Interface the devices to the Raspberry Pi

Note

It is important to exercise caution while connecting electrical appliances to the Raspberry Pi. If you don't know what you are doing, please skip this section. Adult supervision is required while connecting appliances.

In this task, we will look into interfacing decorative appliances (operated with an AC power supply) such as the Christmas tree. It is important to interface AC appliances to the Raspberry Pi in accordance with safety practices. It is possible to connect AC appliances to the Raspberry Pi using solid state relays. However, if the prototype boards aren't connected properly, it is a potential hazard. Hence, we use the Power Switch Tail II sold by Adafruit Industries.

Note

The Power Switch Tail II has been rated for 110V.

According to the specifications provided on the Adafruit website, Power Switch Tail's relay can switch up to 15A resistive loads. It can be controlled by providing a 3-12V DC signal. We will look into controlling the...