Power: Supply, Connectors, Voltage levels, Batteries

Power Supply

1) Particles

• Particles are intended to run on a wide range of batteries from 0.9 to 3.3 V battery types. The maximum peak power consumption of a particle is about 30mW without additional boards attached (e.g. sensor or serial boards) . Average power consumption depends on the application and is between some µW and some mW. On-board internal power level is 3.3 V (DC, for Particles 2/xx). All other input voltage levels are converted to that level
• Particles provide 3 ways to provide power supply for the board:
  • First you can solder a battery to two pads on the Particle device (see figure) if there is not already such a battery soldered (see figure). You can basically connect any battery within the above voltage named level that provides enough power. The form factor is dedicated for attaching AAA rechargable batteries. We recommend to use NiMH type AAA batteries with soldering lug and high capacity, e.g. SANYO type AAA rechargables. DO NOT MIX GROUND AND + WHEN ATTACHING THE BATTERIES!!. NiMH rechargables as those delivered with the Particle can be rechared while the Particle is in operation (see figure).
  • the second option to attach a battery is via the molex board to wire connector (see also how to build my own power connector). Via this connector any type of battery or rechargable from 0.9-3.3V can be attached. Batteries attached to the Particle via the Molex connector can not be switched by the ON/OFF switch. The On/OFF switch is solely for switching the soldered battery, not the battery attached to the Molex connector. It is only in special cases recommended to use soldered and external batteries in parallel.
  • You can also feed in power from the extension connector (conan).(see also connector section) In this case the power must be regulated, have very low ripple and provide 3.3 V constant power supply. The input is NOT SHILDED, so feeding in wrong power supply may destroy the Particle beyond repair.

2) Sensor Boards

• Sensor boards are powered via the host board, e.g. the particle or the serial board through the conan connector. They do not provide their own power supply convertion or regulation
• Sensor boards can be operated within 2.7V-3.3V (DC) but require 3.3V for precise sensor reading. Maximum power consumption of all sensor boards is about 30 mW, average power consumption can vary from unter 1mW to several mWatts depending on the application

3) Serial Board / Power Board

• The serial/power board contains an own power regulation. Input Voltage is 4-16V DC or AC. The input voltage is rectified. You may use a standard power or AC/DC converter (min. 200 mA). Use a standard adaptor plug 2,5(outer diameter) X2,5 (inner diameter) X9,5 (length), e.g. from Farnell (order number 428-2954).
• You may also use the additional plugs (see figure)

4) XBridge

• The XBridge needs 4.5 V to 12V DC input and 800mA minimum. The input is shielded so no care has to be taken about making mistakes providing the wrong voltage level. Wrong polarity on the input prevents the XBridge from starting, when changing the polarity the LEDs should blink.
• Use a high quality AC/DC converter with low ripple - if you are unsure you can easily detect those high quality devices when you compare the price. The XBridge has to drive the Ethernet line which may result in high power consumption depending on your setting.
• Heating up is not unusual in such a case.
• For Plug-in the AC/DC converter use the according standard adaptor plug 2,5(outer diameter) X2,5 (inner diameter) X9,5 (length), e.g. from Farnell (order number 428-2954). Do not use other type of plugs (e.g. plugs that are longer seem also to fit but they are mechanically unstable) as this may result in spontaneous reboots of the XBridge.

Batteries

There are several battery types on the market. Each of them has its pros and cons. The below table should give you a short impression what is best for your use of Particle computers.