Revisions to Using a GPIO pin as a power source

Page is 72, not 62 (it is section 6.2)

edit approved Apr 8, 2018 at 10:04

13
4

Note:
This answer was originally written before we knew anything about the receiver, like its 1.8V power supply. Telaclavo's answer is good. As a more general answer the PNP/MOSFET solution remains; you don't want to power parts of your circuit from a microcontroller's I/O pin.

You don't want to do that! You'd configure the pin as output and make it high to provide power to the GPS receiver, but microcontrollers I/Os can only supply limited current, 25mA for the STM32F205xx (page 62Section 6.2 page 72 of the datasheet), which will be too low for powering your (and any other) GPS receiver (34 to 38 mA, as stated in the datasheet)

Use the I/O pin to drive a PNP transistor which will supply the required current.

enter image description here

Note that using a PNP inverses your logic: a logic low will turn the receiver on.

I would not use an NPN for this. In common emitter it would mean that the receiver's ground is a few hundred mV above ground, and a circuit should have one single ground which is the same for every component. In common collector you would lose too much of your 3.3V power supply.

edit
Wouter would use a MOSFET instead of a BJT, and that's a good alternative. Just make sure you choose a logic-level FET, which will give you enough current at a \$V_{GS}\$ of -3.3V. The Rohm RZE002P02 is a suitable type. It will also have a lower voltage drop if your receiver needs less than about 200mA.

edit 2 (re clabacchio's addition of a datasheet)
This device operates at 1.8V, the STM32 at 3.3V. You can use an LDO with an enable input and control that from your microcontroller. No transistor needed. (Thanks for the suggestion, markrages.) You'll also need level shifters for the data.

Note:
This answer was originally written before we knew anything about the receiver, like its 1.8V power supply. Telaclavo's answer is good. As a more general answer the PNP/MOSFET solution remains; you don't want to power parts of your circuit from a microcontroller's I/O pin.

You don't want to do that! You'd configure the pin as output and make it high to provide power to the GPS receiver, but microcontrollers I/Os can only supply limited current, 25mA for the STM32F205xx (page 62 of the datasheet), which will be too low for powering your (and any other) GPS receiver (34 to 38 mA, as stated in the datasheet)

Use the I/O pin to drive a PNP transistor which will supply the required current.

enter image description here

Note that using a PNP inverses your logic: a logic low will turn the receiver on.

I would not use an NPN for this. In common emitter it would mean that the receiver's ground is a few hundred mV above ground, and a circuit should have one single ground which is the same for every component. In common collector you would lose too much of your 3.3V power supply.

edit
Wouter would use a MOSFET instead of a BJT, and that's a good alternative. Just make sure you choose a logic-level FET, which will give you enough current at a \$V_{GS}\$ of -3.3V. The Rohm RZE002P02 is a suitable type. It will also have a lower voltage drop if your receiver needs less than about 200mA.

edit 2 (re clabacchio's addition of a datasheet)
This device operates at 1.8V, the STM32 at 3.3V. You can use an LDO with an enable input and control that from your microcontroller. No transistor needed. (Thanks for the suggestion, markrages.) You'll also need level shifters for the data.

Note:
This answer was originally written before we knew anything about the receiver, like its 1.8V power supply. Telaclavo's answer is good. As a more general answer the PNP/MOSFET solution remains; you don't want to power parts of your circuit from a microcontroller's I/O pin.

You don't want to do that! You'd configure the pin as output and make it high to provide power to the GPS receiver, but microcontrollers I/Os can only supply limited current, 25mA for the STM32F205xx (Section 6.2 page 72 of the datasheet), which will be too low for powering your (and any other) GPS receiver (34 to 38 mA, as stated in the datasheet)

Use the I/O pin to drive a PNP transistor which will supply the required current.

enter image description here

Note that using a PNP inverses your logic: a logic low will turn the receiver on.

