At 07:55 PM 5/9/98 -0400, you wrote:
>Mark Devin Newland wrote:
>
>> ...hook the buzzer up to it's own oscillator and just have PORTA
>> turn on (or off) the osc...
>>
>
>And even your local Radio Shack has just the ticket -- a piezo elelment and
>oscillator in a plastic can unit -- just apply 5V and you're in business. A
>quick 40 mS pulse should be audible.
>
>Ken Pergola
>

I think that Jonathon IS already using a buzzer with an internal osc., and
he is just making it beep at 400ms intervals instead of just a continuous
tone. After all, a 1Hz signal would not excite a piezo element very well
and it also wouldn't be very audible :)

I have a question, however. Historically, why are piezo elements with
internal oscillators called "buzzers"? In my mind, the word buzzer conjures
up a very raspy, low freq. noise (abt. 100Hz or so), as would be produced
by an electromechanical buzzer. The way the word "buzz" is pronounced is
meant to imitate this sound. Since piezo elements have a bad low freq.
response, every piezo "buzzer" I have ever seen makes a sound of around
4000 Hz, not very much of a "buzz" in my sense of the word.

Sean


+--------------------------------+
| Sean Breheny                   |
| Amateur Radio Callsign: KA3YXM |
| Electrical Engineering Student |
+--------------------------------+
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