Autopilot Power Sources

I am making my own autopilot module and the entire module should draw around 157mA and runs on a 3.3V rail. I would like to just use a voltage regulator on the RC battery that will take the 5V rail out of the speed controller and step it down to 3.3V. I am unsure if this is a good idea or not. I have looked though ArduPilot and other autopilots but I cant seem to figure out if this is usually done. If not, what are the pros, cons, and alternatives? Thanks in advance.

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Replies

  • Shouldn't be a problem to PWM the servos with a 3.3 volt signal. Take a look at the Parallax Propeller documentation for their Development Board. The Propeller is a 3.3 volt device, but it works just fine with 3.3 volt outputs to 5 volts. Your uC should be similar.

    Page 6:
    http://www.parallax.com/Portals/0/Downloads/docs/prod/robo/PPBD_A%2...
  • How sure are you that the PWM signal output is only 3.3V? I have not tried it, but a cheap V meter might just give the average voltage of the PWM signal.
  • 3D Robotics
    It's got pluses and minuses. Plus: more and more electronics are 3.3v. Minus: servos are still 5v. How are you planning to drive your servos?
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