads result in a time difference between the current and voltage
waveforms. This stored energy returns to the source and is not available to do work at that load. A
circuit with low power factor will have a higher current to transfer a given quality of real power than
a circuit with a high power factor. In order to get the current reading with the oscilloscope for the
diagram for pure resistive, capacitive and inductive loads below. A resistor with a negligible value
was introduced in the circuit and the current value was measured across it. This assumption was
made using ohms law:

V=IR but R‘s value is negligible therefore V=I, This assumption was used to get the waveform
for current
2.7 Power factor Harmonics:

Harmonics are sinusoidal voltages or currents having frequencies that are whole multiples of the
frequency at which the supply system is designed to operate (e.g. 50Hz or 60 Hz). E.g. a 250 Hz
sine-wave signal, superposed onto the fundamental 50 Hz mains frequency, will be designated as
the 5th harmonic or as the harmonic of 5th order (5 x 50 Hz). Any signal component having a
frequency which is not an integer multiple of the fundamental frequency is designated as an inter
harmonic component or referred to more simply as an inter harmonic. Harmonics and inter
harmonics are basically the result of modern developments in electricity utilization and the use of
electronic power conditioning modules. Using switching power supplies to control loads and to
reduce power consumption results in unwanted frequencies superimposed on the supply voltage.
The presence of voltage at other frequencies is, as far as possible, to be avoided.

2.7.1 Potential Sources of Harmonics:

• Switched mode power supplies Dimmes, Current Regulators, Frequency Converters.

• Voltage source inverters with pulse width modulated converters.
• Low power consumption lamps.
• Electrical arc-furnaces.
• Arc welding machines.
• Induction motors with irregular magnetizing current associated with saturation of the iron.
• All equipment with built-in switching devices or with internal loads with nonlinear
voltage/current characteristics.

2.7.2 Fixed Versus Automatic Capacitors:

Fixed capacitor banks are always on at all times, regardless of the load in the facility, while
an automatic capacitor bank varies the amount of correction supplied to an electrical system.
An automatic capacitor is much more expensive per kVAr than a fixed system. 100 kVAr of
fixed capacitors will save as much power factor penalties as a 100 kVAr automatic capacitor.
Generally, when a capacitor is connected to a system there is a reduction in amperage on the
system. This reduction in amperage reduces the voltage drop across a transformer, which
results in a higher voltage in the system. If 100 kVAr is connected to a 1000 KVA transformer,
there is approximately a ¾% voltage rise on the system (if there are no other loads on the
system). The more kVAr connected, the higher the voltage rise. This voltage rise is counter
acted by the increase of load in the facility. Typically, in the night and on weekends, utility
voltage are higher than normal, and facilities that are not normally loaded during these times,
 could experience a higher than normal voltage rise if too much capacitance is connected to
their system. Based on this, we generally limit fixed capacitors to 10% to 15% fixed kVAr to
KVA of transformer size. We would recommend an automatic capacitor bank if the amount
of kVAr exceeds 20% of the KVA size of the transformer.

Chapter 3
Proposed System

Proposed System:

Microcontroller base automatic controlling of power factor with load monitoring is shown in
fig.8.
 Fig.2 block of PFC using ATMEGA 328(Arduino nano)

The principal element in the circuit in Arduino nano board. The current and voltage single are
acquired from the main AC line by using Current Transformer and Potential Transformer. These
acquired signals are then pass on the zero crossing detectors. Bridge rectifier for both current and voltage
signals transposes the analog signals to the digital signal. Microcontroller read the RMS value for
voltage and current used in its algorithm to select the value of in demand capacitor for the load to correct
the power factor and monitors the behavior of the enduring load on the basis of current depleted by the
load.
 Chapter 4
System Design

4.1 Principle:
 Fig 3: Automatic Power Factor Correction Circuit.

The above given circuit for Automatic Power Factor detection and correction operates on the
principal of constantly monitoring the power factor of the system and to initiate the required
correction in case the power factor is less than the set value of power factor. The current and voltage
signals are sampled by employing instrument transformers connected in the circuit. The instrument
transformers give stepped down values of current and voltage, whose magnitude is directly
proportional to the circuit current and voltage. The sampled analog signals are converted to suitable
digital signals by the zero crossing detectors, which changes state at each zero crossing of the current
and voltage signals.