I would not use an NPN for this. In common emitter it would mean that the receiver's ground is a few hundred mV above ground, and a circuit should have one single ground which is the same for every component. In common collector you would lose too much of your 3.3V power supply.

edit
Wouter would use a MOSFET instead of a BJT, and that's a good alternative. Just make sure you choose a logic-level FET, which will give you enough current at a \$V_{GS}\$ of -3.3V. The Rohm RZE002P02 is a suitable type. It will also have a lower voltage drop if your receiver needs less than about 200mA.

edit 2 (re clabacchio's addition of a datasheet)
This device operates at 1.8V, the STM32 at 3.3V. You can use an LDO with an enable input and control that from your microcontroller. No transistor needed. (Thanks for the suggestion, markrages.) You'll also need level shifters for the data.

added 514 characters in body

Source Link

edited Apr 28, 2012 at 11:42

stevenvh

147.3k
21
465
672

Note:
This answer was originally written before we knew anything about the receiver, like its 1.8V power supply. Telaclavo's answer is good. As a more general answer the PNP/MOSFET solution remains; you don't want to power parts of your circuit from a microcontroller's I/O pin.

You don't want to do that! You'd configure the pin as output and make it high to provide power to the GPS receiver, but microcontrollers I/Os can only supply limited current, 25mA for the STM32F205xx (page 62 of the datasheet), which will be too low for powering your (and any other) GPS receiver (34 to 38 mA, as stated in the datasheet)

Use the I/O pin to drive a PNP transistor which will supply the required current.

enter image description here

Note that using a PNP inverses your logic: a logic low will turn the receiver on.

I would not use an NPN for this. In common emitter it would mean that the receiver's ground is a few hundred mV above ground, and a circuit should have one single ground which is the same for every component. In common collector you would lose too much of your 3.3V power supply.

edit
Wouter would use a MOSFET instead of a BJT, and that's a good alternative. Just make sure you choose a logic-level FET, which will give you enough current at a \$V_{GS}\$ of -3.3V. The Rohm RZE002P02 is a suitable type. It will also have a lower voltage drop if your receiver needs less than about 200mA.

edit 2 (re clabacchio's addition of a datasheet)
This device operates at 1.8V, the STM32 at 3.3V. You'll want to control a 1.8V LDO with the PNP/MOSFET, or even betterYou can use an LDO with an enable input and control that from your microcontroller. No transistor needed. (Thanks for the suggestion, markrages.) You'll also need level shifters for the data.

You don't want to do that! You'd configure the pin as output and make it high to provide power to the GPS receiver, but microcontrollers I/Os can only supply limited current, 25mA for the STM32F205xx (page 62 of the datasheet), which will be too low for powering your (and any other) GPS receiver (34 to 38 mA, as stated in the datasheet)

Use the I/O pin to drive a PNP transistor which will supply the required current.

enter image description here

Note that using a PNP inverses your logic: a logic low will turn the receiver on.

edit
Wouter would use a MOSFET instead of a BJT, and that's a good alternative. Just make sure you choose a logic-level FET, which will give you enough current at a \$V_{GS}\$ of -3.3V. The Rohm RZE002P02 is a suitable type. It will also have a lower voltage drop if your receiver needs less than about 200mA.

edit 2 (re clabacchio's addition of a datasheet)
This device operates at 1.8V, the STM32 at 3.3V. You'll want to control a 1.8V LDO with the PNP/MOSFET, or even better use an LDO with an enable input and control that from your microcontroller. No transistor needed. (Thanks for the suggestion, markrages.) You'll also need level shifters for the data.

Note:
This answer was originally written before we knew anything about the receiver, like its 1.8V power supply. Telaclavo's answer is good. As a more general answer the PNP/MOSFET solution remains; you don't want to power parts of your circuit from a microcontroller's I/O pin.

You don't want to do that! You'd configure the pin as output and make it high to provide power to the GPS receiver, but microcontrollers I/Os can only supply limited current, 25mA for the STM32F205xx (page 62 of the datasheet), which will be too low for powering your (and any other) GPS receiver (34 to 38 mA, as stated in the datasheet)

Use the I/O pin to drive a PNP transistor which will supply the required current.

enter image description here

Note that using a PNP inverses your logic: a logic low will turn the receiver on.

