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kit:mod_battery_power

This is an old revision of the document!


January 19, 2019 - This article is still being authored. This information is not yet ready to use!!!

Introduction

Converting a CrowBox to run from battery power is an easy thing to do and makes it possible to deploy a CrowBox in locations which do not have easy access to mains power.

CrowBox Power

Before we talk about the modifications required to run a CrowBox from battery power, we should briefly talk about the CrowBox's power consumption details.

  • The CrowBox runs on 5 volt DC power
  • An idle CrowBox consumes about 50 milliamperes of current
    • This power is consumed by the Arduino UNO
  • When the CrowBox's sliding lid is moving (opening or closing) the CrowBox consumes about 800 milliamperes of power
    • It is possible for the CrowBox servo motor to consume more power when opening or closing the sliding lid, theoretically up to 2000 milliamps (2 amps) but we have never seen the servo consume more than around 750 milliamps.

Usage cases

We've divided battery-powered CrowBox configurations into two categories, covering what we believe are the most common requirements.

Short term battery power

This is probably the configuration most users will be interested in. Short term battery power describes a CrowBox installed on or around your home, school or workplace, or put simply, any place where the operator has easy access to the CrowBox and visits the CrowBox frequently to check up on it.

We call this 'short term' power because it will be necessary to swap the CrowBox's batteries every few days or so, depending on the size of the battery used.

As we'll discuss in a moment, we suggest the use of a USB power bank to power a CrowBox on short term power.

Long term battery power

Long term battery power describes a CrowBox which is installed somewhere that is not readily accessible to the operator and is not visited often. This type of installation requires a larger battery (at minimum!) and may employ solar power or other strategies for extending the working life of the battery.

A CrowBox running on 'long term' battery power might be deployed in the middle of the woods or at the far edge of large field or farm.

kit/mod_battery_power.1547942399.txt.gz · Last modified: 2019/01/19 15:59 by steve