How To Choose The Power Supply For The 16-channel Servo Drive Board To Install The Servo And Avoid Burning The Board?

When working on aservoproject, especially when working on a 16-way driver board, nine times out of ten, the power supply will fail. Have you ever encountered this situation: theservois either shaking like a convulsion, or it has no power at all, and in severe cases, there is a puff of green smoke and the board is burned. This is actually caused by not choosing the right power supply or using the right one. To put it bluntly, the power supply is the "heart" of the entire system. If the heart is not strong enough, the arms and legs will definitely not work.

Why does theservodrive board need to be powered separately?

Many friends try to save trouble by directly plugging the 16-channel driver board into the 5V pin of the Raspberry Pi to draw power. This is actually a big pitfall. When steering gears are used, especially when multiple ones are operating at the same time, the instantaneous current is very large and can reach several amperes. The USB port of your development board or the onboard voltage regulator can provide a few hundred milliamps at most, which is not enough to feed these "power tigers".

If you do this forcibly, the result will be that the voltage is instantly pulled down and the development board will restart itself. In serious cases, the power chip on the board will be burned out. Therefore, equipping the driver board with an independent high-power power supply is not an option, but a must. Just like you can't rely on a wall socket at home to power an entire building, the logic is the same.

How to choose the power supply for the servo drive board

There are so many power supplies on the market, are you confused? In fact, it mainly depends on where your project is used. If you are making a mobile robot or robotic arm, you need to use a battery. The most common one is a lithium battery pack, such as a 2S (7.4V) or 3S (11.1V) model aircraft battery. They have strong discharge capabilities and can provide large currents instantly. If you are building a fixed writing machine or desktop robotic arm, a cheap switching power adapter is enough, which is stable and worry-free.

When choosing a power supply, you have to keep an eye on two core parameters: voltage and current. The voltage must match the servo you are using, most servos operate between 4.8V and 6V. As for current, you have to estimate the maximum current of all servos working at the same time (especially when locked), and then add a 30% to 50% margin on this basis, so that the system is stable and does not crash at every turn.

How to match the voltage and current of different steering gears

You may have different models of servos in your hands, such as the small SG90 and the large one, and their appetites are different. If the voltage is too high, the internal circuit of the servo will overheat, shortening its lifespan or even burning out on the spot; if the voltage is too low, the torque will not be enough, making it impossible to lift things. It is best to check the data manual of the servo first. Generally, micro servos use 5V, and high-torque servos can use 6V to 7.4V.

As for the current, you can estimate it like this: For example, if you use 6 of them, the current may be close to 2.5A when they are blocked. If 6 of them are blocked at the same time, it is theoretically 15A. Although in actual projects it is rare for all servos to be blocked at the same time, it is best to prepare the output capacity of the power supply at 60%-80% of this value, leaving some margin. It is safer to choose a 10A to 15A power supply to avoid failure at critical moments.

Which is better, lithium battery or switching power supply?

How to choose between these two power supplies? Let's compare. The advantage of lithium batteries is that they are portable and have high energy density, allowing your robot to run freely "wirelessly". Today's model aircraft lithium batteries have a very high discharge rate (C number) and can deliver large currents instantly, which is especially suitable for robots that move quickly. The disadvantage is that it requires a special charger, and you must pay attention to safety during normal storage, and do not overcharge or discharge.

The advantage of a switching power supply (that kind of big black box with a wired plug) is that it saves worry. When plugged into 220V power, it has a stable voltage output and the price is affordable. It is the first choice for debugging programs on the desktop or for projects that are stationary. However, its ripple may be a little larger than that of the battery, which may have a slight impact on the control accuracy of the servo, but for most entry-level projects, it will not be felt.

What will happen if the power supply is not enough?

Don't be stingy about the power supply, otherwise it will trip you up. The most direct reaction to insufficient power is that the steering gear is weak, the things that should be grasped cannot be grasped, and the legs that should be lifted cannot be lifted. What's even more annoying is that the power supply voltage will be pulled down, causing the power supply of the logic chip on the 16-channel driver board to be unstable and directly reset and restart. The result is that you see the servo shaking violently, the program starting from scratch, and the entire system going haywire.

I have a friend who makes a six-legged robot. He used a low-power power supply at the beginning, but the robot fell down after taking a few steps. After checking the code for many days, no problem was found. Finally, it was discovered that the power supply had overheated and automatically protected. Just replace the high-power power supply and all problems will be solved instantly. So, it's like equipping a car with an engine, with a 1.0 displacement and forcing it to go off-road. Sooner or later it will break down, so just get a 2.0T engine to feel at ease.

Where to buy reliable steering gear power supply

Now that you know how to choose, where can you buy it? It is recommended not to go to those small shops with no guarantee for cheap prices. You can go to some professional electronic component malls, such as Lichuang Mall, Yunhan Chip City, or a reputable brand store on a certain website. When searching, the keywords should be precise, such as "6V 10A switching power supply" or "2S lithium battery 50C", so that irrelevant products can be quickly filtered out.

When it comes to power supplies, the brand is still very important. For switching power supplies, you can check out Mean Well, which has a good reputation. For lithium batteries, you can look at brands such as Gens and Huapai, which have a background in aircraft modelling. The parameters are not false and the safety is high. If you want to systematically understand how to select a model, it is best to go directly to the official websites of these companies to read the technical manuals and application cases. ️ Action suggestions: Search "Mean Well Power Supply Official Website" or "Format Battery Official Website" on Baidu to learn the most professional knowledge and ensure that your project power supply is "powerful"!

When working on steering gear projects, what "supernatural events" have you encountered due to power problems? Come to the comment area to share your experience of "stepping into pitfalls" and let everyone remind each other! If you think this article has helped you save hundreds of dollars in repair costs, don’t forget to give it a like and share it with your friends who are also tinkering with robots!