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47 projects to do with a 555!

by Jimmy Proton on December 22, 2010

Table of Contents

47 projects to do with a 555! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Intro: 47 projects to do with a 555! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Related Instructables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Comments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

http://www.instructables.com/id/47-projects-to-do-with-a-555/
 Author:Jimmy Proton
I am a Baptist Christian, I live in the USA, my dad was an electrical engineer in the navy, my uncle and grandpa are both engineers, I am interested in building and taki
.............technology..........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
even when i clean it.........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
parts.................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
OOo! I like skinny girls! alot!

Intro: 47 projects to do with a 555!

These are a whole bunch of things to make with the 555 timer IC with a note for each picture.
I do not take credit for these schematics. * Unknown author

As you would probably think it took me a very long time to make this but it was night and i was wanting to waste some time so i hope you like it! *tell me if I have any
twice

I have descriptions for each and every picture so feel free to ask questions!

Image Notes
1. flashing LED

http://www.instructables.com/id/47-projects-to-do-with-a-555/
http://www.instructables.com/id/47-projects-to-do-with-a-555/
 Image Notes
1. dice

http://www.instructables.com/id/47-projects-to-do-with-a-555/
http://www.instructables.com/id/47-projects-to-do-with-a-555/
http://www.instructables.com/id/47-projects-to-do-with-a-555/
 Image Notes
1. roulette

http://www.instructables.com/id/47-projects-to-do-with-a-555/
 Image Notes
1. bike turning signal

http://www.instructables.com/id/47-projects-to-do-with-a-555/
http://www.instructables.com/id/47-projects-to-do-with-a-555/
http://www.instructables.com/id/47-projects-to-do-with-a-555/
http://www.instructables.com/id/47-projects-to-do-with-a-555/
 Image Notes
1. automatic curtain closer

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Speleomaniac
for One Cycle
Then Stop by
snotty

Comments
37 comments Add Comment

matstermind says: Jan 30, 2011. 7:20 PM REPLY

whats the first one do?

Jimmy Proton says: Jan 31, 2011. 12:33 PM REPLY

This circuit drives a 3x3x3 cube consisting of 27 white LEDs. The 4020 IC is a 14 stage binary counter and we have used 9 outputs. Each output drives 3
white LEDs in series and we have omitted a dropper resistor as the chip can only deliver a maximum of 15mA per output. The 4020 produces 512
different patterns before the sequence repeats and you have to build the project to see the effects it produces on the 3D cube.

meevenson says: Feb 23, 2011. 10:10 AM REPLY

I have built this circuit and I can not get it to work. Depending on the voltage I apply and the resistor I swap out I can get about five seconds of
flashing on half of the cube and then it dies out and does nothing. Any ideas?

matstermind says: Feb 23, 2011. 12:30 PM REPLY

try a different type of 555 timer (TLC/NE instead of a SE). switching it helped for the touch plate circuit

meevenson says: Feb 23, 2011. 3:40 PM REPLY

Tried that already. Tried switching the cap, the voltage, the resistor, and switching around the wires. The most I can get out of it is one row to
stay lit up and a few others to blink for a couple of seconds and then it dies out and does not start over. I left it on for 15 minutes just to see if
it was running through a process and nothing happened.

hubi says: Feb 9, 2011. 4:06 PM REPLY

Hello,
Your 555 Amlifier is cool, it is kind of Class D PWM Amlifier, I think.
Yu could much better results if you use a second 555 as clock generator and feed the trigger of your amp with it. More improvement would be to charge the
cap via costant current to get the ramp of the sawtooth more linear.
I have done all of this, and fed a flyback via Mosfet with this, gives a cool plasma tweeter.

mightywombat says: Jan 25, 2011. 2:36 PM REPLY

is there any way you can add a list of the projects to the text of the instructable? Just a numbered list would be more than sufficient. I'm just ridiculously
curious about the projects that aren't labeled!

Jimmy Proton says: Jan 25, 2011. 3:26 PM REPLY

I could add an Image Note.

mightywombat says: Jan 25, 2011. 6:35 PM REPLY

That would be super duper helpful! Thanks!

