Presented here is a solution for switching off outdoor lamps even when you are not at home. The lamp turns on in the evening and turns off in the morning so that there is no need for manually switching it on/off. The circuit is directly powered from AC mains and can be enclosed in a plug-in type adaptor box. It can drive a bulb, CFL, tubelight, LED lamp, etc up to 200W. Author’s prototype is shown in Fig. 1. Circuit and working Fig. 1: Author’s prototype The circuit uses a transformer-less power supply to generate low-volt DC. As capacitors C1 and C2 are connected in AC lines, these should be X-rated capacitors. This minimises space and makes the unit light-weight. Unlike an ordinary capacitive power supply, a more efficient power supply design is used for spike-free operation. Phase (L) and neutral (N) lines have identical circuits so reversal in polarity while plugging will not affect the circuit. 105K (1µF) 400V AC capacitors are used that can drop 230V AC to low-level AC. Resistors...