Mobile Cellphone Battery Charger Circuit

Charging of the mobile phone, cellphone battery is a big problem while traveling as power supply source is not generally accessible. If you keep your cellphone switched on continuously, its battery will go flat within five to six hours, making the cellphone useless.A fully charged battery becomes necessary especially when your distance from the nearest relay station increases. Here’s a simple charger that replenishes the cellphone battery within two to three hours. Basically, the charger is a current-limited voltage source. Generally, cellphone battery packs require 3.6-6V DC and 180-200mA current for charging.These usually contain three NiCd cells, each having 1.2V rating. Current of 100mA is sufficient for charging the cellphone battery at a slow rate. A 12V battery containing eight pen cells gives sufficient current (1.8A) to charge the battery connected across the output terminals. The circuit also monitors the voltage level of the battery. It automatically cuts off the charging process when its output terminal voltage increases above the predetermined voltage level.








Parts:

P1 = 20K
P2 = 20K
R1 = 390R
R2 = 680R
R3 = 39R-1W
R4 = 27K
R5 = 47K
R6 = 3.3K
R7 = 100R-1W
C1 = 4.7uF-25V
C2 = 0.01uF
C3 = 0.001uF
D1 = 5.6V-1W Zener
D2 = 3mm. Red LED
Q1 = SL100

S1 = On/Off Switch
B1 = 1.5vx8 AA Cells in Series
IC1 = NE555 Timer IC




Timer IC NE555 is used to charge and monitor the voltage level in the battery. Control voltage pin 5 of IC1 is provided with a reference voltage of 5.6V by zener diode D1. Threshold pin 6 is supplied with a voltage set by P1 and trigger pin 2 is supplied with a voltage set by P2. When the discharged cellphone battery is connected to the circuit, the voltage given to trigger pin 2 of IC1 is below 1/3Vcc and hence the flip-flop in the IC is switched on to take output pin 3 high. When the battery is fully charged, the output terminal voltage increases the voltage at pin 2 of IC1 above the trigger point threshold.
This switches off the flip-flop and the output goes low to terminate the charging process. Threshold pin 6 of IC1 is referenced at 2/3Vcc set by P1. Transistor Q1 is used to enhance the charging current. Value of R3 is critical in providing the required current for charging. With the given value of 39-ohm the charging current is around 180 mA. The circuit can be constructed on a small general-purpose PCB.
For calibration of cut-off voltage level, use a variable DC power source. Connect the output terminals of the circuit to the variable power supply set at 7V. Adjust P1 in the middle position and slowly adjust P2 until LED (D2) goes off, indicating low output. LED should turn on when the voltage of the variable power supply reduces below 5V. Enclose the circuit in a small plastic case and use suitable connector for connecting to the cellphone battery.




Note

This circuit was tested with a Motorola make cellphone battery rated at 3.6V, 320 mAH. In place of 5.6V zener, a 3.3V zener diode was used. The charging current measured was about 200mA. The status of LED is shown in the table.