4.2Circuit Description:

Automatic Power Factor Correction system is based on the AVR microcontroller ATmega 328.
The voltage and current in the circuit are stepped down using a potential transformer and a current
transformer respectively. These transformed a.c signals are next fed to a Zero Crossing Detector
(ZCD) circuit. The output of the Zero Crossing Detector (ZCD) is a square wave, in which each
change of state represents a zero crossing of the a.c waveform. The signal goes high on the first zero
 crossing of the current or voltage waveform and then goes low on the next zero crossing of the
signal, thereby generating a square wave. Two separate Zero Crossing Detector (ZCD) circuits are
used for voltage and current waveform. The two square waves are then summed using an Exclusive
OR (X-OR) gate. The output of the summer gives the phase angle difference which is given to the
Arduino microcontroller on one of its digital I/O pins (pin 3).
The timing of this function has been determined empirically and will probably show errors in
longer pulses. Hence, it works efficiently on pulses from 10 microseconds to 3 minutes in
length.The difference is measured with high accuracy by using internal timer.This time value
obtained is in microseconds (µs). It is converted in milliseconds (ms) and is then calibrated as phase
angle φ using the relation:

t
𝛗 = ∗ 360
T

....equation

Where: φ = difference in phase angle

t = time difference in milliseconds (ms);

T = the time period of one AC cycle (i.e., 20ms);

The corresponding power factor is calculated by taking cosine of the phase angle obtained above
(i.e., cosφ). The values are displayed in the serial monitor which in this case is the computer screen.
The display can also be obtained on a separate display by using the serial transmission pins: Serial
Transmission (Tx) and Serial Reception (Rx) of the Arduino but that would require appropriate
interfacing circuitry. The microcontroller then based on the algorithm then switches on the required
number of capacitors from the capacitor bank by operating the electromagnetic relays until the
power factor is normalized to the set limit.

4.3 PZET-004T Module

The physical dimensions of the PZEM-004T board is 3.1×7.4 cm, The pzem-004t
module is bundled with 33mm diameter current transformer coil. The main part of the
PZEM-004T module is the SD3004 chip from the SDIC Microelectronics Co., Ltd. In
addition, the board having the EEPROM from Atmel(now microchip) 24C02C which is
a 2K bit Serial Electrically Erasable PROM with a voltage range of 4.5V to 5.5V. with
More than 1 Million Erase/Write Cycles and 200+ Years Data Retention. Two
optocouplers PC817, providing galvanic isolation of the serial interface. PZEM-
004T having the ability to measure Electrical parameters such as voltage, current,
active power and energy, power factor and frequncy. Measured parameters are directly
transmitted with TTL serial interface with Arduino nano board and display on 16*2
LCD Display.

4.4 Resistors

Fig 5: Carbon Film Resistor

Thecurrentthrough a resistor is indirect proportionto thevoltageacross the resistor's

terminals. This relationship is represented by:

V
𝐼=
R
where I is the current through theconductorin units ofamperes,V is the potential
difference measured across the conductor in units ofvolts,and R is the resistance of the
 conductor in units ofohms(symbol: Ω). The ratio of the voltage applied across a resistor's
terminals to the intensity of current in the circuit is called its resistance, and this can be
assumed to be a constant (independent of the voltage) for ordinary resistors working within
their ratings.

4.5 Light Emitting Diodes (LED):

A light-emitting diode (LED) is asemiconductorlight source. LEDs are used as indicator

lamps in many devices and are increasingly used forgeneral lighting.Appearing as practical
electronic components in 1962, early LEDs emitted lowintensity red light, but modern
versions are available across thevisible,ultraviolet,andinfraredwavelengths, with very high
brightness.

