MrMacman2u
New Member
Hello all I have a possibly brain puzzler for you all!
I've poked through these forums and wasn't able to find a question (or answer) that was close enough for me to really build off of so I decided to do something all forum goers dread seeing from a new member... Start a new thread.
I have a large quantity of Li-ion cells (mostly 18650's) hanging around not earning their keep (or storage space) and I have been thinking of ways to use them to make my life easier.
One way I thought of is to use them as a portable power/recharge source for the multitude of portable electronics I have that charge via USB.
So this is where my limited knowledge of power supplies is biting me in the rear.
The amperage draw should never exceed 1 amp and I would prefer to have something to buck down the 8.4 volts from 2 cells in series OR boost one cell up.
I would like the circuit to produce a "solid" 5 volts (+/- .5) under a variety of loads and finally, perhaps most importantly, provide some indication (even a hard shutdown will suffice) when the supply voltage drops below a certain point.
Now for the part that will make anyone still reading tell me to sod off... It's not critical, but I'd prefer to not need an IC, I like my discrete components.
Oh, I know I could use a simple regulator for the 2 cell arrangement, but that strikes me as wasteful to shunt the excess power as heat.
Hope I'm not being too much of a PITA!
Thanks in advance!
I've poked through these forums and wasn't able to find a question (or answer) that was close enough for me to really build off of so I decided to do something all forum goers dread seeing from a new member... Start a new thread.
I have a large quantity of Li-ion cells (mostly 18650's) hanging around not earning their keep (or storage space) and I have been thinking of ways to use them to make my life easier.
One way I thought of is to use them as a portable power/recharge source for the multitude of portable electronics I have that charge via USB.
So this is where my limited knowledge of power supplies is biting me in the rear.
The amperage draw should never exceed 1 amp and I would prefer to have something to buck down the 8.4 volts from 2 cells in series OR boost one cell up.
I would like the circuit to produce a "solid" 5 volts (+/- .5) under a variety of loads and finally, perhaps most importantly, provide some indication (even a hard shutdown will suffice) when the supply voltage drops below a certain point.
Now for the part that will make anyone still reading tell me to sod off... It's not critical, but I'd prefer to not need an IC, I like my discrete components.
Oh, I know I could use a simple regulator for the 2 cell arrangement, but that strikes me as wasteful to shunt the excess power as heat.
Hope I'm not being too much of a PITA!
Thanks in advance!