Here are 5 popular projects that are goof-proof!

Build them tonight and put them to use tomorrow.

0 T H E PROJ ECTS CONTAINED IN THI S SPECIAL SECTION OF magazine . For example: TR is the symbol used for a tran-
Hands-on Electronics have been carefully selected for their sistor in thi s section instead of Q. The reason for this change
un iversal appeal and many applications in the home , office ; is to permit the Parts Lists and diagrams to coincide with the
wdrkshop, factory ; in fact , anywhere people go! printed material supplied by Dick Smith Electronics .
The projects are based on those selected by the Editor from We have provided more information, instructio ns , and
the Dick Smith Electronics catalog , asse mbled and reported diagrams than we normally would do because it is the inten-
in !detail in the section. Since the pa:ts are supplied in kit tion of this section to encourage neophyte and novice builders
fo~m, their availability is assured shou ld you not be able find to get totally involved with their hobby. The old pros are
them in your junkbox or to purchase them locally. The parts urged to read a bit faster and plug in the soldering iron
des ignations are not consistent with those usually used in this immediately. Happy soldering!

MULTI-PURPOSE
FLASHING LED
This simple circuit can be used in almost any application;
everything from warning indicators to jewelry to decorative
window ornaments, anything else that you can think of!
0 T H E MU LT I-PU RPOSE FLASHIN G L ED
\\ A
P.~ject can be used as a simple warning
indicator-outside a darkroom door, for R3
example. Or it can be used to warn a thi ef R4
47K
560!1
that your car is fitted with a burglar alarm , Cl C2
2.2µF l!Jµ ~ +
even if it really isn't! Or, if you're so rnv
16V
inclined , you can tum this little circuit
into the latest in electronic jewlery. The + ~+ T3V TO 12V
.L BATTERY
board has been designed to wear as a
Fig. 1-The circuit is really
brooch or pendant: So why pay $50 or simple and the only problem
more when you can make your own? B B that might be encounted has to
do with the polarity of the
How It Works E TRl TR2
DS548 DS548 components: Over half of them
When power is applied (refer to Fig. I), are polarized! It will operate
c• pacitors Cl and C2 start to charge to the from a very wide voltage range.