When a light-emitting diode is switched on,electronsare able to recombine

withholeswithin the device, releasing energy in the form ofphotons.This effect is
calledelectroluminescence,and the color of the light (corresponding to the energy of the
photon) is determined by the energyband gapof the semiconductor. An LED is often small
in area (less than 1 mm2), and integrated optical components may be used to shape
itsradiation pattern.LEDs have many advantages over incandescent light sources including
lower energy consumption, longer lifetime, improved physical robustness, smaller size,
and faster switching. However, LEDs powerful enough for room lighting are relatively
expensive, and require more precise current and heat management than compactfluorescent
lampsources of comparable output.

Fig6: Schematic of an LED

4.6 Electrolytic Capacitor:

 An electrolytic capacitor is acapacitorthat uses anelectrolyte(an ionic conducting liquid)
as one of its plates to achieve a largercapacitanceper unit volume than other types, but with
performance disadvantages. All capacitors conductalternating current(AC) and blockdirect
current(DC) and can be used, amongst other applications, tocouplecircuitblocks allowing
AC signals to be transferred while blocking DC power, to store energy, and tofiltersignals
according to their frequency. Most electrolytic capacitors are polarized; hence, they can
only be operated with a lower voltage on the terminal marked "-" without damaging the
capacitor.

4.7 Current Transformer:

The current transformer is an instrument transformer used to step-down the current in the circuit
to measurable values and is thus used for measuring alternating currents. When the current in a
circuit is too high to apply directly to a measuring instrument, a current transformer produces a
reduced current accurately proportional to the current in the circuit, which can in turn be
conveniently connected to measuring and recording instruments. A current Transformer isolates the
measuring instrument from what may be a very high voltage in the monitored circuit. Current
transformers are commonly used in metering and protective relays. Like any other transformer, a
current transformer has a single turn wire of a very large cross section as its primary winding and
the secondary winding has a large number of turns, thereby reducing the current in the secondary
to a fraction of that in the primary. Thus, it has a primary winding, a magnetic core and a secondary
winding. The alternating current in the primary produces an alternating magnetic field in the
magnetic core, which then induces an alternating current in the secondary winding circuit.
Also known commonly as a Ring C.T, the current carrying conductor is simply passed through
the center of the winding. The conductor acts as the primary winding and the ring contains the
secondary winding.
 Fig10: Secondary Winding of a Ring CT

4.8 Relay Module:

The relay module comprises of eight electro-magnetic relays which are controlled by the outputs
on the digital pins of the Arduino microcontroller. The relays are used to switch on the required
number of capacitors as required for power factor correction. The relays are normally in the
Normally Open‖ (NO) state and the contacts are closed only when the logic on any of the digital
pins is high. As the logic on a pin goes high, the Normally Open‖ contacts of the relay are now
closed and the corresponding capacitor in connected in parallel with the load.

The relay module is interfaced with the digital pins of the Arduino microcontroller using a
parallel port and bus. The relay driver is supplied with a voltage of 12V from the power supply.
Each of the relays has an LED connected across its terminals to indicate that the relay has been
switched on and is functional.
 Fig : Relay Module

4.9 Capacitor Bank:

A capacitor bank is a grouping of several identical or non-identical capacitors interconnected in parallel

or in series with one another. These groups of capacitors are typically used to correct or counteract
undesirable characteristics such as power factor lag or phase shifts inherent in alternating current electrical
power supplies. Capacitor banks may also be used in direct current power supplies to increase stored energy
and improve the ripple current capacity of the power supply. The capacitor bank consists of a group of eight
(8) a.c. capacitors, all rated at 230V, 50 Hz i.e., the supply voltage and frequency. The value of capacitors is
different and it consists of four capacitors of 2.5µfarad, two capacitors of 4.5 farad and two remaining
capacitors are rated at 10µfarads each. All the capacitors are connected in parallel to one another and the
load. The capacitor bank is controlled by the relay module and is connected across the line. The operation of
a relay connects the associated capacitor across the line in parallel with the load and other capacitor.
Improving power factor means reducing the phase difference between voltage and current. Since the
majority of loads are of inductive nature, they require some amount of reactive power for them to function.
A capacitor or bank of capacitors installed parallel to the load provides this reactive power
4.10 Microcontroller:

