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Combining multiple power sources

cjdelphi

Oct 26, 2011
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My original thought was to harness all my power banks and any other source producing 5v.. solar or even a dynamo....

So my plan was 5 diodes and 5 (1ohm resistors at 3watts or so) and combine all the sources straight into a larger switching regulator
Is there a more efficient way to avoid resistor losses?..

With 10 of them I could even boost the voltage to 12v and run a small inverter with just power banks...

Is it achievable?
 

Martaine2005

May 12, 2015
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If the diodes are series connected to each 5V supply, Only the highest voltage supply will be present and block the lower voltages. Then as that voltage drops, the next highest voltage will supply and so on.
That’s if I understood correctly of course?.


Martin
 

CircutScoper

Mar 29, 2022
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Mar 29, 2022
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My original thought was to harness all my power banks and any other source producing 5v.. solar or even a dynamo....

So my plan was 5 diodes and 5 (1ohm resistors at 3watts or so) and combine all the sources straight into a larger switching regulator
Is there a more efficient way to avoid resistor losses?..

With 10 of them I could even boost the voltage to 12v and run a small inverter with just power banks...

Is it achievable?

As M2 says, it depends. In addition to the voltage/power loss imposed by the diodes, all the power sources will be dragged down -- sort of a lowest common denominator thing. For photovoltaics, that's pretty much okay, provided all your panels at least have the same nominal output voltage. For other power sources -- like micro-hydro and wind generators -- the response to such loading might not be as graceful. Best to consult with the respective manufacturers.
 

cjdelphi

Oct 26, 2011
1,166
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Messages
1,166
In parallel...
Why the resistors?
I see no purpose for them in this setup unless you need to limit the output current of the sources.

To limit the current to a max of 1 or 2 amp, I don't want to rely on (or lack of) a current limiter ...

How about swapping the resistor for a pwm which is fed into a regulator?..

I knocked up a sketch, It doesn't have a switching regulator support so i made crude step up switcher and voltage regulator in place of....

I'm thinking if i swap the resistors for a pwm setup, I can can get around the resistive losses?
 

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