Introduction: Power Led Flasher-simple,powerfull and Effective!!

By Prabhat Tiwari
About: i'm a college going guy who lives in india.i like to make electric gadgets and play with them.with the little knowledge of electronics,i'm able to solve my problems and hope yours too!!

hii guys,yesterday i was searching the internet for a flasher or strobe which i would use to slow motion photography or simply fun!!! ;) but i couldnt find any cheap and reliable alternative for those professional strobe light.

then a thought struck in my mind that probably i could make one at home using simple components..

far years ago someone told that necessity is the mother of invention!!!!

so i decided to make a simple ,cheap,very effective flasher using some components and power leds like 8 watt (1 watt connected in series)LEDs.

the main component is the infamous IC 555 timer.

it is connected in the astable configuration .i have made under 20 rupees in india (nearly 0.40 $ in US)

Step 1: Theory (boring Part ) :D

the IC LM555 is the most basic and simple type of IC's ever known,with only 8 pins,it can be used very easily.

basically the IC works as three configuration-

1) astable configuration

2) monostable configuration

3) bistable configuration.

astable means output is stable in neither of its state( on/off) it changes its output after a fixed interval.monostable means the output is stable in only one state(off state).bistable means the output is stable in both of its states (on/off)also known as flipflop.

here in this mini project IC is used in the astable configuration .i.e. the output turns on and off in fixed intervals producing square output wave.this interval is decided by the resistors R1 and R2 and capacitor C1.

NOTE-ONE CAN FIND THE DETAILED EXPLANATION OF IC 555 IN THE PDF PROVIDED.

Attachments

Step 2: COMPONENTS REQUIRED

few components are required listed as following

IC LM555 or NE555, 8 pin IC base,

Resistance- R1=100k ohm R2=50k ohm.

capacitors-C1=2.2uf voltage rating more than supply

also filter capacitor 0.01uF disc type is connected between pin 5 and ground which is optional.

power LEDs as required output light (minimum2 in series for 6 volt input and 3 for 9 v input to prevent burnout)

Step 3: SCHEMATICS AND LAYOUT (a Bit Hard Step) :P

sorry for my bad drawing because i have no software for that!!!!!please zoom the circuits to get clear view of them!

Step 4: Woohooo!!!!!! DONE!!!

just assemble the components on the etched pcb and soldier them in their position.and you are done!!!!!

NOTE- TO ADJUST THE FREQUENCY OF STROBE CHANGE THE R1 VALUE AND TO CHANGE THE DUTY CYCLE CHANGE THE R2 VALUE.

NOTE-PLEASE ATTACH THE HEAT SINK FOR BOTH IC 555 AND TRANSISTOR TO PREVENT THEM FROM BURNING WHILE DRIVING HEAVY LOADS...

NOTE- DO NOT USE POWER SUPPLY MORE THAN 9 VOLT,AS IT WILL LEAD TO BURNOUT OF IC AND TRANSISTOR.

THANK YOU !!!! FOR READING THIS INSTUCTABLES,HOPE YOU LIKE IT AND DONT FORGET TO MARK AS FAVOURITE.

for any querries,misunderstanding ,sharing feedback,please comment below.YOUR OPINION IS PRECIOUS TO ME!!!!