Any good ideas on how this LED Flasher works?

[Minuette]

Hi guys! I hope you can help me.

I have a tiny led flasher, and i want to copy the circuit for a project. This is how it operates:

(1) The first time i close the circuit, it starts blinking.

(2) The second time i close the circuit it goes from blinking to a steady light.

(3) The third time a close the circuit it shuts off.


You only need to touch it lightly with a screwdriver or whatever to get it going.

- - -

I have a picture below. It's powered with a standard 3v watch battery.

Any good guess on how it operates is greatly appreciated. Especially what kind of component that little "bump" might

be?


https://www.dropbox.com/s/73934srk66166uw/IMG_0502.JPG?dl=0



Thank you!

 

[betwixt]

Please post images here instead of using dropbox.

It is almost certainly a small microcontroller. They cost almost nothing and with a few lines of code can be made to do all kinds of things. The middle 'zigzag' is two contacts which would be joined by a carbon pad when the switch is pushed, that sends a signal to the micro which sets the place in a sequence of the three conditions you describe. I have something similar that also has two brightness levels, achieved by flashing the LED so fast that the eye perceives it as a steady lower brightness.

Brian.

 

[Minuette]

Thanks for your reply Brian!