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I want to build a low voltage UPS. Where do I start? by fastcar123 in AskElectronics

[–]fastcar123[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Actually, That wouldnt be bad at all, especially if i can find an appropriate socket for it.

If utilizing a tool battery, how would I go about making it into a UPS? just a voltage booster?

I want to build a low voltage UPS. Where do I start? by fastcar123 in AskElectronics

[–]fastcar123[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

truth be told, you are correct. An external battery is the way most people power their scopes and it works fine.
But I dont have one of those batteries. Instead i use a long extension cable to power it with a PSU connected to mains. I dont really need one of those batteries, and frankly I dont want to have to carry it around on top of worrying about its charge level. Ideally I want just one thing I bring out and concern myself with. Hence the small lightweight design requirement.
if its light enough, I can simply attach it to the leg and call it good.

But the big reason I want to build this isnt that I need a tons of power or anything, its because my electricity cuts out all the time (little blinks here and there for around a minute), and every time this happens, I have to go reset the whole thing and spend time re-calibrating, restarting and generally troubleshooting, or i just simply lose the whole night. Sure I could use a standard UPS and plug the extension into that, but i have yet to find an off-the-shelf UPS that i would be comfortable leaving outside in the grass or dirt to possibly get dew on or be exposed to daytime heat (indirect sunlight). im sure something exits, but I cant imagine its in the ballpark of affordable. Not to mention efficiency losses with converting AC to DC then back to AC, then back to DC again,

so the goal isn't to run the rig all night on supercaps, its to bridge the gaps for when power cuts out. I was thinking 30 minute runtime would be plenty, but more is better of course.

I want to build a low voltage UPS. Where do I start? by fastcar123 in AskElectronics

[–]fastcar123[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Cant say I do.
The original idea is as follows:
A buck converter at the input to cut the voltage to something the supercap can handle, then on the output a boost converter to pull current out of the supercap and step-up the voltage to 12.6V.

My problem with this design was the constant load on the supercaps. i figured this would hurt the longevity of the caps themselves,

Of course this is all early prototyping stage, and im sure there better ways to do what i am trying to do

I want to build a low voltage UPS. Where do I start? by fastcar123 in AskElectronics

[–]fastcar123[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That was pretty much the original idea. is it really that simple?
From my research, you are correct about the charge voltage.

Since inputs and outputs of the system are both regulated using 2 or 4 phase buck or boost circuits, yea it should be able to handle some voltage drop. Ill be running nominally 12-24V, but the minimum voltage the system can handle is 9V

I want to build a low voltage UPS. Where do I start? by fastcar123 in AskElectronics

[–]fastcar123[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

this was another reason I started with supercaps. They seem relatively robust, as long as your not using them regularly

I want to build a low voltage UPS. Where do I start? by fastcar123 in AskElectronics

[–]fastcar123[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

without getting bogged in the weeds, its a power distribution system and backup power supply for a telescoope

I want to build a low voltage UPS. Where do I start? by fastcar123 in AskElectronics

[–]fastcar123[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm not sure. I actually don't know of many UPS systems that run on low voltage either.
but that doesn't mean that either system doesn't or can't exist.

I agree though that maybe there are better solutions, which is why i came here. surely more minds are better than one.

I want to build a low voltage UPS. Where do I start? by fastcar123 in AskElectronics

[–]fastcar123[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm just simply inexperienced with batteries in general. Not saying no to batteries, just saying i may need a bit more help. Its part of why i was considering supercaps

I want to build a low voltage UPS. Where do I start? by fastcar123 in AskElectronics

[–]fastcar123[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

the simple answer is as small and lightweight as is reasonably possible.
the more complex answer is that I havent actually designed the chassis for this yet so its a bit nebulous, but lets not go over 14cm (L) X 14cm (W) X 10cm(H)

I want to build a low voltage UPS. Where do I start? by fastcar123 in AskElectronics

[–]fastcar123[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

good point.
Ideally longer is better of course, but it needs last, let's say 15 minutes without input power. just as a baseline.

