Open UpCell from Sikra is a USB Type-C PD single-cell lithium-ion battery management system with either 5 v or 3.3 v outputs, up to 14 v input, and an i2c interface for battery and charge status monitoring. Open UpCell is capable of being a simple, rudimentary inverter for a project, with an up to 15 W output (5 v, 3 A) - enough to power a Raspberry Pi Board or small router. It features Arduino IDE and PlatformIO SDKs using which you can check the battery fuel gauge, charge status, charge voltage selection, and charge current selection.
Its output and i2c voltage are selectable between 3.3 v and 5 v, and the board comes with Seeed Groove (JST-PH) and Stemma QT (JST-XH) 4-pin connectors to enable plug-and-play operation with pre-existing projects. It enables rapid prototyping of battery-dependent projects while keeping things simple from setup to charging. It can be used to power existing Seeed Grove module chains and Adafruit Stemma QT module chains. It can also keep your projects powered and usable off-grid, perfect for some IoT and Edge projects, like an IoT soil sensor cluster or a simple PIR motion detector. Moreover, it is small enough to be concealed in a DIY wearable project.
Key Features
- Safety: Short circuit protection, temperature loop control, input over-voltage protection, input over current protection, overcharge protection, fused input
- 3.3 v and 5 v output options
- STEMMA QT and Seeed Groove connectors for plug and play
- Battery gauge over i2c
- Charge control, status and monitoring over i2c (1.8 v, 3.3 v and 5 v compliant i2c)
- Arduino IDE SDK for i2c communication
- 5 v, 9 v, 12 v USB PD and Fast Charge capable (Up to 14 v or 3 A)
- Compatible with any capacity of Li-Po or 18650 cell, 21600 cell or equivalent lithium chemistry cell (must be single cell)
