# Is there a way to get the current energy consumption?

**URL:** <https://forum.universal-robots.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-get-the-current-energy-consumption/894>\
**Category:** Technical Questions\
**Tags:** electrical\
**Created:** [June 19, 2017, 7:52am UTC](https://forum.universal-robots.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-get-the-current-energy-consumption/894 "2017-06-19T07:52:17Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![anon67492748](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6a8cbe/32.png) [@anon67492748](https://forum.universal-robots.com/u/anon67492748)\
**Post date:** [June 19, 2017, 7:52am UTC](https://forum.universal-robots.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-get-the-current-energy-consumption/894/1 "2017-06-19T07:52:17Z")

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We are planning to use a UR3 in a mobile application and would like to get the current energy consumption. Is there a way to get this value? (or even an information on consumption of controller box and the arm itself?)

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**Author:** ![ajp](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex020/user_avatar/forum.universal-robots.com/ajp/32/471_2.png) [@ajp](https://forum.universal-robots.com/u/ajp)\
**Post date:** [June 19, 2017, 8:21am UTC](https://forum.universal-robots.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-get-the-current-energy-consumption/894/2 "2017-06-19T08:21:35Z")

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Various voltage and current information is available through the RTDE:

[https://www.universal-robots.com/how-tos-and-faqs/how-to/ur-how-tos/real-time-data-exchange-rtde-guide-22229/](https://www.universal-robots.com/how-tos-and-faqs/how-to/ur-how-tos/real-time-data-exchange-rtde-guide-22229/)

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**Author:** ![anon67492748](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6a8cbe/32.png) [@anon67492748](https://forum.universal-robots.com/u/anon67492748)\
**Post date:** [June 19, 2017, 8:36am UTC](https://forum.universal-robots.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-get-the-current-energy-consumption/894/3 "2017-06-19T08:36:21Z")

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perfect. Missed that somehow.

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**Author:** ![anon58250030](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/958977/32.png) [@anon58250030](https://forum.universal-robots.com/u/anon58250030)\
**Post date:** [December 4, 2019, 3:11pm UTC](https://forum.universal-robots.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-get-the-current-energy-consumption/894/4 "2019-12-04T15:11:55Z")

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When looking into the energy consumption of a UR5 robot, we found things in the RTDE data that I just do not understand: “actual\_current” (actual joint current, 48V DC) values seem implausibly high. Correct me if I am wrong, but I believe that their sum should more-or-less match the “actual\_robot\_current” (48V DC again), but in reality, it is 6-8 times higher. It is also higher than what would follow from the power measured on the AC supply. The robot current itself is consistent with our external measurements. Am I misunderstanding something? Does anyone know the reason?

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**Author:** ![anon10725747](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@anon10725747](https://forum.universal-robots.com/u/anon10725747)\
**Post date:** [March 23, 2022, 10:17am UTC](https://forum.universal-robots.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-get-the-current-energy-consumption/894/5 "2022-03-23T10:17:26Z")

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Old post, but in case anyone need the answer.  
Motors are controlled with inverters that convert current and tension, hence sum of motor currents are not equal to actual\_robot\_current