BeagleBoard power sources

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1

Hi…

Is it acceptable to provide the 5V power source for the BeagleBoard through the expansion connector, or should only the main DC plug and USB OTG connectors be used? I understand the limits of header pin ratings of 1A, but it looks like that this should not be a problem for the BB that doesn’t need to provide much/any power for USB devices. Looking at the RevC2 schematics (same version as my BB), it looks like the current sense resistor (R6) near the current measurement pins (J2) is the only component between the (MAIN_DC) and (DC_5V) rails.

I’m working on a custom expansion board and am just looking at options for power. Thanks for any tips/recommendations…

2

You can supply it through the expansion slot, but I would not recommend it. If you have plans to make this expansion board publicly available, then I would strongly recommend not doing it.

If you were to do it, you will need to be careful to make sure that you do not plug in the OTG port to a PC or there will be fireworks. I suggest you put a dummy plug in the DC jack to prevent the USB power from being routed to the DC power if ithe OTG port is plugged in.

Gerald