[Tinyos-help] current consumption on MicaZ in tinyos-2.x

[Razvan Musaloiu-E.]

Hi!

I'm trying to verify the current consumption on MicaZ and here are some
results that I would like some feedback. :-)

The first test I did was to tun the Blink application and measure
the current when the leds where off. The result was 0.14mA.

The next test was to change the Scheduler.taskLoop code in
tos/SchedulerBasicP.nc to put the mote in different power saving modes.
The code I used, for entering in Extended Standby mode for example, was:

  command void Scheduler.taskLoop()
  {
    for (;;)
    {
        MCUCR =
          (MCUCR & 0xe3) | 1 << SE | (1 << SM2) | (1 << SM1) | (1 << SM0);

        sei();
        asm volatile ("sleep");
        cli();
    }

The results I got are:
- Idle: 3.94mA
- ADC NR: 1.35mA
- Power Down: 0.13mA
- Power Save: 0.13mA
- Standby: 0.27mA
- Extended Standby: 0.27mA

I performed the measurement using a Extech Multimeter [1] and I waited
till the current stabilized. I power the mote using a 3V power source. The
application I run is an empty one (just one component, MainC).

So my question is: can someone confirm/infirm the above values? :-)

And one more thing: I have a few MicaZ motes burned with some old code (a
monitoring application) that achieves 0.07mA in the sleep mode. I tried to
recompile the application with the current tinyos-1.x and the current
consumption I got is 0.5mA. In the same tinyos-1.x I also run a Blink
application which calls PowerManagement.enable() in the init() and I got
0.14mA.  Does anyone has any idea about what is the cause of the
difference? :P

[1] http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2104750

Have a nice day!
Razvan ME