Can Arduino work as a voltage regulator?

Post here about your Arduino projects, get help - for Adafruit customers!

Moderators: adafruit_support_bill, adafruit

Please be positive and constructive with your questions and comments.
Locked
User avatar
zoah666
 
Posts: 2
Joined: Wed Sep 21, 2022 8:59 am

Can Arduino work as a voltage regulator?

Post by zoah666 »

Hey there, I am relatively new to Arduino and barely made any projects.

Right now I am working on a charger for rechargable batteries and I want to use Arduino as a voltage regulator for that.

For the batteries output I need 4.5 Volts(I want to charge the batteries in series, and I have 3 batteries of 1.5 Volt) and a meager current

However, here comes the issue, since I am using a solar panel that outputs 100-350 Watts. So, my input into Arduino is around that. My question is: can Arduino even hold that much power? From what I recall the input voltage into Arduino must be 7-12 Volts for optimal use. However, I do not know what is the case for the input current, so how do I connect solar panel and Arduino without the latter exploding?

User avatar
adafruit_support_bill
 
Posts: 88093
Joined: Sat Feb 07, 2009 10:11 am

Re: Can Arduino work as a voltage regulator?

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

The Arduino is not suitable for that task. What you want is a charge controller designed for the specific type of battery you are attempting to charge. One optimized for variable input power such as from a solar panel would be best.

Different battery chemistries require different charge cycles and there are chips specifically designed for most types of rechargeable cells. This article discusses some of the issues related to solar charging (in this case for LiPo cells). https://learn.adafruit.com/usb-dc-and-s ... sign-notes

User avatar
zoah666
 
Posts: 2
Joined: Wed Sep 21, 2022 8:59 am

Re: Can Arduino work as a voltage regulator?

Post by zoah666 »

zoah666 wrote: Wed Sep 21, 2022 9:08 am Hey there, I am relatively new to Arduino and barely made any projects.

Right now I am working on a charger for rechargable batteries and I want to use Arduino as a voltage regulator for that.

For the batteries output I need 4.5 Volts(I want to charge the batteries in series, and I have 3 batteries of 1.5 Volt) and a meager current

However, here comes the issue, since I am using a solar panel that outputs 100-350 Watts. So, my input into Arduino is around that. My question is: can Arduino even hold that much power? From what I recall the input voltage into Arduino must be 7-12 Volts for optimal use. However, I do not know what is the case for the input current, so how do I connect solar panel and Arduino without the latter exploding?
I got this,..

Locked
Please be positive and constructive with your questions and comments.

Return to “Arduino”