4.10.1 Introduction:

ARDUINO NANO:
Arduino is an open-source electronics prototyping platform based on flexible, easy to use
hardware and software. It is intended for artists, designers, hobbyists, and anyone interested in creating
interactive objects or environments. Arduino can sense the environment by receiving input from a
variety of sensors and can affect its surroundings by controlling lights, motors, and other actuators. The
microcontroller on the board is programmed using the Arduino programming language (based on
Wiring) and the arduino development environment (based on Processing). Arduino projects can be
stand-alone or they can communicate with software on running on a computer.
 Fig. 5.1 Arduino nano

Arduino Nano is a surface mount breadboard embedded version with integrated USB. It is a
smallest, complete, and breadboard friendly. It has everything that has electrically with more analog
input pins and onboard +5V AREF jumper. Physically, it is missing power jack. The Nano is
automatically sense and switch to the higher potential source of power, there is no need for the power
select jumper. Each of the 14 digital pins on the Nano can be used as an input or output, using pin mode,
digital write, and digital read functions. They operate at 5 volts. Each pin can provide or receive a
maximum of 40 mA and has an internal pull up resistor (disconnected by default) of 20-50 kOhms.[8]

In addition, some pins have specialized Functions:-

 Serial: 0 (RX) and 1 (TX). Used to receive (RX) and transmit (TX) TTL serial data. These pins are
connected to the corresponding pins of the FTDI USB-to-TTL Serial chip.
 External Interrupts: 2 and 3. These pins can be configured to trigger an interrupt on a low value, a rising
or falling edge, or a change in value. See the attach Interrupt function for details.
 PWM: 3, 5, 6, 9, 10, and 11. Provide 8-bit PWM output with the analog Write function.
 SPI: 10 (SS), 11 (MOSI), 12 (MISO), 13 (SCK). These pins support SPI communication, which, although
provided by the underlying hardware, is not currently included in the arduino language.
 LED: There is a built-in LED connected to digital pin 13. When the pin is HIGH value, the LED is on,
when the pin is LOW value, then it's off. The Nano has 8 analog inputs, each of which provide 10 bits of
resolution (i.e. 1024 different values). By default they measure from ground to 5 volts, though is it
possible to change the upper end of their range using the analog reference function. Analog pins 6 and 7
cannot be used as digital pins. Additionally, some pins have specialized functionality:
 AREF : Reference voltage for the analog inputs. Used with analog Reference.
 I2C. I2C communication is developed using A4 and A5 pins where A4 represents the serial data line
(SDA) which carries the data and A5 represents the serial clock line (SCL) which is a clock signal,
generated by the master device, used for data synchronization between the devices on an I2C bus
Power :
The Arduino Nano can be powered via the Mini-B USB connection, 6-20V unregulated external
power supply (pin 30), or 5V regulated external power supply (pin 27). The power source is
automatically selected to the highest voltage source.[8]
Memory :
The ATmega328p has 32 KB, (also with 2 KB used for the bootloader. The ATmega328 has 2
KB of SRAM and 1 KB of EEPROM. Reset Pin of this line LOW to reset the microcontroller.
Typically used to add a reset button to shields which block the one on the board.
4.11 LCD Display
This is an example for the Parallel Port. This doesn't use the Bi-directional feature found on
newer ports, thus it should work with most, if no all Parallel Ports. It however doesn't show the
use of the Status Port as an input. A 16 Character x 2 Line LCD Module to the Parallel Port. A
16x2 LCD means it can display 16 characters per line and

Fig LCD Display

there are 2 such lines. In this LCD each character is displayed in 5x7 pixel matrix.
This LCD has two registers, namely, Command and Data. LCD (Liquid Crystal
Display) screen is an electronic display module and find a wide range of
applications. A 16x2 LCD display is very basic module and is very commonly
used in various devices and circuits. These modules are preferred over seven
segments and other multi segment LEDs. The reasons being: LCDs are
economical; easily programmable; have no limitation of displaying special &
even custom characters (unlike in seven segments), animations and so on.

