Managing Voltage for Arduino Based Robot

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lukek
 
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Managing Voltage for Arduino Based Robot

Post by lukek »

Hi,

I am trying to plan my first ever robot and wanted to build a simple line-follower.

I feel like I have a good plan, but I keep getting caught up on the power supply.

I decided to go with the Adafruit 3216 chasis (avail at mouser and digikey). It seems good, strong, simple.

In the demo video, they are powering it with AA batteries.

Here is my question:

The Arduino needs 6+ volts (So something like 4 AA eneloop batteries would not be enough.)
The motors are 3-6V (So 6 AAs would be too much.)

What's a best practice way to reconcile this? (A voltage controller on the motor side of the power supply maybe?) Any insight is appreciated.

Since I am already posting, I'll say what else I was planning to use. In case I'm doing something really silly, maybe I can be pointed in the right direction and save some trouble.

Arduino Uno
Sparkfun Optical Sensor Development Tools Line Sensor Breakout - QRE1113 (2 or 3)
Adafruit TB6612 1.2A DC/Stepper Motor Driver Breakout Board
Adafruit 3216 chasis (includes 2 DC motors)
Battery pack (of some kind)

---
Thanks so much for your help!

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Managing Voltage for Arduino Based Robot

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

A 5xAA NiMH (Eneloop or similar) pack would be 6V. That would work for both motors and UNO.

A 6x pack would be 7.2V and would be a reasonable way to go also. DC Motor voltage ratings are not hard limits. Going 20% over the voltage rating for short bursts of speed is not a problem. Though running at full-throttle for extended periods will tend to generate heat and shorten the lifetime of the motor.

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lukek
 
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Re: Managing Voltage for Arduino Based Robot

Post by lukek »

Just using 5 AAs seems like an easy solution.

Thanks!

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lukek
 
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Re: Managing Voltage for Arduino Based Robot

Post by lukek »

Would this be another good solution?
https://www.adafruit.com/product/1385

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Managing Voltage for Arduino Based Robot

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

Yes. A UBEC would work well also.

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