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 supply voltage via the base-emitter junc-
tions of TRI and TR2. That charging cur- PARTS LIST FOR THE MULTI-PURPOSE LED FLASHER
rent tries to tum both the transistors on.
But both cannot tum on at the same time, LE D1--Jumt>o red llght-emlttlng diode
as we will see in a moment. By a com- TR1 , TR2-DS548, ECG123A, 2N2222, 2N2222A. or s1milar NPN
bination of component tolerance, one of transistor
the two transistors will tum on first. A1 - 330 ohm, V~· watl, 5% nxect resis1or
By the time the transistor has turned on R2, R3--47.000-ohrn, V'4·watt, 5% fixed resistor
(let's assume it to be TRI) the capacitors R4-560-ohm, Y4·wat1, 5% fixed re5lstor
have reached a reasonable state of charge. C1-2.2-µ.F, 16-WVDC tantalum capacitor
They could have quite a few volts across C2-10-µF, 16-WVDC tantalum capacitor
them. So the positive end of the capacitors
would be a few volts positive with respect ADDITIONAL PARTS AND MATERIALS
to the negative ends. Battery snap, solder, hookup wire, 9-~lt battery or other 9-volt DC
As you can see, the positive ends of the source, optiooaJ LED identical 1o LED1. sui1abte mounting board
capacitors are connected to the transistor or printed-circuit board of corm<:t design (The Dk:k Smith K-2621
collectors, with their negative ends to the Flasher Kit cont.a.ins the printed circuit}.
opposite transistor's base. When TRI Order the Flasher Kit of parts, K-2621 for $2.95 from Dick Smith
turns on, its collector voltage drops to a Electronics. Telephone 1-800/332-5373, and tell them you saw it in
low level-probably around I volt. But Hands-on Electronics.
wait; the capacitor connected to that point
has a potential of 6 volts. What happens
here? Because the capacitor has resistance chosen, a link (jumper wire) must be sol- One use for this type of circuit is as an
in series, it cannot discharge imme- dered in the opposite position labeled alarm indicator, let's say, for your car.
diately. So whatever voltage the positive LINK. You've probably seen those rather expen-
end becomes, the negative end must go Position and solder TRI and TR2. If sive auto alarms systems with a flashing
another 6 volts below that again! If the you are unsure about your soldering abil- lights to warn thieves away. This flashing
collector of TRI goes to I volt, the nega- ity, use a heatsink on the transistor leads to LED can be used for exactly the same
tive end of Cl must go to around minus 5 prevent overheating. Solder in the battery purpose: and you don't even have to have
volts! wires, again taking care with polarity. an alarm! You might consider combining
As the negative end of Cl is connected There's not much good getting everything this project and a Car Alarm to produce a
to the base of TR2, it turns off, and it else right if the battery is reversed! The complete system.
remains in that state while Cl discharges positive (red) lead goes to the end of the When connecting the circuit to your
through Rl, the LED, and R2. printed-circuit board with the LED on it; auto's electrical sytem, no circuit modi-
Eventually Cl discharges, and TR2 can the negative (black) lead goes to the end fications are needed for 12-volt operation,
then tum on via R2. As soon as that hap- with the transistors on it. The printed- because this circuit is designed to operate
pens, C2's negative end drops down to circuit board has been designed to accom- over a wide voltage range. Just wire the
- 5 volts, turning off TRI. Capacitor C2 modate two LED's, but at the moment, we positive lead to the car battery's positive
eventually discharges, allowing TRl to need only one. Thus, a link (mentioned terminal (or other convenient 12-volt
tum on again, turning offTR2. That cycle earlier), made from a short length of cut source), and the negative lead to the car's
continually repeats as long as power is component lead, is used to jumper out the chassis (assuming a negative ground vehi-
applied. As there is an LED in series with extra LED position. cle). Unless your car battery's charge is
TRI, every time TRI turns on, the current Go over the board, checking all compo- pretty low, it won't hurt to leave the LED
flowing through it must also flow through nents, battery connections, etc. If you're flashing all the time.
the LED: Thus it flashes, giving us one satisfied that everything is correct, con- Darkroom Warning Indicator: This cir-
flash for each cycle. nect the battery and the LED should start cuit makes a great little warning for
A second LED can be connected in to flash, immediately. If it doesn't, dis- darkrooms, etc, with the flashing LED
series with TR2's collector, giving two connect the battery, and recheck every- meaning "stay out!" Because it might be
flashes per cycle. The rate at which flash- thing component, soldered joint, and inconvenient to change batteries all the
ing occurs is governed by the value of wire. (It may be that your battery is dead?) time, you may wish to power the circuit
resistors R2 and R3, and capacitors Cl from a plug-in battery eliminator (wall-
and C2. Varying the value of any or all of Putting It to Good Use mounted, DC power supply). Figure 3
those components will vary the circuit A circuit such as this has several uses. shows full connection details.
speed. + 3-12 VDC
Putting It Together
Obtain the parts specified in the Parts -

List; there is a low-priced kit available. LED1

Mount the components as shown in the + ~LINK

parts-placement diagram, Fig. 2. Place A3Q + + ~

R1~~C~~~R<
(/)
() and solder the resistors and capacitors Fig. 2-The printed-circuit
z
0
first, taking care to observe the capacitors' board can be made with one
a: polarity. Make sure that all components LED, as shown, or twin LED's
t- are "dressed" (neatly positioned) before (see text). The printed·
()
circuit board can also be
~B lt..s
UJ soldering them in place. Mount the LED;
...J
UJ cut Into a circular shape,
the anode (positive) lead is the longer of
z
0 the two and goes towards the outer edge of TR1 E ~TR2 allowing It to be worn as
a brooch, badge, or pendant.
eh the PC board. The LED can be soldered in
0
z place as shown, or tacked to the opposite
<
I side (see photo). Which ever side is -3-12VDC

