Power distribution is exactly like that.
Google around for “wire gauge ampacity.” You’ll turn up charts with recommended limits for various gauges of wire. Stick within these bounds and you’re safe. A couple points to keep in mind:
- Most charts show different limits for “free air” vs “enclosed” wire (or “chassis” vs “power distribution”). The former is for short runs where ambient air provides thermal relief; latter is generally for long runs through conduit, with a lower safe threshold. For a project like this one, we can consider it chassis wiring…but that’s no reason to push the limits. Allow for some overhead!
- The charts are almost always for solid-core wire. Stranded wire is nice for its flexibility, but its equivalent cross section is lower — the gaps between strands mean there’s less current-carrying copper, so you need to scale back the numbers a bit.
ALL THE LEDS!
A single LED uses so little power, it can run off a tiny coin cell battery for hours, even days!
One NeoPixel contains three LEDs: one each for red, green and blue, plus a tiny embedded controller chip:
Our 2-meter strips each hold 60 NeoPixels. 60 NeoPixels × 60 milliamps = 3,600 milliamps…3.6 Amps! Suddenly, that’s a real amount of current. Yet we haven’t lost efficiency, we’re just dealing with a whole crapton of LEDs!
Multiply that by the number of strips: 3.6A × 24 strips = 86.4 Amps at 5 Volts. By comparison, the power brick for a phone charger might provide 1-2 Amps, tops. 86.4 Amps is a lot. If it makes you feel better, run around screaming it like Doc Brown’s “1.21 Jiggowatts!”
Referring back to those ampacity charts, you’ll see this would require cables with solid copper as thick as a pencil. This is where people run into trouble. The usual electronics project hookup wire and “wall wart” power supply aren’t gonna cut it…a project of this scope requires a change of materials and techniques. Some of these parts we don’t offer at Adafruit; it’s beyond the scope of the hobbyist…you’ll need to turn to industrial suppliers.
Look at this thing:
It’s okay to use an oversize power supply — one with a higher amperage rating than our LEDs need — the circuit will pull only what it needs, and the supply will run a bit cooler. Just don’t use something with a higher voltage. 5 Volts is it!
If you’re a surplus scrounger, be certain what you’re getting is a DC supply. This is easily overlooked! AC will kill your pixels.
Shopping around sites like Mouser and PowerGate Express, I ultimately settled on this supply:
A Chain is as Strong as its Weakest Link…
The extra per-section fuses add a margin of safety…but, due to haste, also created an unexpected bottleneck that would determine the scale of the power system.
Not wanting to wait around for special-order parts, I found some nice inline fuse holders at the local auto parts store. These came pre-molded around 12 gauge stranded wire pigtails…which had a recommended max rating of 22 Amps. 3 × 22 = 66 Amps, about 25% short of our desired 86.4 Amps.
I could have done something stupid at this point. I could have crossed my fingers and “redlined” the system, or skipped the fuses altogether. Or I could be sensible and delay the project to locate some 10-gauge fuse holders. Or…the path ultimately chosen…I simply limit the maximum brightness of the LEDs to 70% in code, so they never exceed 60 Amps total. The Fadecandy software has a setting to handle this!
This is not necessarily a bad thing.
1,440 NeoPixels at full throttle will knock you on your ass. 1,440 NeoPixels at 70% brightness will still knock you on your ass. Honestly, we’re NOT left wanting for photons. Scaling the system down to 60 Amps pays dividends: there are more power supply options at this size (and at lower cost), and 12 gauge (vs 10 gauge) wire is more manageable and saves money. (No point using 10 gauge wire if the fuse holders are 12 gauge…we can’t “get back” that current…it truly is a matter of the weakest link.)
The power supply in the photo above is a Mean Well RSP-320-5, rated for 5 Volts at 60 Amps. I chose this one because it’s slim and has the multiple spade connectors and a decent rep…but there are many options from many manufacturers that’ll do the job just as well. (I also liked that the spade connectors were recessed…safer that way, unlike the one with bolts sticking out, just waiting for a dropped wrench.)
Besides, where would you plug in all those bricks? It would look terrible!
Whatever you decide, I do strongly recommend buying it domestically. I’ve ordered big-ticket items from overseas and had entirely different items arrive…and then return shipping for a refund would cost more than the original price. Buying closer to home costs more, but you won’t get stung if an exchange is needed.
The power supply output is 60 Amps at 5 Volts…or about 300 Watts. The input, on the house voltage side, would be more like 3 Amps. And that’s peak, not average. A typical house circuit could run several of these.
- When a power supply is pushed to its limits (e.g. LEDs exceeding the continuous-rated current), even briefly, the output voltage often sags. We’ll be powering our Fadecandy server off this same supply…and with a power brownout, the computer may lock up. When this happens, the NeoPixels retain their last color…which we’ve already established is more than the power supply can sustain. Brrzap, fizz, pop.
- When engineers design a bridge, they don’t just do the math based on trucks filling the span bumper-to-bumper…they take that and perhaps double it, even though it’s physically impossible. This is the engineering overhead. Nature excels at throwing curveballs, and systems are often put to unexpected demands. When success depends on that “X+Y for 1 minute,” you’re not just leaving yourself no overhead…you’re purposefully dipping into the red every time!
Either get a bigger power supply that can sustain the peak estimated LED current, or implement the software brightness throttle (demonstrated on the Fadecandy Server Setup page). If I wanted to be really good about it, I’d dial back the brightness a bit further.
“With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility.”
To reiterate the opening message, please be super extra careful around this stuff.
Ever had a component on a breadboard explode? One little capacitor or an LED or something? It throws shrapnel at your face and it hurts…and that’s just a tiny amount of power in one tiny part!
We’re not in Kansas anymore. Dropping a wrench or a screwdriver across the terminals of a high-current power supply can spot-weld the tool in place. The arc can burn or even blind you. Sparks can cause fires. Please:
- Avoid working on a live circuit. Unplug power and let any charge bleed off before poking around. (Sometimes you have to, obviously…metering voltages and such…be careful.)
- As you build up a system, test subassemblies; don’t throw the switch on Las Vegas all at once.
- Never bypass safety devices such as fuses, interlocks, covers or terminal partitions.
- Cover power terminals. Insulate wire splices. Nothing conductive should protrude.
- Remove electrically conductive jewelry, including rings, watches and necklaces.
- Ampacity is all about cross-sections and contact areas. Don’t skimp on wire gauges. Don’t file down a terminal that doesn’t fit…get the right terminal.
- Work methodically, check everything. Twice. Even the “obvious.”
Bigger?
It’s possible. You’ll need a USB hub, then add one extra Fadecandy board per 512 pixels. Also a bigger power supply, proportionally larger cables and bus bars and an extra helping of common sense. Very industrial stuff…suppliers for large boats and RVs might have suitable components…such vehicles also rely on low-voltage, high current power systems.
Personally, even the 60A project scares the crap out of me.
At some point (around 250A on the DC side, I estimate) you run up against the limits of what a standard house or office circuit can safely provide…to push it further is to blow a circuit breaker. Stop and think. When one’s work approaches such a threshold that you’re considering rewiring a building, you really have to ask yourself: is this art, or just MOAR LEDS?
Page last edited March 08, 2024
Text editor powered by tinymce.