Build Your Own Love Tester Kit
Test Your Love Quotient
By Kelley NashI was assigned to build the Love Tester Kit, I thought it would be fun a Valentine's Day electronics project... and it was.
This kit is designed for two would-be lovers to test their true love. Each partner holds one end of the PCB, joins hands and then watches the meter go. Or then again maybe not.
Description: Love Tester Kit
Assembly Time: 1.5 hours
Skill Level: Intermediate
Test your love connection this Valentines Day
with this kit from Velleman!
Tips/Advice
The Love Tester is the most complex kit I've attempted to build so far. While LEDs are one of the easiest components to work with and there are only 10 LEDs in this project, it was those pesky other components that were a bit of a challenge.
Since it was the first time I assembled a kit involving ICs, I anticipated the soldering would be difficult. The sockets and the ICs are 18-pin and 14-pin, which I figured would be difficult to solder in such a tight space, but it was actually quite simple.
Double check to make sure you install the ICs correctly. The figure to the right of the instructions advises to watch the position of the notch on the ICs. There is a little half circle cutout on the IC, which is placed directly above the same cutout on the socket. If the ICs were to be put in backward and the kit were powered on, it would cause the ICs to overheat and smoke. While some might view this as a sign there was no love connection, it would in fact just mean the IC was installed incorrectly.
The capacitors were tricky to get to stand up straight. Unfortunately, I didn't really figure out a good solution. I balanced them as best as I could.
I found it difficult to solder the battery holder wires. You almost need an extra pair of hands to hold them in place on the solder points while soldering them, maybe your would be love could help. It's doable, but it took me a few tries.
Remember you need to hold hands with your partner in order to complete the circuit, otherwise the tester will not work. Also make sure your finger makes contact with the copper circle, when the gender symbols are located, as pictured.
Don't forget to check out our other Valentine kit: the Flashing LED Sweetheart.
Kelley Nash is a graduate of Notre Dame High School in Belmont, California. She is currently living in Savannah, Georgia and is planning on attending Amstrong Atlantic University to major in Engineering.