A quick way to remember NAND & NOR logic?

Question

I'm frequently asked in class to create a logic circuit based on some specifications. Building the circuit and deriving the equations is the easy part. We are usually told to implement our circuit using only NAND or only NOR gates (akin to a real-life scenario).

I find myself consulting pages like this once I have my equations an am about to draw the circuit. If memorizing these combinations are the only way to make a NAND or NOR exclusive circuit, then I will. But there ought to be a better way of converting everything quickly and neatly.

Anyone?

Answer 1

If you have an existing schematic consisting of Inverters, AND, and OR Gates, then there is a simple, three step process that you can follow to convert the circuit to all NAND (you can modify the process slightly for NOR). You can use "Bubble Logic".

Let's assume you have three levels of logic. The first level, closest to your inputs, consists of inverters. The second level consists of AND gates. And the final level consists of just a single OR gate. Some textbooks may refer to this as being a "sum of products" Boolean Algebra expression.

1. Convert all of your AND Gates to NAND Gates.
2. Wherever you added a bubble, you've actually inverted the Boolean Algebra function on that wire. So, add another bubble to that wire and draw the bubble close to the OR gate on the output.
3. A NAND gate is equivalent to an OR Gate whose inputs are inverted. So, if you're OR gate at the output has all of its inputs inverted, simply redraw it as a NAND gate. If it does not, then make it so by adding a bubble near the input to the OR and another bubble (inverter) somewhere else on that particular wire.

You could do a similar process for an all NOR implementation. I hope that helps!

Answer 2

Building on Bob's answer, and to your question about equations: The basic concept to remember is DeMorgen's Theorem. Using + for OR, * for AND, and ~ for NOT,

~(a + b) = ( ~a * ~b )

~(a * b) = ( ~a + ~b )

In other words, the output of a NOR gate is equivalent to the output of an AND gate with the inputs inverted. And, vice versa: The output of a NAND gate is equivalent to the output of an OR gate with the inputs inverted.

If you move the inversions all to one side you get:

(a + b) = ~( ~a * ~b )

(a * b) = ~( ~a + ~b )

In other words, an OR gate is equivalent to a NAND gate with inverted inputs, and an AND gate is equivalent to an OR gate with inverted inputs.

The trick to realize is that you can move the "bubbles" around and implement DeMorgen's theorem with the schematic. I've heard this called "the bubble game." The idea is to figure out what function you need with just "positive logic" using ANDs and ORs. Then play the bubble game and make them all NANDs and NORs with bubbles on the inputs, then move the bubbles along the lines (two on a line cancel) to make simple NANDs and NORs. Sometimes you need an extra inverter here or there, too.

The bubble game has four rules:
1) You can change ANDs or ORs to (N)ANDs and (N)ORs with bubbles on all terminals. 2) You can "push" a bubble from the output back to the inputs, making them all inverted. 3) You can "push" bubbles from all inputs through to the output, inverting the output. 4) Two bubbles on a line cancel.

Here's an example.

It turns out if we only change the output gate we can save a step or two...

Cheers.

Answer 3

• FOR TWO- INPUT GATES:

  Inputs = A , B

  "+" = OR

  "." = AND

---

AND

• OUTPUT is true if A AND B is true,
  Otherwise not true

  Output true if both A AND B are both true.

  • X = A.B

OR

• Output is true if either A OR B is true,
  Other wise not true

  Output true if A is true OR if B is true OR if both are true.

  • X = A + B

XOR

• Output is true if A is exclusively true OR if B is exclusively true.
  Otherwise untrue.

  • X = A./B + /A.B
    (Output = A and not B or B and not A.

NAND - output is inverted from AND
NOR output is inverted from OR
XOR leave well enough alone.

---

FOR N-INPUT GATES

AND

• OUTPUT is true if A AND B AND C AND ... is true,
  otherwise not true. ALL must be true for output to be true

OR

• Output is true if either A OR B OR C OR ... is true,
  other wise not true

  ANY one or more may be true & at least one must be true for output to be true

XOR

• Output is true if any one of A B C D R ... is exclusively true OR if B is exclusively true. Otherwise untrue.

THEN:

NAND = NOT AND output is inverted from AND
NOR - NOT OR output is inverted from OR
XOR leave well enough alone:-)

Answer 4

That page appears to show truth tables for the basic logic functions. These are things you just need to know.

Fortunately, it's not all that mysterious or difficult. AND and OR do just what they say. For a AND gate, input A AND input B must be true (logic high) for the output to be true (logic high). For a OR gates, input A OR input B must be true for the output to be true. Yes, it's really that simple. NAND again is what it says, which is NOT-AND. The output of a NAND is the opposite (NOT) of a AND. NOR is NOT-OR. The output is opposite of a OR gate output.

This is all really simple stuff. It's like having to learn that 3 plus 2 is 5 before being able to do more complicated arithmetic.

Answer 5

Just remember only addiion for OR
and Multiplication for AND Gates then
If you multiply any number with 0 then you will get 0 what ever may be the other
input then just make the result reverse such as
"If you get 0 make it 1 or if get 1 make it 0 to get the NAND gate outputs"
Same as like that
when you add any number to 1 then the output is 1 (high) what ever may be the other input
then again reverse the result you got and that will be the output for NOR gate.

To avoid the confusion just remember addition for OR and Multiplication for AND
thats it you can go furthur easily.