Build Your Own LED Turn Signals!

[danlandberg]

I have a CD4017BE decade counter ic I thought about a chasing LED turn signal circuit. But don't want to get to fancy. LoL

 

[machanic]

You can use a blinking led to blink 4-5 other leds although you can't control blink rate.

 

[danlandberg]

With the 4017 you can make the LEDs cascade one after the other.

 

[danlandberg]

Using the 4017 you can have them chase each other, blink one after another.
The 555 can also be used in conjunction with 4017. Just to fancy.
I'm just wanting something small, simple and inexpensive to be as street legal as possible.

 

[Frankenstein]

Using the 4017 you can have them chase each other, blink one after another.
The 555 can also be used in conjunction with 4017. Just to fancy.
I'm just wanting something small, simple and inexpensive to be as street legal as possible.

Yes that's absolutely possible, I do believe in newer age hacking of materials. They have small hardwired controllers for degitalized led strips, you can pick out a chasing pattern and even better program your color and speed as desired very simply by pressing a few buttons, the controllers memorize their last setting without external power, then when power was applied it would simply repeat what it was told.

Cutting strips up and bringing the leds in close proximity of each other could make for a really eye catching signal. Could a 555 hold a circuit closed for a set amount of time without doing a blinking circuit, thinking just as a simple timeout, I had been curious about the adaption of such a thing.

My other option I considered over the digitalized strips (which are pretty darn cheap) are something called neopixels, they are basically "Lego leds" that are connected together, then controlled with a simple arduino micro computer, that would let you program a display digitally with the leds, set patterns ect.. The price difference is kind of large, and the computer is much more delicate and requires extra time setting up.. Led strips and cheap controllers do basically anything you could want from a turn signal and are really just simple 8 wired light bulbs, it's extra work too to cut and splice maybe 64 connections but it balances out with the end result as being pretty cool.

The microcontroller gig can be programed with a timeout delay but I think if a simple digital circuit could be supplied power for a time and an ic can just handle the shut off that could be pretty elegant.

I can always put an annoying led on my mirror, if I look behind me it would be evident that my signal was on. My peripherals seem to work pretty good so I'd be likely to notice it, some people I know wouldn't notice it but that's life..

Sorry I get excited about shiny things.