I've been wondering why there are practically no variable voltage chargers for ebikes, all I can find is the Cycle Satiator (Which I admit, seems like a really nice charger, a little pricey, but with no competition, well worth it I suppose). But why are these not common by now?
It seems like it should be easy enough to take your standard DC power supply (ie. a 12v or 24v Meanwell, or similar... so commonly used for powering LED lighting, 3D printers, etc.) and a Boost converter (a quick search came up with this variable voltage and variable current DC boost https://www.aliexpress.com/item/B900W-Input-8-60V-to-10-120V-900W-DC-Converter-High-Precise-LED-Control-Boost-Converter/32662329270.html)... this should be capable of providing a variable charger that could charge a pack to your chosen voltage.
I clearly must be missing something, if it was this easy, I couldn't imagine it not being done more often... So what am I missing?
To be clear, while I might be a bit out of practice, I do hold a degree in electrical engineering, so I'm far from ignorant on the subject. What I am trying to understand is what is special about these Lion chargers. If all it needs to do is provide a constant voltage, and enough amps, that really shouldn't be that hard to accomplish. I could see it might be good to be able to control the output amperage (primarily due to charging slower is supposed to be healthier for the battery)... tho from my understanding, most chargers have a set voltage, and a max amperage, but the reason why devices don't blow up when being charged by a charger that is capable of providing significantly larger amps than it need, is that the device only takes the amps it needs. One of the most basic laws in electronics, Ohm's law, V=I*R explains that a bit... if a voltage is constant from a charger, the amps a device is provided from a charger is dependent on the resistance the device 'produces'. Of course this also explains why providing the wrong voltage to a device is so dangerous. I'm still trying to understand whats so different about the Lion chargers used for ebikes, and the like. In fact, it seems like a charger would be pretty easy... unlike a computer or other complex electrical device that needs a very stable voltage to be able to send accurate electrical signals, it would seem that a very steady voltage wouldn't even be necessary in this case. Of course you want the final charge to be somewhat accurate to what you set, but it seems like it wouldn't matter that much in the process of charging.
Anyway, if anyone can explain what I am missing (preferably someone how actually understands their answer). Like I said, I may be out of practice, but I do hold a degree in Electrical Engineering... and while I don't expect the answer to be in the form of complex differential equations... I will be able to understand a complex/technical answer.
It seems like it should be easy enough to take your standard DC power supply (ie. a 12v or 24v Meanwell, or similar... so commonly used for powering LED lighting, 3D printers, etc.) and a Boost converter (a quick search came up with this variable voltage and variable current DC boost https://www.aliexpress.com/item/B900W-Input-8-60V-to-10-120V-900W-DC-Converter-High-Precise-LED-Control-Boost-Converter/32662329270.html)... this should be capable of providing a variable charger that could charge a pack to your chosen voltage.
I clearly must be missing something, if it was this easy, I couldn't imagine it not being done more often... So what am I missing?
To be clear, while I might be a bit out of practice, I do hold a degree in electrical engineering, so I'm far from ignorant on the subject. What I am trying to understand is what is special about these Lion chargers. If all it needs to do is provide a constant voltage, and enough amps, that really shouldn't be that hard to accomplish. I could see it might be good to be able to control the output amperage (primarily due to charging slower is supposed to be healthier for the battery)... tho from my understanding, most chargers have a set voltage, and a max amperage, but the reason why devices don't blow up when being charged by a charger that is capable of providing significantly larger amps than it need, is that the device only takes the amps it needs. One of the most basic laws in electronics, Ohm's law, V=I*R explains that a bit... if a voltage is constant from a charger, the amps a device is provided from a charger is dependent on the resistance the device 'produces'. Of course this also explains why providing the wrong voltage to a device is so dangerous. I'm still trying to understand whats so different about the Lion chargers used for ebikes, and the like. In fact, it seems like a charger would be pretty easy... unlike a computer or other complex electrical device that needs a very stable voltage to be able to send accurate electrical signals, it would seem that a very steady voltage wouldn't even be necessary in this case. Of course you want the final charge to be somewhat accurate to what you set, but it seems like it wouldn't matter that much in the process of charging.
Anyway, if anyone can explain what I am missing (preferably someone how actually understands their answer). Like I said, I may be out of practice, but I do hold a degree in Electrical Engineering... and while I don't expect the answer to be in the form of complex differential equations... I will be able to understand a complex/technical answer.