Category Archives: Basic Electronics

The Gate is a digital component that is used to compute an output for certain inputs, the inputs and outputs have two states high-1 and low- 0. Let us assume high is 5V and low is 0V (like in CMOS). On a high level the LED will light up and on a low level the LED is off. Now let us see what Logic means.

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Digital Logic Gates

• NOT Gate Tutorial
• AND Gate Tutorial
• OR Gate Tutorial
• XOR Gate Tutorial

Gates are what make many of ICs, the two popular families are the 40xx CMOS and the 74xx TTL . Now 40xx come in 74HCT40xx flavors which approach the quality of an ideal gate. Entire circuits with Gates can also be also be burnt into PLDs, FPGAs and CPLDs just like you burn your CDROM. Gates can also be implemented in assembly language which a microcontroller like 8051 will understand and execute.

Hardware gate circuit will operate in real time, nano seconds delay will be there due to propagation delay, gate capacitance and FET switching times etc. Software or microcontroller gates code working will depend on both propagation delay and the CPU clock speed.

Gates can be combined to make combinational or sequential logic circuits. combinational circuits are a complex network of gates interconnected to evaluate a pattern of output for patterns of input. Sequential circuits use memory elements hence output patterns depend both on input patterns and the memory of history of events. An example of combinational logic circuit is a seven segment display decoder CD4511 and and example for a sequential logic circuit is CD4029 up-down counter.

The CD40xx CMOS family can work at even 3V-9V-12V DC and consume low power. The speed is not as fast as 74xx TTL family. It is good for simple portable battery powered circuits. The 74HCTxx series is good for low power and high speed but will work at 5V. When you have problems interfacing CMOS and TTL use 74HCTxx family.

This is a Gadget Tutorial for this Article LED Running lights CD4017 – Live Gadget Page.

Red Button Powers LED Running Lights, 555 Clock is counted by CD4017. Adjust R2, See ToolTips. This Demo shows LM555 running a CD4017 Counter to drive Ten Leds sequentially.

Press the Red button below to turn on the circuit press it again to turn off, i have put a new battery and did the wiring for you. The Red LED will flash according to the state of the 555 output at pin 3. The decade counter-divider CD4017 has 10 outputs, for every low to high transition, rising edge, the counter advances one LED. After going one full circle the the first LED lights again and it goes on…..

The 10 outputs have 10 green LEDs. The current thru the LED is limited by R1, the current can be calculated like this (9V – 1.6V) / 1K = 7.4mA this is within 20mA which is the danger limit of the CMOS output. You want it to be bright use transistors for every output.