Help me choose batteries for my robot

[_SquiD_]

Hi there,

guys I need your help in choosing the batteries for my robot. I have a 4WD rover from Lynxmotion and it has 4 DC motors (12V). I also have a couple of SHARP IR sensors and a controller board (5V). What kind of batteries should I use ?

How can I make them last longer ?

-SQD-

 

[genius1990]

Re: batteries for my bot

Hi there,

guys I need your help in choosing the batteries for my robot. I have a 4WD rover from Lynxmotion and it has 4 DC motors (12V). I also have a couple of SHARP IR sensors and a controller board (5V). What kind of batteries should I use ?

How can I make them last longer ?

-SQD-

As weight of battery doesnt matter i suggest u use a 12 volt battery with 20Ah or greater...rechargable will be good..use a 7805 regulator for all the sensors that need only 5 volt
hope it helps

 

[enjunear]

Re: batteries for my bot

The power density for typical cells goes like this (low-high): lead-acid, nickel-metal hydride, lithium ion.
For ease of use (easy to hard): lead-acid, nickel-metal hydride, lithium ion.

For any of these batteries, get an appropriate charger. In general, the smarter the charger, the longer your cells will last (to a point). For lead-acid, get one that does both constant-voltage and constant-current charging, with an auto-float feature (so you can never overcharge the battery... *BOOM*). For a 12V lead-acid, your 100% discharge is when the terminals reach 11.9V after resting. A fully charged 12V battery will show 12.65V after resting. I like the BatteryMINDer series from VDC Electronics.

If weight isn't a factor, get a sealed, non-spillable (AGM) lead-acid battery (around 10 to 20 amp-hours should be good to start). If weight is a factor, explore the more exotic battery types (NiMH and LiIon). Be careful with lithium packs. You need to have a charge-monitor/controller to keep the batteries from overheating and going boom. Once lithium cells catch fire, they are nearly impossible to extinguish, because materials inside the cell have oxygen, so once started, you can't break the "fire triangle"... fuel (Li), heat, and oxygen.

Good battery information here:
Battery University

 

[prmurthy]

Hi SQD,

To select the battery first you need to assetain your rover weight.What is the current rating of your motors. Wheather all the four motors will run simultaneously. IF yes the add up all the current that is drawn at peak level. Finally what are others loads on the battery and how long the rover should run.

After this you can select the correctly battery and then one important point to be kept in mind. How often you will charge these batteries. If you charge cycle is very fast and very often then I bet your batteries will be damaged in couple of months.

Try look at battries which has more DOD(depth of descharge) the more DOD the less you require to charge often. Also try to look Green Batteries, these are often used in Honda Hybrid Cars.

Hope this helps you.
Thankyou

 

[bajgik]

Hi, check this tutorial on choosing the powering system for robot construction: **broken link removed**

 

[genius1990]

I have a small sugestion.have u checked lithium polymer battery ..it gives aroung 12volt and high current >15 amps..the cost increases as the amps requirments increases but the weight remains very small...the weight to power ratio is approx 0...it will help u.