54
 value resistor to get sufficient LED bright-
ness. Values as low as 100 ohms should be
satisfactory; remember, however, that the
lower the resistor, the heavier the current
drain on the battery.
Other modifications you can make to
your flasher include the altering of the
LED's on/off times. With the capacitors
values shown, the on time is much shorter
than the off time. If those capacitors are
made equal, the on/off times of the LED's Fig. 5-A same-size pattern of the LED
will be equal. (Watch the capacitor polar- flasher board for electronic jewelry.
ity!) Cut the circle shape with a hacksaw,
If you want to use the Flasher as an and finish off with a file.
alarm device, we assume that you will
want to protect it in a box. The PC board your collar. The badge itself can be held
supplied with the kit has been designed to on by a tab of double-sided adhesive tape
fit into the smallest slotted Zippy box, see (available from most stationary and other
Fig. 4 (Dick Smith Cat. H-2755) with stores), or a normal pin clasp glued to the
plenty of room for the battery. If that box back of the board.
is used, we would assume further that you Another suggestion is to mount the
will want to include an on/off switch. brooch on a gold chain, and use the chain
Once again, Figure 3 gives the details. itself to carry power down to the board.
Making electronic jewelry: A printed-cir- Obviously, the two halves of the chain
cuit pattern has been provided, that's would have to be insulated from each
larger than the circuit board supplied with other. Another idea we've seen is to have
the kit, for those who want to make elec- the circuit worn behind a jumper or tee-
tronic jewelry (see Fig. 5). The extra size shirt, with the LED's poked through fine
is to allow room behind the main printed holes between the strands of fabric. That
circuit for batteries. The smaller board idea looks really neat if the jumper or
isn't big enough. Figure 6 shows the teeshirt has a design or pattern on it that
I printed-circuit pattern needed for battery can be worked in with the LED's!
FI~ 3-The diagrams illustrate how to mounting on the electronic jewelry. The However, the most logical idea-as far
adtjl an on/off switch or a socket for an pattern can be copied and etched. as convenience goes-is to actually
e~rnal wall mounted DC power supply to You may have noticed that all the tracks mount the batteries on the back of the
yo• r proJects. The same wiring can be on the printed-circuit board are crowded board itself. (Use small silver oxide or
ustd for almost any battered powered into a small circle in the middle of the mercury batteries, the type used in watch-
prdJect. In a, a 9-volt snap-on es.) The drawing and photos should give
board. Normally, that would be taboo,
b•, ery connector is shown without a
swttch. The solid black lead Is negative and bare-board material should be avoid- you a good idea of how to make up your
In f ll cases. b shows how to add an ed. Obviously, there is a reason for that! own .brooch or badge.
on4off switch. The red lead, or positive, We have designed the board that way so Once you've made up your printed-cir-
Is llroken by the switch (only the center that the circular pattern can be cut out cuit board, you must decide whether
an~ one of the outside terminals are (with a fine hacksaw and filed down) al- you're going to leave it as is, or just have
usfd~ In c, an 3.5-mm socket re- lowing the printed circuit to be used as a the LED's showing. The second method
pl*8s the switch. The socket auto- brooch or badge. Electronic jewelry is all certainly protects the components, but is
mljtlcally cuts off the battery If wired the rage overseas, and is now being seen much more involved. It normally means
as 111hown. The wiring scheme In d
elsewhere. However, the prices have been going through a process called "potting,"
allfWS for greater power supply flex-
lbillty: Both the battery snap and socket very high; now you can make your own at in which the components are set in a clear
for! external power are included with the a fraction of the cost! or translucent liquid that turns hard after a
swjtch controlling the power supplied. There are a number of ways you can time. Normally a mold is used to form a
I assemble and wear the circuit. Perhaps the desired shape: When the mold is removed,
ISo far, we've shown a basic single-LED easiest way is to connect fine wires and the potting compound has taken the shape
fl <¥>her: But (as has been mentioned), the hide the battery in your pocket or behind of the mold. If the potting compound sets
printed-circuit board was designed to op-
erate with eitherone or two LED's. If you
wish to add a second LED, simply con-
n~t it in place of the link, with the anode
(tl e longer lead) going to the track con-
nt'jcted to the positive supply. Why not use
a f reen LED in the second position, so the
inj:iicator would alternately flash red and
g~en?
IIf you do connect a second LED, the
5($0-ohm resistor should be reduced to the Fig. 4-There Is
s~e value as in series with LEDi, for
plenty of room inside
the smallest Zippy
rc!ighly equal brightness. We've shown a
box for the printed
3 0-ohm resistor in series, which is fine circuit. A hole Is
for 9 or 12-volt operation. If you want to drllled In the front
Oferate the circuit from a lower supply panel for the LED to
T age, you m;ght wont to "'' • low" poke through.