I would not use an NPN for this. In common emitter it would mean that the receiver's ground is a few hundred mV above ground, and a circuit should have one single ground which is the same for every component. In common collector you would lose too much of your 3.3V power supply.

edit
Wouter would use a MOSFET instead of a BJT, and that's a good alternative. Just make sure you choose a logic-level FET, which will give you enough current at a \$V_{GS}\$ of -3.3V. The Rohm RZE002P02 is a suitable type. It will also have a lower voltage drop if your receiver needs less than about 200mA.

edit 2 (re clabacchio's addition of a datasheet)
This device operates at 1.8V, the STM32 at 3.3V. You can use an LDO with an enable input and control that from your microcontroller. No transistor needed. (Thanks for the suggestion, markrages.) You'll also need level shifters for the data.

more common LDO

Source Link

edited Apr 27, 2012 at 13:34

stevenvh

147.3k
21
465
672

You don't want to do that! You'd configure the pin as output and make it high to provide power to the GPS receiver, but microcontrollers I/Os can only supply limited current, 25mA for the STM32F205xx (page 62 of the datasheet), which will be too low for powering your (and any other) GPS receiver (34 to 38 mA, as stated in the datasheet)

Use the I/O pin to drive a PNP transistor which will supply the required current.

enter image description here

Note that using a PNP inverses your logic: a logic low will turn the receiver on.

edit
Wouter would use a MOSFET instead of a BJT, and that's a good alternative. Just make sure you choose a logic-level FET, which will give you enough current at a \$V_{GS}\$ of -3.3V. The Rohm RZE002P02 is a suitable type. It will also have a lower voltage drop if your receiver needs less than about 200mA.

edit 2 (re clabacchio's addition of a datasheet)
This device operates at 1.8V, the STM32 at 3.3V. You'll want to control a 1.8V LDO with the PNP/MOSFET, or even better use an LDO with an enable input LDO with an enable input and control that from your microcontroller. No transistor needed. (Thanks for the suggestion, markrages.) You'll also need level shifters for the data.

You don't want to do that! You'd configure the pin as output and make it high to provide power to the GPS receiver, but microcontrollers I/Os can only supply limited current, 25mA for the STM32F205xx (page 62 of the datasheet), which will be too low for powering your (and any other) GPS receiver (34 to 38 mA, as stated in the datasheet)

Use the I/O pin to drive a PNP transistor which will supply the required current.

enter image description here

Note that using a PNP inverses your logic: a logic low will turn the receiver on.

edit
Wouter would use a MOSFET instead of a BJT, and that's a good alternative. Just make sure you choose a logic-level FET, which will give you enough current at a \$V_{GS}\$ of -3.3V. The Rohm RZE002P02 is a suitable type. It will also have a lower voltage drop if your receiver needs less than about 200mA.

edit 2 (re clabacchio's addition of a datasheet)
This device operates at 1.8V, the STM32 at 3.3V. You'll want to control a 1.8V LDO with the PNP/MOSFET, or even better use an LDO with an enable input and control that from your microcontroller. No transistor needed. (Thanks for the suggestion, markrages.) You'll also need level shifters for the data.

You don't want to do that! You'd configure the pin as output and make it high to provide power to the GPS receiver, but microcontrollers I/Os can only supply limited current, 25mA for the STM32F205xx (page 62 of the datasheet), which will be too low for powering your (and any other) GPS receiver (34 to 38 mA, as stated in the datasheet)

Use the I/O pin to drive a PNP transistor which will supply the required current.

enter image description here

Note that using a PNP inverses your logic: a logic low will turn the receiver on.

edit
Wouter would use a MOSFET instead of a BJT, and that's a good alternative. Just make sure you choose a logic-level FET, which will give you enough current at a \$V_{GS}\$ of -3.3V. The Rohm RZE002P02 is a suitable type. It will also have a lower voltage drop if your receiver needs less than about 200mA.

edit 2 (re clabacchio's addition of a datasheet)
This device operates at 1.8V, the STM32 at 3.3V. You'll want to control a 1.8V LDO with the PNP/MOSFET, or even better use an LDO with an enable input and control that from your microcontroller. No transistor needed. (Thanks for the suggestion, markrages.) You'll also need level shifters for the data.