Blinking Lights / Light Flasher Circuit Diagram

This is a very basic circuit for flashing one or more LEDS and also to alternately flash one or more LEDs.
This blinking lights circuit uses a 555 timer setup as an astable multivibrator with a variable frequency.
With the preset at its max. the flashing rate of the LED is about 1/2 a second. It can be increased by increasing the value of the capacitor from 10uF to a higher value. For example if it is increased to 22uF the flashing rate becomes 1 second.

There is also provision to convert this circuit into an alternating flasher. You just have to connect a LED and a 330ohm as shown in Fig.2 to the points X and Y of Fig.1. Then both the LEDs flash alternately.

Since the 555 can supply or sink in upto 200mA of current, you can connect upto about 18 LEDS in parallel both for the flasher and alternating flasher (that makes a total of 36 LEDs for alternating flasher).