I hooked it up to my arduino uno an connected it to an external supply by removing the SEL jumpers. The supply has 6v but the sensor shield input pins say 5v. The purpose of this is to power some mg996r servos, which works fine when I use the 6v input.
I was just wondering if using 6v instead of 5v would damage the sensor shield over time, even though my servos are working fine?
FYI the 6v is from 4 d-cell batteries each 1.5v each. If this will damage the sheild over time can someone suggest an alternative power supply? Besides the DC regulated ones which are like 50 bucks?
Will it cause harm? Highly probable. Should you do it anyway? Hey, it's your money... your parts will likely 'live fast and die young'.
I have no idea where you are looking for supplies where the cheapest you can buy is $50. That seems all wrong and definitely not the right place to be looking.
The 5X Version has the ability to optionally separate the 5V supply going to all the 3-pin connectors and feed them from a separate external power supply. This is ideal for running lots of Servos or other power devices.
SO: This allows the 3-pin connectors (groups of G_V_S (Like Servos) to have the V pin come from an external power supply.
This does NOT affect the connections to the Arduino Input and Output pins, which are run by the +5V on the chip.
The YourDuino.com "RoboRED" is a UNO derivative has 3-pin connectors like a sensor shield. But only the "5X" version shield and the Mega Sensor Shield allow the "V" pins to come from a different voltage.
So its ok to use the external 6v power to power the sensor shield? Cause I was hoping to get an answer revolving around it having a voltage regulator since I cant seem to find alot of info on this particular sheild?
So its ok to use the external 6v power to power the sensor shield?
No.
To regulate 6V down to 5V you need a switching regulator or Buck converter as it is known. You do not have enough excess voltage for a linear regulator unless you use a low dropout type.
kloud:
So its ok to use the external 6v power to power the sensor shield? Cause I was hoping to get an answer revolving around it having a voltage regulator since I cant seem to find alot of info on this particular sheild?
It depends on device. Some devices say 12V DC required. But people drive with 13.8V supply ..... with no problem.
On the other hand...... if a particular device has a manufacturer spec that says....rated voltage 5V and absolute max voltage 6V..... then probably not great to run at 6V for relatively long durations. But.... if cost etc is not an issue..... then it's ok to test the limits.
Southpark:
It depends on device. Some devices say 12V DC required. But people drive with 13.8V supply ..... with no problem.
On the other hand...... if a particular device has a manufacturer spec that says....rated voltage 5V and absolute max voltage 6V..... then probably not great to run at 6V for relatively long durations. But.... if cost etc is not an issue..... then it's ok to test the limits.
All it says is 5v it has nothing like limits or anything, I mean I've been using it for awhile like this an no issues or it smelling(overheat), also I have a buck converter but its more tedious hook up ass oppose to connnecting the supply directly the the sheild thats already connected to the unoboard.
kloud:
All it says is 5v it has nothing like limits or anything, I mean I've been using it for awhile like this an no issues or it smelling(overheat), also I have a buck converter but its more tedious hook up ass oppose to connnecting the supply directly the the sheild thats already connected to the unoboard.
If no overheat or smells etc, and if it works properly (and continues to work properly over a long time), then just keep using it that way. Only for this particular device..... keep using it like that.
Commercially available devices from reputable companies usually do have manufacturer recommendations. The info is usually provided by the manufacturer on the internet (or somewhere).