555 Timer Essay

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The 555 timer IC is an amazingly simple yet versatile device. It has been around now for many years and has been reworked into a number of different technologies. The two primary versions today are the original bipolar design and the more recent CMOS equivalent. These differences primarily affect the amount of power they require and their maximum frequency of operation; they are pin-compatible and functionally interchangeable. This page contains only a description of the 555 timer IC itself. Functional circuits and a few of the very wide range of its possible applications will be covered in additional pages in this category. [pic] [pic] The figure to the right shows the functional block diagram of the 555 timer IC. The IC is available in either an 8-pin round TO3-style can or an 8-pin mini-DIP package. In either case, the pin connections are as follows: 1. Ground. 2. Trigger input. 3. Output. 4. Reset input. 5. Control voltage. 6. Threshhold input. 7. Discharge. 8. +VCC. +5 to +15 volts in normal use. The operation of the 555 timer revolves around the three resistors that form a voltage divider across the power supply, and the two comparators connected to this voltage divider. The IC is quiescent so long as the trigger input (pin 2) remains at +VCC and the threshhold input (pin 6) is at ground. Assume the reset input (pin 4) is also at +VCC and therefore inactive, and that the control voltage input (pin 5) is unconnected. Under these conditions, the output (pin 3) is at ground and the discharge transistor (pin 7) is turned on, thus grounding whatever is connected to this pin. The three resistors in the voltage divider all have the same value (5K in the bipolar version of this IC), so the comparator reference voltages are 1/3 and 2/3 of the

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