Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits pens

Re: Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits

thanks for the orders.. yep your drivers shipped andy_con, when the google checkout sent you the email. another batch went out today!

Re: Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits

excellent, many thanks

may order some more very shortly

Re: Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits

I just got mine.
It's so tiny! And really fast shipping, 6 days all the way to Europe!

Ok, so I'm gonna get to build it today, but first I have 2 questions(I don't wanna rush it , and mess everything up)

1. So basically , if I don't solder the high-range thingy , I'll jus be able to have a maximum of 115mA right? So I can just turn the pot all the way and connect it. :-/

2. Before reading the instructions, I thought that I must connect battery to the (+) and (-) connections on the board, and diode to the (+) and (-) on the other side of the board , BUT, after reading this part:

The battery negative (-) connection and the diode - (cathode) connections are continuous.As such , if the battery - is connected to the laser casing aat the battery, and the laser diode cathode is connected to the casing as well , only the diode cathode lead needs to be connected to the driver to complete the circuit for both battery (-) and diode (-) connections.

Click to expand...

I got a little confused.So if it is possible I would like to make the connections using the metal casing of the laser, but I'm not sure.I'll just make a quick diagram and ask someone to please draw the right connections for me. :-/

Re: Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits

good question i also would like a diagram drawn out i have a couple kryton barrels coming with flexdrives and the last thing i want is a few led bluray screw ups anyone care to help on a diagram for switch on his and a diagram for the new kryton with a 803-t set-up :-?

Re: Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits

The battery negative (-) connection and the diode - (cathode) connections are continuous.As such , if the battery - is connected to the laser casing aat the battery, and the laser diode cathode is connected to the casing as well , only the diode cathode lead needs to be connected to the driver to complete the circuit for both battery (-) and diode (-) connections.

Click to expand...

Connect battery + to driver input +

Connect diode + to driver output +

If you are using the phr-803t diode, put a little blob of solder on the negative pin to short it to the case of the diode.

Now as long as the aixiz is connected to the laser case, then you are good to go.

Re: Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits

Yes, I'm using a PHR diode.
So what you're saying is this(diagram).Basicly the (-) to (-) path on the driver is bypassed, but if I connect the to the driver basically the same thing happens right? I mean the battery (-) is directly connected to the diode (-) ,right? :-/ so whether it's bypassed or not , it's the same thing?

Yea, I know how this sounds, asking the same thing in different ways, but I wanna be super-duper-sure.I've been waiting to complete my blu-ray for over a month and all I got is 1 diode.

One more thing, what's the point of soldering the negative pin to the case?

Re: Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits

Oh , I was under the impression that the diode can was also (-)  :-/ Can't I just connect the diode negative pin the the driver and the driver (-) battery connection to the case then?

Edit: like in this diagram

Re: Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits

pretty confusing i used the rubberband tutural and made my diode + to the can i guess it can be configured either way oh i used ryans rckstr drives but have two of Lavas flexdrives coming so this info will be used shortly lol

Re: Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits

You have to connect both the positive and the negative output to the diode. EDIT: I see you alredy did.. Your last picture is a working option, yes. It's just, that it's sometimes easier to get the battery GND from the diode, than establishing a separate connection to the host.


It can be confusing, if you don't understand why it is so.

This is just about the fact, that the driver doesn't care where it gets the battery GND from - the driver GND plane is continuous. You can connect it on either the input or the output side, through the diode, which it already is, if it's a red, or if it's a PHR, then you can add a third wire from the PHR case pin to driver negative output or simply short the PHR can to PHR negative pin (soldering the PHR negative pin and PHR can pin together may be gentler to the diode than covering the entire PHR negative pin with a huge solder blob!). It is enough for the driver, if it is connected to the battery GND on one side only. Which side, doesn't matter.


So:
- Battery (+) to driver input (+)
- Driver output (+) to diode (+)
- Driver output (-) to diode (-) <--- If it's a red, the driver will get battery negative connection here, if it's a PHR, short the diode negative to diode can for the same reason.

This is of course, assuming that the host is metal, and used for battery GND connection, and diode can in full contact to it through the AixiZ module and then the heatsink. It does not hurt however, to make a backup connection fom driver GND to host. Again, doesn't mater if on the input or output side - driver GND goes straight through between in and out! The magic happens between the positive in and positive out..



It's like this: (red means positive - hot)

Re: Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits

Or for example this would also be a working option (just a slight modification of your last pic). Working, but kinda pointless.. Usually it's easier to use the diode for the driver GND, even if you have to short the diode negative to the diode can.


It's just about what's easier for you in your particular host. If the setup allows, you can always simply just connect the ins and outs as you usually would (your last pic), and it will work.

Re: Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits

I have a few questions, the current that was set remains the same at all times, given the batterys can handle it?
I can set the current at 5 V and if I use 2.7 V it would remain the same, right)

Also, what is the best way to set the current? aka how to connect the powersource/batterys and testload without soldering everything down?

Thanks, ArRaY

Re: Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits

Yes, that's what I thought, thanks for clearing it up. So as long as I connect the negative pin to the case pin I don't even have to touch the driver's (-) connections on either side, right? The negative connection will be made through the diode can and metal case directly to the battery.

