March 26, 2002
by David Hunt
MAXIM 761
12 volt DC-DC step-up converter.
Capable of supplying 12 volts output with as little as 2 volts input.
| 1 - MAX 761 12V DC-DC converter | 2 - 33 µF capacitor |
| 1 - 1N5817 Schottky diode | 1 - 0.1 µF capacitor |
| 1 - 18µH inductor | Enclosure (2.13" X 1.38" X .58") |
| 1 - 3 Pin Header |
| MAX 761 | 0.6 g |
| 1N5817 diode | 0.5 g |
| 18µH inductor | 0.4 g |
| 33µF capacitor | 1.0 g |
| 33µF capacitor | 1.0 g |
| 0.1µF capacitor | 0.6 g |
| Circuit Board 50mm X 30mm | 3.3 g |
| Enclosure (RS-270-288) | 11.5g |
| 3 Pin Header | 0.5g |
| 10" 2-conductor wire w/terminator | 2.2g |
| TOTAL WEIGHT | 21.6g (0.8 oz.) |
Complete Unit
Assembled Circuit
Solder Side of Printed Circuit Board
ALTERNATE CONSTRUCTION
Over half of the weight could be saved from the total above by eliminating the circuit board and using a enclosure made from heavy paper card stock or sheet plastic like an overhead projector slide. In order to solder the circuit together without a circuit board, first glue the MAX761 to the paper or plastic with the connectors pointed up. Trim the connectors on the other components to a reasonable length and begin soldering according to the schematic. The 3 pin header will need to be replaced with a short 2 conductor wire that terminates with a connector that matches your battery's connector.
Keep the components as compact as possible without any wires touching that shouldn't. The sole purpose of the paper or plastic enclosure is to keep the circuit from shorting out against any metal parts on your camera cradle. If you feel that your enclosure needs some crush resistance, then strategically add some balsa support pieces.