Hans is the 'old man' of the group. He tends to be nervous and is often indecisive. Hans frequently changes his mind, and is a little fidgety (he oscillates) when he's not moving around. He is very meticulous and precise in other ways; Hans does not like to compromise, preferring to be in a steady state until a dramatic change is called for. Hans speaks with the voice of a kindly old man with a Swiss-German accent, though his voice can become more nasally when he's upset or feels strongly about something. His catchphrase is "maybe so, but perhaps not."
About the 555: The 555 timer IC was designed by Hans Camenzind in 1971. It consists of two threshold triggers, an RS flip-flop, and an output buffer. The 555 provides an easy, reliable way to create rectangular waveforms of adjustable pulse width and frequency by using different external component values.