WSN 3202 Power Consumption

[edsel456]

Hello,

I'd like some information about the power consumption on a WSN 3202 node.  Specifically, I'd like to know 2 things:

1) The manual says that in router mode, the WSN 3202 consumes 300mW at 24V.  What would it consume at 9V? At 30V?

2) How does the power consumption of a node in router mode change with the number of nodes for which it routes messages?  The manual says 300mW at 24V for one node.  What would the consumption be at 9V for 4 nodes?

Thanks,

-Mat

[Ben-N]

Hey Mat,

To give you a little background, when a WSN is used as a router, the device is continuously on so that it can relay messages from the nodes back to the Gateway.  A very large component of that power consumption is the wireless radio being continuously powered.  Because of this the power consumption of the WSN should be fairly constant regardless of how many nodes it is connected to.  It is likely that the variation in power consumption would be impacted by temperature and operating conditions as much as it is by the number of nodes connected, but you could certainly test this if you wanted to.  That's the best answer I can give you without testing for your second question.

To answer your first question, we don't officially specify the power consumption at various voltages mostly because most applications have 24V power avialable, so that is what is used.  I would suspect that the WSN would require a higher current at lower voltage to maintain the same operating conditions internally, but I can't give you a number.  If you need to have more specific numbers I would encourage you to measure it.  Provide 9V as your power supply and take a current measurement.  A little math and you will have your answer.

I hope this helps.