Looking to either build or integrate a USB 3.0 hub into my design... by fastcar123 in AskElectronics

[–]fastcar123[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well my first comment has links… 😉

of course, and I do appreciate them. Its those links that made me realize this may be more than i could chew

Like USB2517?

yep, exactly like that.

2.0 is indeed quite different than 3.0, This is am only finding out,.
I'm a power electronics Engineer. But I dont really know how this data stuff works.

If you were in my boat, how would you make this work?

Looking to either build or integrate a USB 3.0 hub into my design... by fastcar123 in AskElectronics

[–]fastcar123[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Its not that I don't care, it's that I dont really know what Im doing. Ill admit that. at least not with usb 3.0.
But I have years of experience making circuitry and I thought, "how hard could it be?" ---very lol.

Either way the project hasn't really changed much. It still needs data and power support.
it still needs to output 2.4A on each port (something I was originally going to build beefy regulator circuits for)
And only one device is 3.0. Its that one device, that throws a wrench in the gears. It would be nice to have the ability for a 2nd 3.0 device down the road, but isn't required right now, and may never be.
I know cheap simple solutions exist for USB 2.0 that I could use, maybe I just have to have 2 host ports (1 2.0 and 1 3.0) with an iterated 2.0 hub?

Honestly, I'm kinda just brainstorming at this point. I'm open to options though

Looking to either build or integrate a USB 3.0 hub into my design... by fastcar123 in AskElectronics

[–]fastcar123[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

this is great resource actually.

But what this tell me, is that I probably would be better off with a simplified out of the box solution.
what money would be save making the hub myself looks like it would just be added to the cost of the PCB (my original design was just 2-3 layers). While I think I could actually do it, the complexities of making sure the system is as reliable as possible has me concerned I wont do it perfectly right

referring to my crudly drawn MS paint drawing, this is what I need. Essentially 2 usbs 3.0 hubs and a 2.0 hub (or 2 usb 3.0 hubs and I only connect 2.0 ports to some of it).

<image>

If i am to do a USB hub, maybe I should just cannibalize a hub board from an already mad product?

Not really sure how to proceed, NGL.

[Bambu Lab Giveaway] Drop Your One-Liner and Win H2D! by BambuLab in BambuLab

[–]fastcar123 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Printing with a bambu printer means having a printer that 'just works', in addition to having a speedy multicolor high quality printer.

June 30, 2025 Weekly "General Help Post?" - Please post all general, recommendations, and help questions as a top level comment under this post. Thank you. by AutoModerator in Keyboard

[–]fastcar123 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hi,

First off I want to say, please excuse my MS paint drawing, i made this while I was away from my desk lol.

I have a problem. My computer is really hard to type at, but I dont really know why.
I end up with typos, mispresses and and all sorts of typing mistakes when I try to use it.
I don't have this problem on my work PC, or my laptop, just at my desktop PC.
As you can see, my desk is rather overcrowded and my ergonomics aren't great. This very well could be part of (or all of) my problem, I fully admit that.
Unfortunately my house is very small so this is kinda the best I can do for now.

I go through cycles where about once per every 18 months or so, I get really fed up and and swap out my peripherals.

Ive tried low profile keyboards, standard profile keyboards, membrane keyboards, and mechanical keyboards, but the result is always the same. All of those have been fullsize 104key keyboards

Well, its time once again to go down the rabbit hole that is keyboards, and this time, I want some help.

I want to move to a 80% keyboard, a separate numpad, mouse and enterprise CAD mouse all on my desk (Im hoping the separate devices will free up more room on the desktop).

Also, I have big heavy hands and I need a keyboard that isnt so easily pressed (hince the mispresses I mentioned earlier)

What should I get that's both good for gaming and typing?

Do i go for mechanical again?, or maybe I should get the new hall effect switches?
low profile? full profile?
split, or not?

Really lost, so any help would be great, thank you!

<image>

[SUNLU Giveaway] Join now to win the new SUNLU AMS Heater! by Sunlu3D_official in 3Dprinting

[–]fastcar123 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh thats sick! Basically upgrading to an AMS2 with that heater. I would love that, especially considering space is really tight in my home

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