Main Contactor powered by DC-DC Converter ?

adriftatsea

100 W
Joined
Aug 6, 2014
Messages
123
Location
The South, USA
Hi.
I'm building another 72V AC powered ATV/UTV thing using Nissan Leaf packs and would like to avoid using a 12V battery.

Some setups I've seen use a DC-DC Converter with a switchable 'enable' wire (Sevcon's DC-DC, some Delta-Q chargers, etc) that will turn on the DC-DC converter when pack voltage is applied. The DC-DC converter would then be able to fed 12v to the contactor and thus the controller/motor.

The downside's I've seen is that if the converter dies, you could be stranded without aux power to drive emergency flashers and such. In my application this isn't a problem. The other is to use a toggle switch rated for >72v - I'll be using a properly spec'd sealed Honeywell switch.

Is there any other reason this config is not more prevalent (Grounding, etc)?
 
Back
Top