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USA
Asked — Edited

A Little Mistake!

Hi, I received my kit and I have been loving it...until I slipped a bit and blew one of the 220uf 6.3 capacitors (Thankfully I had my safety glasses on because the cap rocketed off). The board is still functioning but I want to swap the capacitor. My local shops only carry a 220 10v and I was wondering if that was an acceptable solution or should I swap out equivalent specification parts?


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PRO
Synthiam
#1  
That capacitor you listed will work:)

Are you putting voltage back into the ez-b connectors?
#2  
Thanks for your quick response! Yes, I was using an off-the-shelf 7.2v rechargeable battery pack to hook up the EZ-B to power the Rover 5 I purchased from your site. I don't know if I was sloppy and allowed unintentional contact but the sequence went:
1) Saw a spark
2) Saw some smoke
3) Cap popped off the capacitor

This all happened in the matter of a second.

Side note: Huge fan of yours, keep up the great work!
PRO
Synthiam
#3  
Thank you:)

Glad to hear your board is still working after that. Looking forward to seeing what you build:)
#4  
Is there any place I can secure instructions on the best way to hook the EZ-B to the Rover 5? I looked at most of the videos but I can't find the information I need.
Thanks for your help,
Matt
Canada
#5  
Hello Matt, are you referring to an electrical hookup between EZ-B and the Rover? As I understand, the only connection is via the wireless stream between your PC/ARC and the Rover. There is no wiring required between the EZ-B and Rover.

Physically placing the EZ-B onto the Rover is so that you can hook up sensors and whatnot to the EZ-B and utilize them (via the Bluetooth link between EZ-B and your PC) in relationship to the Rovers environment.

And as far as a physical connection goes... duct tape works:) actually I would use plastic/metal standoffs and somehow affix them to the Rover (glue?). That way it is secure when driving, but easily removable. As for power, I suppose you could tap into the Rovers power? as long as it has enough voltage (6v-18v) or just attach the AA battery pack (or your 7.2v pack) to the Rover as well.
Canada
#6  
You know... it just dawned on me that you might be referring to the rover chassis in the EZ-Robot store, and NOT the Brookstone Rover as I was assuming *blush* I just looked and it is actually referred too as a "Rover 5" (I thought the "5" was a typo in your post) My bad:)

In that case... that is a whole different story:) You cannot power it's motors directly off the EZ-B ports, you need a H-Bridge controller for that. That might have been the cause of your original issue.

Check out this Tutorial for the the H-Bridge sold in the EZ Store
2.5 Amp Motor Controller
PRO
USA
#7  
Yup gunner is right . Fyi those motors on rover draw up to 4 amps at stall .
#8  
Wow, I really appreciate the thorough information provided. Yes I was talking about the Rover 5 and after doing some pencil work and research I came to that same conclusion that I needed the h-bridge. Right now I have a kooky hookup through an Anduino board with a Motor Shield until my wife allows me to spend more money on my hobbies. I'm wearing her down and should have it soon:)
Thanks again!
#9  
Just an update to my situation. I swapped out the capacitor for the 10v and everything is working super! I ordered my H-bridge last week and can't wait for it to arrive.

I just wanted to say what a great kit this is. I've been fiddling with micro controllers for a while but your package with the software is amazing. My wife was blown away when my 9 yr old and I set-up the camera and got it to track her movement, honestly she was a little freaked out at first.
Keep up the great work.
Matt
PRO
Synthiam
#10  
@Matt thank you for the kind words:)
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