555 Timer Calculator

555 Timer Explained The 555-Timer IC (Integrated Circuit) is one of the most popular and widely spread ICs available with uses for nearly everything from clock timing, signal delay, pulse generation and signal oscillation applications. In Monostable mode the 555-timer IC forms a Resistance-Capacitance circuit with the external resistor and capacitor. When the input signal is applied to trigger pin, the internal workings of the IC start to charge the capacitor. When the voltage across the capacitor is equal to 2/3 the supply voltage of the IC the capacitor stops charging and the output signal of the circuit returns to the low state ready for the next input signal. The rectangular output waveform duration can be shortened or extended by adjusting the value of the resistor and capacitor, changing the rate that the capacitor charges. In Astable mode, the 555-timer forms a continuous output of rectangular waveform with a specific frequency with a fixed portions of the output signal in a high and low state with two resistors and one capacitor. When the 555-timer in astable mode is power on for the first time, the capacitor starts to charge with voltage, driving the output signal high. As the capacitor charges until it equals 2/3 the IC supply voltage. At that point, the capacitor starts to discharge, driving the output signal low. When the voltage across the capacitor drops to 1/3 of the IC supply voltage, it starts to charge up again driving the output signal high again and the process repeats again. As the capacitor charges and discharges voltage through the 555-timer IC, it switches between the two output states, High and Low. How much time is spent in those states and how quickly the cycle repeats is a function of both resistors and capacitor values. Examples Monostable The signal duration of the output can be modeled as Time in seconds (T) equal to the constant 1.1 multiplied by the resistance R measured in ohms (Ω) multiplied by the capacitance value C measured in Farads (F). So, for a circuit with 10,000 (10k) ohms (Ω) of a resistance and a capacitance value of 1,000 microfarads (1000 µF), the total length of the output signal would be as follows Astable The continuous output signal in Astable mode allows you to determine both the frequency in Hertz (Hz), how long it takes the signal to repeat and the duration of time the signal is in the high and low states. All three values that would define the output signal can be found using the values of R1 and R2 measured in ohms (Ω) and the capacitance value C1 measured in Farads (F). So, for a circuit with resistors of 10,000 (10k) and 15,000 (15k) ohms (Ω) of a resistance and a capacitance value of 10 microfarads (10 µF), the output signal would have the following characteristics Time High Time Low Frequency