Hi I was wondering if someone can direct me to the best place on the Electron to draw power from for multiple sensors.
Should each one draw directly from the 3.3V pin or should each have a GPIO set to HIGH to draw the 3.3V power from. The 2 sensors I have draw less than the MAX. for a GPIO pin.
Thanks
@Athnetix, you might be able to do that for low-powered sensors, but it is not a sure thing.
You want to make sure you are not pushing the GPIO pin anywhere close to its limit; it is recommended to play it safe and not kill a pin. My opinion is to keep it under two-thirds of the limit.
There is also another very important specification in the datasheet; that is the maximum draw on all pins combined. Even if each sensor is below the pin limit, too many sensors will take the combined total over its limit and maybe have consequences worse than just losing a pin. Make sure you look that up in the Electron datasheet.
(I am not absolutely sure if you mean only 2 sensors or 2 types of sensors, so my response plays it safe.)
We are also assuming the sensors are 3.3V sensors. If you have 5V or 1.8V or some other voltage requirement, then you need a slightly more complex solution.
If you need more help; you will need to list every exact part that is being attached to the Electron in order to calculate all the current draws.
May your Electron last a long time!
thanks for the info…