Hi,
I’m new to Pololu products, sorry if this information is mentioned elsewhere.
What is the maximum voltage rating that the bottom board can handle in continuous operation? Say if I’m using 12V motors, can I use the same power supply for the bottom board? Will the Voltage Regulator on there overheat?
Thanks.
Hello.
The Orangutan X2 operating range is 6-16V. The 5V regulator is a linear regulator (LM2937), so it will get hot when supplied by 12V, and there won’t be much available for additional electronics (the LCD backlight draws quite a bit, so turning that off will get you to maybe 100 mA available if you don’t to use a separate regulator for additional electronics). The PCB works as a heat sink, so you will notice that it gets hot under the regulator, which that is normal.
By the way, unless you need the high-power motor drivers on the X2, I would recommend the Orangutan SVP controllers, which have dual 3A switching regulators on them.
- Jan
I’m not the original poster, but I’m somewhat confused by this thread (I have a somewhat remedial understanding of power systems, so please bear with me). I plan to run a couple of these motors (pololu.com/catalog/product/1102), which are 12V, through the X2 with VNH2.
I was planning on just plugging in a single 12V battery to power everything. I picked up a couple different 12V batteries from a surplus store recently, so I was planning on trying those out.
I guess my confusion is this: given the motors I plan to use for my application, do you foresee any issues powering everything through the X2 using a single 12V supply?
It depends on what you mean by “powering everything”. If you plan on using some parts that will need a lot of 5V current, you might need a separate regulator for them. For typical applications with sensors that use a few mA each, you shouldn’t have a problem.
- Jan
