The "Vin" pin

Hello,

If I power my Arduino with an external power supply that is rated 12V DC and 3.5amps, how much amperage can I draw without burning the board? For example, if I want to power a motor using the "Vin" pin and the motor draws 1 amp at 12V. Can the board sustain that much flowing through the "Vin"?

Thank you for your answers. I've learned a lot from reading others posts on here.

  • Ivan

Why would you want to do this.

Take the 12V for this motor straight from your power supply.

The Arduino board is not designed for power distribution.

he "Vin" pin and the motor draws 1 amp at 12V.

No because there is a 1A reverse polarity protection diode in the circuit and you can't run a 1A diode at 1A.

Roger - Mostly out of laziness. I wanted to use one wire into the project box power everything. But if you think it's not a good idea or safe then that answers my question.

You can run one wire into the box. Just tap off for your motor before it gets to the Arduino