jstarne1
Hello Everyone , I had this idea when the v3 was around , but I wanted to wait until v4 was in circulation before pursuing it. The concept is a shield that plugs in directly on top of the existing EZB v4. It would regulate 5 volts on the power pins. Then of course I was thinking... WAIT! 5 volts is a fine standard, but servos run on 6 volts by standard and some high torque get the most power with 7.4 volts! So there are some options. I want to make this shield generally available to the community for testers. I imagine two or maybe three different versions of the shield would be appropriate.
5 volt standard servo shield- all 24 digital power pins regulated by a switching psu , green certified , Gold standard efficiency 96%
5 volt @7.5amp with switch to 6 volt @ 10amp Boost for High Torque servos, preset for all 24 digital power pins , switching psu, green certified, Gold standard efficiency 96%
Dynamixel shield option - 5v @5a and secondary power option 12v @10a continous.
The switching regulators cost more however they produce less heat and waste less power. This increases battery life of your project.
what I would like is feedback on is how I should lay this out. How do YOU as a user want the shield.
1 Top mount pins line on v4 now or 90 degree out to the sides?
2 dip switches or physical jumpers to change voltage from 5 volt to 6 volts (or 7.4 if your servos can take this continuously )
3 what battery voltages does everyone use, I want to configure shield for most users so they do not need to use a plether of step down converters.
4 whats your idea or opinion , lets be constructive afterall I am doing this for you 
I think that there should be essentially "Micro Shields".
If you look at the ez-bs digital ports, there divided into groups of 4. Why not make a mini shield that uses the same concept? This micro shield could clip right in place, would not interrupt other ports, and could have a exchangable regulator, so you can have the voltage you want at an amperage you need. As well, you can regulate the ports you want and don't want. Plus they would be fairly easy to manufacture.
Just my take on it though.