I would like to implement a ON/Off switch for the Boron. Reading the different posts it seems the best way to do this is to connect a switch between the EN pin and a ground.
Is that the best way to go?
I want a switch that turns off ALL power.
Thanks
I think that would work…
Another option is to have a DPDT switch that will cut both the VIN/USB input and the LiPo input. But this will only work if you’re not plugging the LiPo into the onboard JST.
What is your setup like?
A bit more information is necessary to know which option is the best.
Are you powered by:
Why are you turning it off?
How do you want to turn it off?
There will be a small amount of current leakage when using EN because there is a 100K pull-up. This will add up over very long periods of time if you are using it to preserve battery or for shipping.
The Boron, Electron, E Series, and Tracker SoM (bq24195 devices) can be powered down by disabling the BATFET. This has almost no current leakage and is how shipping mode is implemented on the Tracker One. The case is sealed and thus the battery cannot be unplugged so we use the BATFET to disconnect the battery. Downside: You can only wake the device back up by supplying external power, such as from USB or VIN/VUSB (or M8 on the Tracker One).
Thanks for getting back to me.
I have a project where the Boron is enclosed with the battery attached in a water-proof plastic small box. The box won’t be submerged but will be in the outdoor elements.
Would like to be able to attach an external on/off (weather-proof) switch to this plastic enclosure and use a waterproof Cable Gland setup to supply power to recharge the battery when needed.
The power to the Boron would only need to be on 8-9 hrs. per day and then could be shut off completely until I need it again is a couple days. I could just keep opening the enclosure and disconnect the battery but would be nice to just have an on/off option.
At some point I would need to recharge the battery and that is where the waterproof Cable Gland setup comes in.to play where I could use an external 5volt supply.
Not sure this setup is the best way to go, any thoughts would be helpful.
I have a very similar use case and you may want to see if there is something of interest in they thread:
I use a physical slider switch and two load switch ICs to shut off the power. I needed to add the extra components because I wanted to use a surface mount switch and could not find a suitable one that could handle the current requirements of the system. When this switch is off, only a very small amount of current is needed for the load switches and to maintain the real time clock.
You can still control the enable pin to achieve ultra low power “enable” sleep. So, there are two different power controls - a physical switch which is good for transport and storage and the ability to control the Enable line using code in your sketch.
Hope this is helpful.
Chip