EE 214 Digital Circuits Laboratory

Experiment 4: Timer Circuits ,DAC and ADC

Aim: To learn about (a) open-collector TTL, (b) 555 timer circuits, (C) Digital to Analog Converter
(d) Analog to Digital Converter.
Pre-lab work: Read about open-collector TTL, monostable, astable multivibrators using the 555 timer in
the book by Taub/Schilling. Also read about Digital to Analog Converter.
Learn how to use ADC for DC input voltage. Familiarize yourself with the timing diagram.
Components: 7401, 555 timer, standard TTL gates, DAC0808, ADC 0804, LED, Display Unit.
Laboratory Procedure:
1. Design a simple Logic probe with a suitable resistor and an LED such that the LED lights when the
input is high. Use an inverter (7404).
2. Use an open-collector gate (7401) to directly drive an LED when the output is high.
3. Use the 555 timer to make a monostable multivibrator such that a negative-going pulse at the input
will produce an output pulse of duration 0.4 msec.
4. Use the 555 timer to make an astable multivibrator which gives a square wave of frequency 1 kHz.

DAC 0808 8-bit monolithic digital-to-analog converter (DAC):

The DAC0808 is an 8-bit monolithic digital-to-analog converter (DAC) featuring a full-scale output
current settling time of 150 ns while dissipating only 33 mW with 5V supplies. No reference current
(IREF) trimming is required for most applications since the full scale output current is typically 1 LSB
of 255 IREF/256. Relative accuracies of better than 0.19% assure 8-bit monotonicity and linearity while
zero level output current of less than 4 A provides 8-bit zero accuracy for IREF>=2 mA. The power
supply currents of the DAC0808 are independent of bit codes, and exhibits essentially constant device
characteristics over the entire supply voltage range. The DAC0808 will interface directly with popular
TTL, DTL or CMOS logic levels, and is a direct replacement for the MC1508/MC1408.
Laboratory Procedure:
1. Use the 7490 decade counter (in decade counting mode) to test the DAC. The counter should be
driven by the manual clock on the display unit. The output of the counter should be connected to the
A1, A2, A3, A4 pins of the DAC. The output of the DAC is to be measured with a multimeter for
each clock pulse.
2. Now, replace the manual clock with a 1 kHz square wave (0 to 5 V), and observe the DAC output on
the oscilloscope.

VREF = 10 V, R14= 5 k, R15= 5 k and RL= 5 k

ADC 0804 8-Bit, Microprocessor-Compatible, A/D Converters

ADC0804 is a very commonly used 8-bit analog to digital converter. It is a single channel IC, i.e., it can
take only one analog signal as input. There will be 256 digital steps corresponding to 8 bits. The step size
can be adjusted by setting the reference voltage at pin 9. When this pin is not connected, the default
reference voltage is the operating voltage, i.e., Vcc. The step size for Vref = 5V is 19.53mV (=5V/256),
i.e., for every 19.53mV rise in the analog input, the digital count increases by 1 step. To set a particular
voltage level as the reference value, this pin is connected to half the voltage. For example, to set a
reference of 4V (Vref), pin9 is connected to 2V (Vref/2), thereby reducing the step size to 15.62mV
(=4V/256).

ADC0804 needs a clock to operate. The time taken to convert the analog value to digital value is
dependent on this clock source. An external clock can be given at the Clock IN pin (use square wave from
the 555 timer). ADC 0804 also has an inbuilt clock which can be used in the absence of external clock. A
suitable RC circuit is connected between the Clock IN and Clock R pins to use the internal clock.
Laboratory Procedure:
1) Apply Va = 1V, 1.5V, 2V, 2.5V, 3V, 3.5V, 4V, 4.5V, 5V and note down digital output in
each case. Show readings to TA.
2) Tabulate your reading in the following format.

Va (Volts) Output Corresponding Error

(Hex Value) Analog Value (Volts) (Volts)