The command register stores the command instructions given to the LCD.
A command is an instruction given to LCD to do a predefined task like
initializing it, clearing its screen, setting the cursor position, controlling
display etc. The data register stores the data to be displayed on the LCD.
The data is the ASCII value of the character to be displayed on the LCD.
44780 LCD BACKGROUND:
The 44780 standard requires 3 control lines as well as either 4 or 8
I/O lines for the data bus. The user may select whether the LCD is to operate
with a 4-bit data bus or an 8-bit data bus. If a 4-bit data bus is used the LCD
will require a total of 7 data lines (3 control lines plus the 4 lines for the data
bus). If an 8-bit data bus is used the LCD will require a total of 11 data lines (3
control lines plus the 8 lines for the data bus).
 The three control lines are referred as EN, RW and RS

EN: The EN line is called "Enable." This control line is used to tell the LCD
that you are sending it data. To send data to the LCD, your program should
make sure this line is low (0) and then set the other two control lines
and/or put data on the data bus. When the other lines are completely
ready, bring EN high (1) and wait for the minimum amount of time
required by the LCD datasheet (this varies from LCD to LCD), and end by
bringing it low (0) again.

RS: The RS line is the "Register Select" line. When RS is low (0), the data
is to be treated as a command or special instruction (such as clear screen,
position cursor, etc.). When RS is high (1), the data being sent is text data
which should be displayed on the screen. For example, to display the letter
"T" on the screen you would set RS high.

RW: The RW line is the "Read/Write" control line. When RW is low (0), the
information on the data bus is being written to the LCD. When RW is high
(1), the program is effectively querying (or reading) the LCD. Only one
instruction ("Get LCD status") is a read command. All others are write
commands--so RW will almost always be low.

Finally, the data bus consists of 4 or 8 lines (depending on the mode of

operation selected by the user). In the case of an 8-bit data bus, the lines
are referred to as DB0, DB1, DB2, DB3, DB4, DB5, DB6, and DB7.

7.5.1 LCD PIN OUT

Pin Description :-

Pin no. Functions Name

1. Ground Ground
2. Supply voltage 5V(4.7V-5.3V) Vcc
3. Contrast adjustment; through a variable resistor VEE
4. Selects command resistor when low; and data data resistor Register
when high Select

5. Low to write to the register; High to read from the register Read/Write

6. Sends data to data pins when high to low pulse given Enable
7-14 8-bit data pins DB0-DB7
15. Backlight Vcc (5V) LED+
16. Backlight Ground (0V) LED -
 Chapter 5
Software

5.1 Software Development Environment:

The Arduino is a single-board microcontroller, intended to make the application of

interactive objects or environments more accessible. The hardware consists of an
opensource hardware board designed around an 8-bit Atmel AVR microcontroller or a 32-
bit Atmel ARM. Current models feature a USB interface, 6 analog input pins, as well as 14
digital I/O pins which allow the user to attach various extension boards. Introduced in 2005,
at the Interaction Design Institute Ivrea, in Ivrea, Italy, it was designed to give students an
inexpensive and easy way to program interactive objects. It comes with a simple Integrated
Development Environment (IDE) that runs on regular personal computers and allows
writing programs for Arduino using a combination of simple Java and C or C++.
The previous code will not be seen by a standard C++ compiler as a valid program, so
when the user clicks the “Upload to I/O Board” button in the IDE, a copy of the code is
written to a temporary file with an extra include header at the top and a very simple main()
function at the bottom to make it a valid C++ program. The Arduino IDE uses the GNU
tool chain and AVR Libc to compile programs and uses avrdude to upload programs to the
board As the Arduino platform uses Atmel microcontrollers, Atmel‘s development
environment AVR Studio or the newer Atmel Studio, may also be used to develop software
for the Arduino.
Fig 19: The main programming window of the Arduino IDE.
5.2 PROTEUS SIMULATION SOFTWARE

Proteus is a software package for computer-aided

design, simulation and design of electronic circuits. It consists of

two main parts, the ISIS , the circuit design environment that even

the simulator VSM includes, and the ARES , the PCB -Designer.

