Is it possible (and wise) to use RPi Pico W to control an atomiser which has 5V operating voltage?

Question

I’m working on a project which uses Grove Water Atomiser which has 5V operating voltage. I’ve used it with Arduino nano and it has 3 pins: Vcc (5V), Gnd and a control pin which receives the signal from the controller (high/low) to turn the atomiser on/off.

I was hoping to use this with RPi Pico W as it provides wireless capabilities at a much lower price compared to Arduino nano (£5.40 vs £30) and I can use MicroPython but it only has 3.3V operational voltage. Would I be able to use something like a buck converter to step up the voltage to 5V to power the atomisers?

If it matters, I’m also hoping to use a rechargeable LiPo battery for this further down the line.

If it’s a stupid idea do let me know and I’m open to suggestions for other microcontrollers to use!

Answer 1

You have not specified HOW you intend to connect and the linked article provides insufficient technical details for the input.

It would be possible to connect a Pico OUTPUT to an input. This MAY work but to be sure use a level converter. DO NOT attempt to use a buck converter. They are designed for power NOT signal conversion.

Answer 2

It appears there is a bit of confusion on converters. A buck converter bucks the voltage down only. A boost converter boosts the voltage up only. A SEPIC converter is like a combination of a buck and boost converter all in one. All three typically have the ability to set the output voltage. You can use a 5V power supply and a buck or SEPIC converter to get your 3V3. Run the atomizer from the 5V supply and use a logic level avalanche rated MOSFET to switch the low side (-) terminal of the atomizer. Be careful when choosing the MOSFET the unit must be enhanced (turned on) with a Vgs of 3V or less or it will not work. There are a lot of circuits published showing how to do a low side switch with a MOSFET, just be sure you put a pull down resistor from the port pin to ground then a 50 Ohm resistor to the gate. If you put the pull down on the gate it forms a voltage divider. The source connected to all the grounds except the atomizer, the drain connects to that.