On another note, all 3 diagrams should work, right? :-/

Re: Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits

ArRaY said:

I have a few questions, the current that was set remains the same at all times, given the batterys can handle it?
I can set the current at 5 V and if I use 2.7 V it would remain the same, right)

Click to expand...

You can not set the current to 5V. That's the voltage. And you can't set the voltage either. You can set the current to 130mA, and the driver will give the diode the precise voltage required for this current to flow.

As long as the battery voltage is between 2.4-5.5, the output current will always remain the same, but the driver will keep adjusting the output voltage slightly, in a way that makes the current always stay the same (constant current). This is because the properties of the diode change slightly as it heats up, and the driver has to reduce the voltage slightly, or the current would climb with heat.

Basically, as long as you give the driver what it needs (a battery in the 2.4-5.5V range - one Li-Ion is perfect), it will always keep the current you set it to through the diode. Even if you swap the blu diode for the red, the driver will just adjust the output voltage down, and the current will still be the same.

ArRaY said:

Also, what is the best way to set the current? aka how to connect the powersource/batterys and testload without soldering everything down?
Thanks, ArRaY

Click to expand...

The best way to connect them is preciselly to solder everything down.

You will have to solder wires to the driver anyway, to connect it to the diode and battery in the host after setting the current. Just use the same wires. The driver to diode connections HAVE to be permanent, or you can kill the diode with interrupting connections, an even the driver would not be happy about it, as it should not be operated without a load - if it is, it will try to reach the set current through air, and boost the voltage as high as it can, potentially damaging itself. The Zener in reverse on the output is supposed to protect it in this case, but it should not be left like that for too long.


If you're just wondering how to connect the driver input wires to the battery tho, either use a battery holder, or if you don't have one, you can just tape the wires to the battery temporarily. It's not optimal, but it's not dangerous either on the input side. Just don't reverse the polarity! There is no onboard protection.

Re: Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits

Switch said:

Yes, that's what I thought, thanks for clearing it up. So as long as I connect the negative pin to the case pin I don't even have to touch the driver's (-) connections on either side, right? The negative connection will be made through the diode can and metal case directly to the battery.

Click to expand...

No! You DO need to connect the driver-GND to battery-GND on at least one side, either the input or the output! Or both! But at least on one side!

If you short the PHR-negative to PHR-can, and solder a wire from the driver-negative-out to PHR-negative pin, this will will establish this driver-GND to battery-GND connection.

But the driver does always need both connections from the battery, and it does need both connections to the diode, however the host is one of the connections, so you can achieve the same thing with just three wires. The fourth "wire" is the host!

Switch said:

On another note, all 3 diagrams should work, right? :-/

Click to expand...

The last three diagrams would all work, yes, but look at them closelly again.

- In your last picture, you simply connected the driver inputs to the battery, and the outputs to the diode. This works. The driver gets both connections from the batteries on the input side. The diode-negative does not have to be shorted to diode-can.
- In my first picture, i tried to explain why there is no need for the driver-GND-in wire, if you connect the driver-GND-out wire to the diode AND to the can <-- cos then the driver gets the battery GND through the diode. But the driver does need the battery GND!
- In my second picture, i modified your last picture a little, showing, that it doesn't matter where you connect the driver GND to the battery GND. Since you already had it connected through the host, i deleted the driver-GND to diode-negative, and shorted the diode-negative to the diode-can.

All three would work, and all three achieve essentially the same thing.

Re: Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits

I think that by "I can set the current at 5 V" he meant setting the current to X mA when the input voltage is 5V and was wondering that if the input voltage changes will the current also change.But you covered that part aswell, the answer is no. :

Anyway, I don't think I'm gonna use a testload I'm just gonna max the pot and run my diode, or is this not recomended for some reason? :-/ I mean, I can only feed it 115mA tops , right?

Re: Lava Micro FlexDrive Driver (lavadrive2) fits

Switch said:

Anyway, I don't think I'm gonna use a testload I'm just gonna max the pot and run my diode, or is this not recomended for some reason? :-/ I mean, I can only feed it 115mA tops , right?

Click to expand...

On the one FlexDrive i used so far, the current in the low range stopped at 110mA. For a PHR, that gives you 90mW +-15mW (on a Kenometer), depending on the diode efficiency (they vary a lot!)

But it could also stop at 100mA or 115mA, because of the component variances.


There are many reasons to test it first. One would be to see if it works, and keeps the current steady. And to know what the current is. Another reason would be, that the pot has no stopper, so there is an area, where it doesn't do much. Also, the flexdrive is somewhat sensitive to WHAT you supply the power to it with. Use a battery with short wires to simulate conditions in a host. If a PSU with long wires is used you need an additional input cap. With some PSUs even the additional cap doesn't help.

For a while this confused me, as i used the same testing setup as for my boost driver, and it never gave me problems before (i have huge filter caps on mine tho, and it operates at a slightly lower frequency). But with the FlexDrive the current just kept changing and the CREE i use for a dummy even blinked under some conditions (if i used an LD, it would now be dead). But after using a battery and short wires instead, it all went to normal.