I've been constructing small outdoor arduino game devices that runs off batteries. Years off service is needed and actual time in usage is very low. Previously I solved it with a latching relay design. (the 'on' switch puts the relay in 'on' mode, by setting a pin 'high' at the end of the cycle the device turns itself off again.)
It worked ok but it it is a mechanical solution and the small telco relays I have been using are increasingly hard to source in the small volumes I use.
I by no means know much about hardware design but i noticed there are a few voltage booster chips and regulators out there with on/off built in in the chip. So that got me thinking: If I do a design where the on switch enables the chip and then keep it in 'high' thru one of the pins of the arduino I should reach the same goal in a much simpler way.
But I am having trouble finding a chip available. There are a few out there but so far I found none that gets me all the way. I need a solution for two scenarios:
Booster
Boosts to 5V from a minimum of 3V, 1,5V would be nice
Input current of 200mA
package that is hamfist friendly, SMT is hard to solder for me
On/off pin. In off mode it draws next to no current
Requires few support products (none would be optimum)
Cheap
Available to buy in small volumes
Regulator
5V from up to '12V' batteries
Output of minimum 1A
package that is hamfist friendly, SMT is hard to solder for me
On/off pin. In off mode it draws next to no current
Requires few support products (none would be optimum)
Cheap
Available to buy in small volumes
Anyone got any ideas? Maybe there are off the shelf modules available?
Any input welcome..