Hey there, I've built my own arcade machine from scratch, I have everything 99% working and I'm just adding the last touches.

I have one button which is for a special feature that I would like to research and find out how I can make the lamp flash then when I press it-it changes to steady on and back an fourth with each press. Kind of making it attractive and stand out beconing people over.

The Led is 12v- I have a 12v supply there powering an audio amp and also 2 other coin entry type 12v lamps. This is all on its own circuit.

The micro switches mounted in button are low power and they are wired to a Usb encoder device which is pretty much like a pc keyboard.

I've enjoyed the electronics part of this project as its not my usual trade so im setting my self this new challenge. Would anyone be able to help and start me off on some research?
Thank you

 

Here is what you need in terms of circuitry.
Of course, a single MCU chip will do the job as well.

 

Hi there- do you know are there any semi made up circuits availale for this type of job? I'm starting at the very beginning in terms of knowledge.
Thanka

 

There are many ways to do this, but your description is not clear. Please fill in the following conditions with off, on steady, flashing, etc.

Machine sitting idle:

Button pressed one time:

No additional action for a long time:

Button pressed a second time after a short delay:

During game play:

Button state after game play:

ak

 

Hi there.

The button turns on/off shaders to make the screen look like an old skool CRT tv...barrel shaped scan lines etc. It not really part of an arcade machine as such in terms of tradition or function. I'm happy with just blinking to steady on back and forth with each press if that makes more sense?
I want friends etc to home in and press it

 

I'm happy with just blinking to steady on back and forth with each press if that makes more sense?

Not really. Are you saying you want a repeating pattern of

blinking for a while
then steady for a while
then blinking for a while
repeat?

You said the LED power source is +12 V. What is the LED current?

Look up a datasheet for a CD4093 quad Schmitt Trigger NAND gate and a 2N7000 transistor.

ak

 

Not really. Are you saying you want a repeating pattern of

blinking for a while
then steady for a while
then blinking for a while
repeat?

You said the LED power source is +12 V. What is the LED current?

Look up a datasheet for a CD4093 quad Schmitt Trigger NAND gate and a 2N7000 transistor.

ak

 

Hi there...thanks for baring with!

The 12v Led is housed in the button illuminating it. I would like the phase to change when the button is pressed. Led starts off as flashing....and stays flashing...once the button is pushed it changes to solid on...once it's pushed again it changes back alternating with every push. I make fine furniture so I'm not from the world of electronics if I'm sounding dumb anywhere sorry- I can usually do anything with a bit of research so thanks for the help.
I can get a specialist arcade led controler for 64 buttons and program on Windows it's £40 and I only want one button so though I would try an electronics project or find a cheaper method

 

Power on - flashing - (how fast?)
1st press - solid on
2nd press - flashing
3rd press - solid on
4th press - flashing
repeat

yes/no ?

The flashing circuit is pretty easy. The only question is how much power it has to switch on and off. Is there a manufacturer or part number for the switch? Is the switch SPST (single-pole, single throw), or something else? Can you post a photo?

There are a lot of little timer modules on ebay at very low cost, but none that I know of that will do what you want. The circuit can be done with two 555's, one for the toggle controller and one for the flasher oscillator. However, I prefer CMOS logic gates for things like this, such as one CD40106 hex inverter or one CD4093 NAND gate. In each case, one section is the toggle circuit, one section is the flash oscillator, and the remaining sections are combined to drive the output. CMOS gates cannot handle much current, so there might be one external transistor needed. The one advantage of a 555 is that it's output can drive 200 mA (that's a lot for a small chip).

Where are you located?

ak

 

Hey buddy, I'm in the UK.

Yes that's correct- that's exactly what I'm after. The flash rate I think about 4 flashes per sec. I'm not experienced with this kind of thing but I think that's about 1/8th of a second on + 1/8th second off if that's how you guys work?

With arcade buttons and fittings plastic buttons all have the same type of micro switches clip or snap fitted into them. The outer plastic part is more just for looks. The micro switches are these-
https://na.suzohapp.com/products/electrical_supplies/95-4111-90

I'm someone that can craft/engineer things so I have a few buttons on order and can craft multiple switches into one button. So mounting an extra switch for the lighting control is no problem if needed.

The Leds have 12v printed on them but I will try and find the amps they draw asap. They seem to be generic 12v arcade leds so I should find something.

I'm not familiar with some of the components listed so I'm going to spend a day googling and absorbing this information..this is already a cool project I'm learning thank you very much for the help.

 

An LED is a special form of a diode, and as such has no current limiting / self-protecting physics like an incandescent light bulb does. At a minimum it needs an external resistor to limit the current to a safe value, based on the value of the voltage source driving the LED. If the LED is in an industrial package and has 12 V stamped on it, it probably has an appropriate resistor inside the package and can be connected directly to a 12 V source. Still, it would be nice to know for sure.

What is your skill set in terms of assembling a small circuit with resistors, capacitors, and 1-2 IC's? Look into a proto-board or solderless breadboard and see if that is something that might work for you.

ak

 

Hi there-
Here is a picture of the type of Led I'm using
https://www.arcadeworlduk.com/products/awuk-12v-10mm-wedge-base-led.html
Thank you for the helpful lesson about diodes not being self limiting in terms of current drawn -That's a piece of the jigsaw puzzle understood. I cant find any info to say resistors are needed with these particular? Visually they do look like more of a unit than a classic led?
This will be my first circuit board as such...i work with really fine tools in my job daily and have pretty high standards of doing a good 'job'. I think the proto-board looks good and once I've made the circuit and tested it out. I would like to try a proper board too just for the sake of learning-im interested in repairing copper tracks for a later project so it would be good. I've soldered parts of my loom and that's what' got me wanting to learn more about electronics. I'm weak on component knowledge and diagrams at this stage!
Thank you again for your teachings

 

The LED looks like it has current limiting built-in, so that is 1/2 pf the puzzle. The other half is what the current is limited to. Small LEDs draw 10-20 mA, but extra-bright ones can get pretty hungry. There is nothing on that site to indicate what the rated current is, so - do you have a multimeter?

ak

 

Hi, Thank you for your time and patience.

I do have a multimeter- watched a quick tutorial to see how to measure

The Led is drawing 22.7/22.8 mA

This one I've measured is Red in colour if that can effect how it draws/emits

 

I think that gets us in the ball park for the product line.

Using standard logic parts there are two basic kinds of toggle circuits. One uses a couple of gates and some resistor-capacitor feedback, and the other uses a true flipflop with a clock input. The gate circuit can have problems if someone holds button on for too long, but extra gates in the same package make a simple and reliable oscillator. The flipflop version is much better for the button circuit, but you need something else to be the gated oscillator. I'm trying to keep this down to a single chip, and I have an idea for a toggle flipflop oscillator. I'll run it past the local wizards later tonight.

 

Hi thank you, I'm grateful for the help. I'm researching all the components you're suggesting to get a better idea of the circuit.

 

My brilliant idea got shot down by an unfortunately credible source, so it's back to the standard circuits. I'll whip up preliminary schematic later today.

ak

 

Awesome... Thank you kindly