Jimmy Proton says: Jan 26, 2011. 12:34 PM REPLY

your welcome.

http://www.instructables.com/id/47-projects-to-do-with-a-555/
 randomness72.5 says: Dec 26, 2010. 10:22 PM REPLY
do 555s need a programmer to work like every other IC im new at this

Jimmy Proton says: Dec 26, 2010. 10:36 PM REPLY

No, 555's are pre-programed like most ICs.

spark light says: Jan 7, 2011. 8:32 PM REPLY

I wouldn't say that an analog ic is programmed...

aliyevzaur1989 says: Jan 15, 2011. 12:05 AM REPLY

Yeah.I agree.555 is an analog circuit.not digital.so it's not gonna be programmed

nando_41 says: Jan 20, 2011. 3:13 PM REPLY

555 is really a digital circuit, but it comes preconfigured as a timer. the only way to change the way it operated(within specs) is by the
components that you add to it

spark light says: Jan 20, 2011. 4:13 PM REPLY

no, it is a mix between an analog circuit. there are op amps as well as a voltage divider in the standard 555.

nando_41 says: Jan 21, 2011. 9:41 AM REPLY

i satand corrected, thanks, never really considered what they were categorized at, i just use them

spark light says: Jan 21, 2011. 11:04 PM REPLY

As long as it works! :D

randomness72.5 says: Jan 16, 2011. 9:32 PM REPLY

What is the difference between analog and digital? IC's are pretty much the last component I dont understand at all my knoledge was pretty
much that every IC had to be programmed with a special device and a computer and that was wrong.....

mischka says: Jan 19, 2011. 2:59 PM REPLY

IC is the short cut for integrated circuit. Most ICs are really small analog circuits and theoretically you can build them with common
components like resistors, transistors, capacitors. What you mean are microcontrollers. These are also ICs but you can program them to
do what you want them to do.

randomness72.5 says: Jan 22, 2011. 6:53 PM REPLY

So only for micro controllers you need a special device to program them with? I was wondering this because I like doing Instructables
on this site but a lot of them call for a microcontroller and have a file to download....

spark light says: Jan 22, 2011. 8:37 PM REPLY

Yes, most of the time, the only ic you will need to program is a micro controller. Once you feel like you have a good understanding
of basic electronics, i suggest you check out arduino.

MROHM says: Jan 19, 2011. 12:37 PM REPLY

Nice bunch of Circuits you have here Jimmy!!! I would be glad to breadboard some of these little babies!! I think 555 timers and CMOS chips will be with us
for a little while?? I especially like 4011 chips hooked up as Square Wave Generators! why??? Low Cost, Low Power Consumption, Low Voltage AND
Portability!! Plus CMOS CHIPS can operate on a WIDER voltage variations(when compared to TTL(transistor transistor logic)) TTL operates At 5 VOLTS
while CMOS can operate from 3 to 12 volts!! Also CMOS operates over a wider Temperature variation making them suitable for outdoor applications!!!
(Portability)

Bongmaster says: Dec 23, 2010. 8:41 AM REPLY

awesme i got a bunch of 555's needing jobs atm x3

dont suppose u can zip these up into a downloadable archive? :3

Jimmy Proton says: Dec 23, 2010. 8:50 AM REPLY

im no computer expert but i could try.

http://www.instructables.com/id/47-projects-to-do-with-a-555/
 Bongmaster says: Dec 23, 2010. 6:56 PM REPLY
easy enough just get winrar or 7zip or winzip :)

2muchfreetime8 says: Dec 23, 2010. 5:33 PM REPLY

this is a very awsoem instructable. i especially say so because im still getting used to IC chips. im still learning about them, so i dont konw much about the
555 Timer. could u explain the pin layout and some stuff about the chip, or just make another instructable explaining it. this is very awsome. thankyou

Jimmy Proton says: Dec 23, 2010. 5:49 PM REPLY

Thank you very much! http://www.instructables.com/id/Know-Your-IC-555-Timers/ this instructable will teach you a lot about the chip.
the chip gets its name from the three 5K ohm resistors between pin 1 and 8. The picture may help you learn about the function of each pin

janw says: Dec 23, 2010. 3:34 AM REPLY

Nice collection, and ideal for beginners!

Jimmy Proton says: Dec 23, 2010. 1:26 PM REPLY

yeah except that almost all of them dont show the leads in order so its kinda hard to read.

bumsugger says: Dec 23, 2010. 8:17 AM REPLY

Ahh,my favourite little chip............................,well done Jimmy,what a star!

Jimmy Proton says: Dec 23, 2010. 8:49 AM REPLY

thank you!

ChefJohn1955 says: Dec 23, 2010. 6:51 AM REPLY

Some of the circuits do not have labels as to what they are? eg #46

Jimmy Proton says: Dec 23, 2010. 7:43 AM REPLY

(with out labels) the first one is 3x3x3 LED cube. the second one is a flashing indicator. the third is the famous flashing LED. the fourth is a dice. the firth
is roulette. the sixth is a bike turning signal. and seventh, the last is an automatic curtain closer. hope that helps

ecesanthoshm says: Dec 23, 2010. 5:33 AM REPLY

its very nice dude:)

Jimmy Proton says: Dec 23, 2010. 7:33 AM REPLY

thanks! :)

wnordmann says: Dec 23, 2010. 7:07 AM REPLY

Very cool. This would make a great book / pamphlet.

http://www.instructables.com/id/47-projects-to-do-with-a-555/