Lipo battery charging specs for mbot

#9

Hi Ian1. Many thanks for confirming this is a suitable battery and it is working well for you. I will bow to your greater knowledge on the technical electronic details! I’ve ordered 2 of them for my 2 mBots and will use the rechargeable AAs for something else. I had a read of the Adafruit tutorial which was very useful so I think I understand things better now - thanks for the link. As you suggest I will use a phone type charger that can deliver 1 amp.
Cheers,
Mark.

#10

Could you post details of what, if any, modifications were required to use the LiPo battery? I’m working up a course for a class of middle schoolers with the mBot as the hardware and I would like to be able to have them use LiPos if possible.

Thanks!

#11

Hi Chuck, There are no modifications needed, just plug the LiPo battery in and charge it via the USB port when required.
Regards

#12

Hi all, this seems to be the most informative thread for batteries. I have the Starter Robot Kit and am a real noobie. I realize batteries are mentioned here, and plugging it in, but i have no clue where.

Do you plug it into the Power Supply port (where the AA batter holder plugs into) or somewhere else (like the plug next to it). Also, does USB charging work for any LiPo you plug in?

here are a list of batteries. Are they all adequate and would i need to change the plug end to be compatible with the MakeBlock Orion board’s power port?

I’m sure i’m not the only beginner here, so any information would be highly appreciated. thanks!

Here are the batteries i’ve found:
Lithium Ion 3.7v 2500mAh

Lithium Ion 3.7v 4400mAh

Lithium Ion 3.7v 6600mAh

#13

The Starter Robot looks like it is using the Orion board and the motors are a bit bigger. The battery pack (which takes 6 AA batteries, so the 3.7v ones won’t work. The battery packs seem to have the batteries lined up in series, so you need 9VDC (6 * 1.5V) to power everything properly. I saw this one on eBay which might work.

@danjger, can you offer any insights? You’ve got experience with the Orion board and I don’t.

#14

I’d put a 3cell lipo 11.1v on an orion board.
http://learn.makeblock.cc/orion/

Onboard default not working and random modes
#15

Oh cool, the learn site is back up (it was down the last time I tried to get there).

Thanks!

#16

thanks @danjger ! so if i use an 11.1v lipo, i can just wire on a 2.1x5.5mm male end and i should be fine?

thanks again for all the help

#17

Hi @danjger, would one of these work?

#18

Yea, those are fine. You can pickup some from a local hobby shop too but they might be more pricy.

#19

I’m not sure of the connector but the lipo shoudl work ok. I do wonder if makeblock has installed a low voltage cutoff to prevent issues with over discharge. You might want to conform that if you think you will run the batteries down.

#20

Hi, can anyone tell me if with 4400 mAh battery the mbot will work fine?
I have big problems in finding the 2500 mAh. An other option would be the 1200 mAh, but for how long will the mbot work? I need to use it for an art installation so it shoul work as long as possible! Thank you to anybody will give some suggestion!

#21

The milliamp-hours (mAh) is more about the storage capacity, i.e., how long the batteries will last. As long as the voltage is the same, you should be fine.

#22

@chuckmcknight thanks!

#23

It’s very ironic that the latest mBot comes with a little box to hold a Lipo battery but yet there is no specifications for the battery nor a link of where to buy one. This a very bad marketing.

#24

Hi Aramperez,

Since we do not sell the battery for the mBot, You can buy any 3.7v lipo battery online or local shop and just match the size of the lipo battery box provided.
Size for the battery holder cover:

blob.jpg924x387 57.4 KB

Size for the battery holder:
blob.jpg907x503 64.8 KB

Suggested size for the lithium battery:
blob.jpg1032x579 28.5 KB

#25

While these drawings help a little bit, what people need is a battery number. It’s hard to search Amazon for a Lipo battery using just dimensions, e.g. you state that for the IR remote you need a CR2025 battery.

#26

Hi,

You are looking for a 3.7 LiPo battery. The larger the mAh (milliamp hours), the longer the battery will last. I use this one from Adafruit. Amazon, Jameco, etc. all carry these. :slight_smile:

#27

Thanks for the link and information. The Adafruit link states that the battery is 51mm x 65mm x 8mm which does not appear to fit in the battery box as it exceeds the recommended size of 50mm x 35mm x 10mm. I have a hard time understanding the reasoning for including a battery box but no link to a battery that fits inside the box, but that’s just me.

#28

@ tec_support

Your suggested size of the lithium battery does not fit in the provided box. The inside measurements on your drawings are 49.2 x 32 and your suggested battery is 50 x 35. So that is too big.