Running Teensy 3.0 from batteries.

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t3andy

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Came across this Lipo charger which has a step-up power converter to +5VDC. It can be powered from from a solar panel or USB input.
Since the Teensy draws about 27 ma. (idle) and SeeedStudio also sells a Lithium Ion polymer 3000 mAh battery for this charger ...
3000 mAH / 27 ma = 111 hrs. or ~ 4.6 days. <--- close but not exact.:(

Lipo Rider+
http://www.seeedstudio.com/depot/lipo-rider-pro-p-992.html?cPath=155


3000 mAh Battery
http://www.seeedstudio.com/depot/lithium-ion-polymer-batteries-pack-3a-p-588.html?cPath=178_183

BTW ... Disclaimer - I don't work for SeeedStudio (China) I live here in the US. ;)
 
Note that Teensy 3.0 is a 3V3 device
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Teensy 3.0 Vin (3.7 to 5.5 volts) so you want to power it with 5 VDC from the Lipo Rider +.;)
I looked at Sparkfun's and this one from SeeedStudio is far superior.:cool:
 
t3andy said:
Teensy 3.0 Vin (3.7 to 5.5 volts) so you want to power it with 5 VDC from the Lipo Rider +.;)
I looked at Sparkfun's and this one from SeeedStudio is far superior.:cool:
Click to expand...

Ah, I missed the onboard regulator on the T3.

I agree it's superior, maybe SF will pick up on it...I try not to spend my money across the ponds unless I absolutely have to.
 
Iif you are runningi at room temperature, with a reasonable discharge current, a li-po battery has a terminal voltage of 4.2 V when charged, and by 3.7 V it is almost fully discharged. Under those conditions you should be able to simply use the battery voltage directly- no converter.

See for example the "1 C" (full discharge in 1 hour) curve here:
http://www.gmbattery.com/English/RCLiPoBattery.html
 
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you should be able to simply use the battery voltage directly- no converter
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The Lipo Rider+ uses the Lipo voltage of 4.2 VDC down to 3.7 VDC range and upconverts this range to +5 VDC.
You could use just plain Li-po's batterys BUT this charger also shows the charge and allows a solar panel to be attached.
Very cool indeed. :cool:
BTW ... Where can you find a 3 A inexpensive lipo?
 
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t3andy said:
The Lipo Rider+ uses the Lipo voltage of 4.2 VDC down to 3.7 VDC range and upconverts this range to +5 VDC.
You could use just plain Li-po's batterys BUT this charger also shows the charge and allows a solar panel to be attached.
Very cool indeed. :cool:
BTW ... Where can you find a 3 A inexpensive lipo?
Click to expand...

I linked to a 6 amp (3x2A) in my previous post.

(6A battery, $40 + 400mA @ 8.5V solar cell, $45 + SF's charger, $15 = robust system for right at $100)
 
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(6A battery, $40 + 400mA @ 8.5V solar cell, $45 + SF's charger, $15 = robust system for right at $100)
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The price you have to pay for high technology but it is cheaper to buy direct from "offshore" China than Sparkfun.
Sparkfun obtains most of their widgets from China. :mad:
If you re-figure the cost (above) SeeedStudio is a winner.
 
I think that using a device that steps up the 3.7-4.2v to 5v so that another device can cut it back down to 3.3v is really wasteful. I'd get one of the $3 switchmode voltage regulators from eBay that'll take the 3.7-4.2v and regulate it very efficiently straight to 3.3v, then simply feed it into one of the two 3.3v pins on the Teensy. You'll maximize your battery life by minimizing wasted energy.
I'm sure there are some ways to put the Teensy into a sleep mode as well, which should cut power draw by a couple orders of magnitude when it's able to be idle.
 
5800mAh with a 25C discharge rate.. Holy cow.. I had no idea those packs could discharge at those rates! Link 3 of those together and you could probably start a small car engine! heh.. Anyways, yeah, if you use something like that, don't forget a fuse! :)
 
Another possibility for running the Teensy on batteries are the various cell phone charger batteries you can get out there, that presumably use the lipo batteries internally. These are convenient if you want something off the shelf. I picked up the EZOPower 5000maH 2 port charger from Amazon (each port gives you 5 volt, 1000 maH). I have run Teensy (and Arduino/Rasberry Pi) off the battery. I haven't done a timing test for the Teenzy, but my R3 Arduino lasted about 4 days running the blink program continuously. There are lots of these chargers out there, with different capacity, and ports. If you pay a bit more, you can get batteries with dual 5v and 9/12v outputs, which I am considering getting for doing video or servos.

The one I bought was: http://www.amazon.com/EZOPower-Universal-External-Rechargeable-NookColor/dp/B004I0F82I/ref=sr_1_230?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1354384655&sr=1-230&keywords=ezopower+charger+2-port
 
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