aaa battery to dc adapter

Thread Starter

abc_user

Joined Aug 24, 2011
12
hi,

i have a digital camera that runs on 4 AAA batteries. this thing eats up batteries like anything, 6-7 pics with flash and they are all dead...

anyways, i wanted to use a dc adapter instead of the batteries, so i opened the camera, put in a fresh pack of 4 AAA batteries and measured the voltage at the red and black leads going directly form the battery holder to the pcb and the voltage was little over 6 volts (camera was off). I then turned on the camera and measured the voltage: 4.32 v.

if i use a 6 v adapter will it work? i was thinking of building a small circuit and using a 6 voltage regulator but if the VR is supplying 6 volts constant with the camera on, will it be damaged?

is amperage to be considered? if so, how much?

im new to electronics, any help is appreciated
 

praondevou

Joined Jul 9, 2011
2,942
put in a fresh pack of 4 AAA batteries and measured the voltage at the red and black leads going directly form the battery holder to the pcb and the voltage was little over 6 volts (camera was off). I then turned on the camera and measured the voltage: 4.32 v.
Wow this doesn't look good. For a fresh battery to go so low in voltage there has to be a considerable amount of current... IMO there is either something wrong with the camera or the batteries are cheap/or weren't good anymore.
 

praondevou

Joined Jul 9, 2011
2,942
Can you try to measure the current with the camera ON? Maybe isolate one side of a battery from the battery holder and stick two wires in it and pass them through your multimeter?
 

Thread Starter

abc_user

Joined Aug 24, 2011
12
yup common, there is a huge capacitor in there for the flash i think, maybe that's it. but is it possible we can focus on the issue at hand...the dc adapter

it has already given the dreadful msg, low battery...:(
 

steveb

Joined Jul 3, 2008
2,436
First of all, you can use an AC adaptor no problem. The current supplied by a AAA is relatively small, but your camera is probably asking a lot from them. You may want an adaptor with a 2 Amp capability to be safe, to accomodate the peak draw when taking pictures.

I think the real problem is that you are using the wrong battery type. I don't know what the manufacturer recommended, but typically an alkaline battery is going to be better in that situation. They may call those "Super Heavy Duty", but that is a bit of marketing hype. They are heavy duty compared to a standard carbon battery only.

When you need to take pictures where there is no power available, try the AAA Energizer Lithiums as attached here. They are a lot more expensive, but they will last much longer too.
 

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Thread Starter

abc_user

Joined Aug 24, 2011
12
i have used energizer batteries before (not the lithium one) and they last for about 20-25 pics but they are too expensive for something that is going to last for 30 mins...

i have a 6v / 300mA adapter which is used to recharge and power my panasonic cordless phone(handset uses 2 AAA rechargeable batteries)

can i use that? any advice on the constant 6 v supplied by the voltage regulator(if i use it), should the voltage drop when the device is turned on?
 

Thread Starter

abc_user

Joined Aug 24, 2011
12
Can you try to measure the current with the camera ON? Maybe isolate one side of a battery from the battery holder and stick two wires in it and pass them through your multimeter?
well, i reread this, i did not cut the wire and by pass it through my multi, i just scraped off the plastic insulation...
 

praondevou

Joined Jul 9, 2011
2,942
No, I meant measuring current, so the wire has to be cut and the multimeter put in series.

However, this won't resolve anything, I just wanted to know what the current is.

You can use the wall adapter if you want. Usually if it's not a smps adapter but one with a 50/60 Hz transformer they don't have much regulation, though.
 

Thread Starter

abc_user

Joined Aug 24, 2011
12
well, i striped a usb cable, then + to + and - to - and it works!! i was very hesitant to do this before and as the adapter was 2-3 hours coming, i just went on with it...

the camera also had a mode for pc cam and connected through a micro usb port and would run without batteries as a webcam, but wouldn't shift to other modes while it was connected to the pc...so that's what gave me the idea...

5v from usb but still working...thanks for all the help guys, really appreciate it...
 

Audioguru

Joined Dec 20, 2007
11,248
"Heavy Duty" battery cells (carbon-zinc) were used 50 years ago. They fade away in 6 months if not used. Maybe the store had them for more than 6 months.

Alkaline cells replaced them long ago. They fade away in about 5 years if not used.

Look at the datasheets at www.energizer.com .
Here is a comparison of brand new batteries:
 

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iONic

Joined Nov 16, 2007
1,662
If you but four Alkaline batteries and are not able to take 50 pics with and without flash then I'd buy a new camera. Period!
You can get a 9V adapter and regulate it with a LM7806 (6V Linear regulator), but you'll literally be stuck to your walls inside the house for all your photo needs.
 
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