I'm fairly new to electronics so this is a very simple question. I have a device that needs a constant 5v supply that I want to power off a 2S Lipo battery. I've bought a regulator and I'm asking what connections do I need to make between the battery, the VIN, VOUT and GND pins on the regulator and my device. An explanation and diagram of things would be very helpful.
Thanks.
That would work. Or just connect two lengths of black wire to the battery GND. Hook one to the regulator and one to the load.
I would hook 2 wires to the GND on the regulator and hook one to the battery GND and the other to the load GND. It does not matter as long as all the GNDs are connected.
Your Lithium battery will be destroyed if discharged below 6V.
So your battery needs to have a protection circuit to disconnect its load when its voltage drops to 6V.
Sorry for taking my time to reply back. I made my wire harness and connected my switching regulator and it worked for a while until my device (a gumstix COM) reaches a certain part in booting then it turns off. I replaced the regulator with a standard linear one and it worked just fine. I made a post on the gumistx boards **broken link removed** and the person who replied said it might have to do with transient loads. Are they a common problem with switching regulators? Will using one with a higher switching frequency work? Any suggestions? I'd like to use a switching one since I'm using a battery.
You might try addding 50 or 100 ufd cap to the output of the supply. That should rule out any transient problems. Might also help if it is a brief over current problem.