Solar panel to support MintyBoost

Ideas and questions about MintyBoost kits

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aterzaghi
 
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Mar 15, 2013 11:24 am

Solar panel to support MintyBoost

Post by aterzaghi »

Dear all,

I just get the eyes on Mintyboost that looks like to be a fantastic super-efficient charger.
I want to do this integrate the MintyBoost technology in a solar charger:
the idea is the following:

Solar panel --> Float charger --> NiMH batteries --> MintyBoost (multiple entities all connected to the batteries trough diode) --> multiple devices one per each MintyBoost

Because of the fact that I want to charge multiple devices (4 iphone/ipad) completely, I want to use very big batteries (for example 1.2V 3000mAh batteries each such as http://it.rs-online.com/web/p/batterie- ... i/5046102/)

I'm interested in MintyBoost for his efficiency. so I can keep voltage as low as possible and loose as less power as possible in the process and keep everything without heat-sink or whatever
So the problem is that the Float Charger (http://www.learningelectronics.net/circ ... cells.html) works only with batteries up to 6V or higher that are incompatible with the Mintyboost

I was thinking at two possible solution:
1. Is there any float charger schematic that can work with NiMH batteries of 3x1.2V = 3.6 Volt that should be ideal for MintyBoost?
2. do you think that a situation in which the float charger recharges a pack of 7 cells of 1.2V each (total 8.6V) and I pick up two blocks, one of three cells (3.6V) and one of 4 cells (4.8V) and use these two for two MintyCells could work?

This is the idea: on the left the float charger, on the right the two MintyBoost:

---------- --------------
| |
1,2v |
| |
1,2v MintyBoost
| |
1,2v |
| |
1,2v |
| |
---------------
| |
1,2v |
| |
1,2v MintyBoost
| |
1,2v |
| |
---------- -------------

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adafruit_support_bill
 
Posts: 88093
Joined: Sat Feb 07, 2009 10:11 am

Re: Solar panel to support MintyBoost

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

The MintyBoost is pretty efficient for a boost converter. But if your voltage is over 5v, what you really need is a "buck" converter like these: https://www.adafruit.com/products/1065

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