This is from this past year, but I hadn’t written anything down until now.

I often do electronics projects that can’t be easily brought to my workbench. So, I’ll unplug my bench power supply and take it with me. This is usually a mess of cables, and is in general a pain. A portable, battery-powered CC/CV power supply is pretty handy for these cases and can be done pretty cheaply.

I discovered that Riden sells their power supplies in modular form. You can buy the front panel alone, which contains the display, buttons, and step-down converter. Their full units are just the front panel with an off-the-shelf 60V AC/DC converter in an enclosure behind it. So, it’s very easy to pair a Riden front panel with a battery to make a portable power supply.

They have a bunch of models, but I’ve only used the RD6018 (rated for 60V, 18A). I have the full unit, and while I wouldn’t trust it for anything critical, it’s a good workhorse for the price (~$200). The front panel by itself is only $80. You don’t have to supply it with the full 60V either. A 36V or 48V battery will work fine, though the controller only steps the voltage down; it won’t boost you to 60V. I have some salvaged scooter and ebike battery packs, so I use any of those.

The back of the Riden panel has an exposed PCB, so I made a quick 3D-printed enclosure with a vent for the fan. If I used it constantly, I would probably make an enclosure for both the battery and the Riden panel. For now, I just have an XT60 connector coming out of the enclosure.

The 3D print is pretty simple, but the PSU controller snaps in pretty snugly. I’ll link to the part on Thingiverse. I’ve since then realized that I’m not the first person to have this idea, so you might find other designs on Thingiverse that are more suitable for your use.