Very new to this realm so be gentle.......
Yes I know I can buy what I want to build on the www for $25.00 but where is the fun of that.
Adding components to my "Duck be Gone" gizmo. Basically PIR sensors that triggers a loud noise powered by Lithium batteries recharged by the sun. This will sit outside on the back of the boat.
I need to be able to shut this down randomly for various amounts of time ( thus not using a timer) so will add a RF latching remote as a means shut the device off.
my newbie question is where best to interrupt the power? To my mind there are three spots
between MPPT Controller and Board
-between Board and PIR sensors
-between Board and Piezo Buzzers
My first choice would be option 1 between MPPT Controller and Board so I can shut the whole thing down and not consume any power while not in use. What I have not learned yet is what the pros and cons of this would be ( aka does is mess up the board being power cycled)
The other two choices will stop the buzzers but power will still be consumed while not in use.
There will be other posts as I hone in on components ( have board, PIR and Piezo buzzers working as expected) but for now open to feedback on where to cut the power- thanks in advance
Agree. The power consumed by the PIR sensors will be minimal, and the buzzers zero when not in use.
If the primary objective is to save power you should also consider it you can provide 5v (or whatever will run everything) directly, rather than going through the Vin pin (jack point) on the Arduino. Also running a barebones ATMega328 will also save power.
uhm, my albeit clumsy diagram was at the start of the post. If there is a better way to express the question - where best to interrupt the power?, I am glad to take your counsel.
end of the day I would like to find the logical way to do this so that I am not triggering the device when coming to the boat and do not want undue power consumption when it is not in service
Did you read post #6? ...which basically agreed with your original thinking. The best place to turn on/off the power is where you turn on/off the power to everything... surely that is obvious? What is the advantage to any of the other options?
Common sense pointed me to a total shut down. My reason for the question is my unfamiliairy with the Uno board- this is my first touch with such a thing and wanted to validate that power cycling it would cause harm.
I am good with this thread- thanks for the replies.