Developer and manufacturer of the software package is the

company Lab center Electronics

Proteus 8 is a best simulation software for various

designs with microcontroller. It is mainly popular because of

availability of almost all microcontrollers in it. So it is a handy tool

to test programs and embedded designs for electronics hobbyist.

One can simulate your programming of microcontroller in Proteus

8 Simulation Software.

After Simulating the circuit in Proteus 8 Software one can directly

make PCB design with it so it could be a all in one package for

students and hobbyists. So now one can have a little bit idea about

what is proteus software. Latest version of proteus is proteus 8

demo version available for free of cost. The latest Proteus Software

version is Proteus 8.
 Chapter 6

6.1 DEVELOPMET STAGES & PROCESS:

The complete development of this system can be divided into the following stages:
 Problem definition stage
 Designing block diagram
 Implementing circuits and components
 Developing algorithm for software
 Writing actual code for Microcontroller
 Compiling the code
 Testing and Running.

 Problem definition stage

This is the very first stage to develop any project. It actually defines the aim and the concept
of the project.
 Designing block diagram
At this stage we have categorized the whole system into different individual modules. These
modules (block diagrams) will be helpful in understanding the concept and working of the
integrated system. It also simplifies the entire debugging and testing process.
 Implementing circuits and components
This is the actual implementation of circuit of each block. At this stage we have actually
designed each block separately and finally integrated them into the complete working
system.
 Developing algorithm for software
To get the logical flow of the software, the development of algorithm is having a prominent
role. So that we have analyzed the complete system and organized the algorithm in such a
manner that one can understand the complete working of the software.
 writing actual code for Microcontroller
After the development of the algorithm and flowchart we have actually translated them in C
language for Atmega328 Microcontroller so that it can understand the instructions and run
as per our requirement.
 Compiling the code
 The code is implemented on the computer for which we have used Arduino IDE pre-installed
on PC. Proteus software used for simulate working of Microcontroller in real time without
burning the software into actual IC. We simulated and compiled our program for error
checking. After removing of several compiling errors the program was converted into
machine language.
 Testing and Running
This time we tested our project for actual working, after loading the software into the
microcontroller. Any errors found were removed successfully. This is the last and final stage
of development of our project.
6.2 ADVANTAGE

 Reactive power decrease

 Efficiency of supply system and apparatus increases
 The electrical consumption tariffs depend on power factor
7. References:

• P. N. Enjeti and R Martinez, ―A high performance single phase rectifier with input
power factor correction,‖ IEEE Trans. Power Electron.vol.11, No. 2, Mar.2003.pp
311-317
• J.G. Cho, J.W. Won, H.S. Lee, ―Reduced conduction loss zero-voltage-transition
power factor correction converter with low cost,‖ IEEE Trans. Industrial Electron.
vol.45, no 3, Jun. 2000, pp395-400
• V.K Mehta and Rohit Mehta, ―Principles of power system‖, S. Chand & Company
Ltd, Ramnagar, New delhi-110055, 4th Edition, Chapter 6.
• Dr. Kurt Schipman and Dr. Francois Delince, ―The importance of good power
quality‖, ABB power quality Belgium.
• Robert. F. Coughlin, Frederick. F. Driscoll, ―Operational amplifiers and linear
integrated circuits‖, 6thEdition, chapter 4.
• International Journal of Engineering and Innovative Technology (IJEIT) Volume 3,
Issue 4, October 2013 272 Power Factor Correction Using PIC Microcontroller
• www.arduino.cc
• Design and Implementation of Microcontroller-Based Controlling of Power Factor
Using Capacitor Banks with Load Monitoring, Global Journal of Researches in
Engineering Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Volume 13, Issue 2, Version 1.0
Year 2013 Type: Double Blind Peer Reviewed International Research Journal
Publisher:
Global Journals Inc. (USA) Online ISSN: 2249-4596 & Print ISSN: 0975-5861
• Electric power industry reconstructing in India, Present scenario and future
prospects, S.N. Singh, senior member, IEEE and S.C. Srivastava, Senior Member,
IEEE.