Power¶
The board takes a single DC input over a wide range and regulates everything the sensors need on-board — you don't supply any sensor voltages yourself.
Input¶
Power the board from either input:
| Input | Connector | Range | Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| External DC | J1 (2-pin) |
5 V – 6S LiPo (~25 V) | Flight / integration — feed from a 5 V rail or directly from the vehicle battery (2S–6S) |
| USB-C | J2 |
5 V | Bench / desktop |
| UART 5 V | J7 pin 1 |
5 V | Power over the host UART connector — e.g. from a USB-UART adapter's 5 V/VCC pin |
All three are diode-OR'd onto the input — you can safely have more than one connected (the higher source supplies, the others are blocked).
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Input voltage | 5 V to ~25.2 V (up to a 6S LiPo), via J1 |
| Typical current | well under 500 mA in steady ranging |
| Peak current | brief inrush at power-on (all sensors initializing) |
| Protection | reverse-polarity protected; USB path is fused + diode-isolated from the DC input |
Wide input
J1 accepts anything from 5 V up to a 6S LiPo — an on-board wide-input
regulator converts it down to the rails the sensors run on. You can feed it a
regulated 5 V or wire it straight to the flight battery. USB-C (J2) is a 5 V
bench alternative; you don't need both.
What the board provides¶
- All sensor supplies are generated on-board from the DC input — you do not provide anything to the sensors directly; they're powered through the 8 sensor connectors.
- The host UART connector (
J7) includes a +5 V pin you can power the board from — handy when you're already connected with a USB-UART adapter (wire its 5 V/VCC intoJ7pin 1). It's a power input, not an output.
Powering for flight¶
Feed J1 from your flight-control unit / power module — either a regulated 5 V
rail or the vehicle battery directly (up to 6S) — and take the data connection
off the host UART (J7). See Bring-up & Setup.