55
 Circular version of flasher
Fig. &-Details for making an PCB, assembled with one or
on-board power supply for use two LEDs.
in electronic jewelry is shown.
Three additional boards of the Insulation tape to prevent
same shape and size, etched as short-circuiting.
shown are required.
Screw glued onto PCB.

Circular PCB with pattern cut

out as shown; copper side
clear, all the components can be seen in- down.
side. (It normally sets as clear as glass!)
Other compounds set with a "haze, "so Circle of cardboard or blank
all that can be seen coming from them is - PCB material, to hold
the glow of the LED's . Sometimes the batteries in position.
whole board seems to glow, if the LED's
are set far enough down in the compound. 3 'silver oxide' watch
The compound is non-conductive; so batteries, tWo with positive
once it sets, there are no problems with side up, one' with negative
side up.
short circuits. Potting compound is avail-
able from most hobby shops: Simply ex- Matching nut glued to blank
plain what you want to do and you should area in centre of PCB.
get the right material. As for a mold.
various things can be used-bottle tops, Circular PCB (same as above)
paper cups , etc .--or you can even make with copper side up.
your own mold from plaster of paris if you
want to achieve some unusual shape . In our simple flasher. we didn't fit an portant that the slots are oriented correctly
When potting . you must be careful that on/off switch: rather, we used the negative to each other: if you had X-ray eyes and
the potting material does not "ooze" lead from the batteries to connect with a could look through the assembly, the slots
down into the battery compartment and small hook soldered to the negative con- would form a "Y" pattern.
stop conduction between the battery and nection point on the main printed circuit. If the printed-circuit boards are as-
the printed circuit. Another thing that can There are other ideas you could try, of sembled and the battery polarities ori-
stop good contact is small breaks in the course. A pin clasp glued to the back of ented as shown, you shouldn't have any
copper traces; we coated (tinned) both the rear printed-circuit board which, problems. The supply assembly can be
battery boards with solder to prevent the when closed, completes the circuit. glued to the back of the flasher board, or it
copper from tarnishing, which al so We have barely scratched the surface of can be held on by the wire connecting the
bridges any gaps in the traces . this exciting subject: the limit is your own positive supply to the flasher. The supply
An opposite problem to that is un- imagination! is turned on and off by screwing and un-
wanted connections (short circuits) be- This is one way to make a brooch or screwing the rearmost PC board so that
tween components of the battery holders . badge with its own battery supply glued to contact is made or broken with the bat-
The screw head can short onto or between the back! The batteries are "sandwiched" teries .
the traces of the printed circuit, so we between two circular printed-circuit This is just one idea: of course, there
covered the head of the screw with insula- boards. A slot is cut into the boards so that are many other ways to go. For other
tion tape before assembly. The nut on the when they are placed together (copper ideas, why not have a look at some elec-
back battery printed-circuit board is not facing in) with the batteries sandwiched tronic brooches in a modernjewelry shop.
soldered to the copper; it is glued to blank between, the batteries are connected in See how their brooches are made, and
board to prevent short circuits. series, giving a 4.5-volt supply. It is im- copy them.

ELECTRONIC
Cf)
~
DICE
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0
a:
I-
()
w
....I
w
5 Imagine an electronic die that not only "rolls," and displays the
~ result, but turns off automatically! And if you wish, you can build two
~ dice into the same box for games such as Backgammon, Monopoly, etc.!
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