PiJuice HAT for battery-powered Pi Zero
Out in Space

© Lead Image © Anton Brand,123RF.com
The Raspberry Pi Zero is a frugal little computer. But without a power socket, you might be surprised how quickly it can drain a battery. Active power management is the order of the day.
A Raspberry Pi Zero (W) can require upwards of 100mA – depending on what it is doing. This may not sound like much at first, but given a standard industrial LiPo cell rated at 2,200mAh, that computer won't even last a day. This makes it all the more important to use the battery's energy sparingly. HATs (Hardware Attached on Top) by PiJuice, which have been around for some time, have the circuitry to help you do this. In this article, we take a look at the PiJuice Zero [1], a pHAT that is optimized for the Raspberry Pi Zero (Figure 1).
Use Cases
But first, let's take a brief look at potential application scenarios for a power management HAT: A Raspberry Pi that is connected to a power outlet but needs to run continuously requires UPS protection (UPS being an uninterruptible power supply). If worst comes to worst, the back-up battery can step in at lightning speed and bridge the gap until the power grid is available again.
A second use case is in normal battery-based operation, for example when the Pi is running far away from civilization. The HAT must supply the board with a stable voltage, even if the battery voltage gradually drops. Ideally, the HAT also measures the charge status and reports it to the Pi. A monitoring program can then shut down the computer in good time, which in turn protects the battery from deep discharge. In both examples, there is also a requirement for sophisticated charging management. Instead of replacing the battery, in the second case a solar panel typically recharges the battery, while the UPS uses the power grid for this task.
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.

News
-
USB4 Maintainer Leaves Intel
Michael Jamet, one of the primary maintainers of USB4 and Thunderbolt drivers, has left Intel, leaving a gaping hole for the Linux community to deal with.
-
Budgie 10.9.3 Now Available
The latest version of this elegant and configurable Linux desktop aligns with changes in Gnome 49.
-
KDE Linux Alpha Available for Daring Users
It's official, KDE Linux has arrived, but it's not quite ready for prime time.
-
AMD Initiates Graphics Driver Updates for Linux Kernel 6.18
This new AMD update focuses on power management, display handling, and hardware support for Radeon GPUs.
-
AerynOS Alpha Release Available
With a choice of several desktop environments, AerynOS 2025.08 is almost ready to be your next operating system.
-
AUR Repository Still Under DDoS Attack
Arch User Repository continues to be under a DDoS attack that has been going on for more than two weeks.
-
RingReaper Malware Poses Danger to Linux Systems
A new kind of malware exploits modern Linux kernels for I/O operations.
-
Happy Birthday, Linux
On August 25, Linux officially turns 34.
-
VirtualBox 7.2 Has Arrived
With early support for Linux kernel 6.17 and other new additions, VirtualBox 7.2 is a must-update for users.
-
Linux Mint 22.2 Beta Available for Testing
Some interesting new additions and improvements are coming to Linux Mint. Check out the Linux Mint 22.2 Beta to give it a test run.