Infineon controller stopped reacting to throttle input.

[elt93]

Hi Guys,
I have an Infineon 40A 12fet controller, a 14s battery and a MAC Motor. Yesterday I plugged and unplugged the throttle pin from the controller in the adaptor/connector to play with my arduino and check some throttle control loops. I then went back to the original configuration and connected back the original pins between the throttle and the controller. After driving the bike for maybe 500m, it just suddenly stopped reacting to throttle inputs. Everything on the Cycle Analyst seems to work fine, but there is zero reaction to me twisting the throttle. I checked the throttle signal voltage and it is fine just as before.
Would anyone be able to help me on how to handle this issue?
Thank you for your help!

 

[elt93]

I literally just opened the controller, measured a few voltages, put it back together and it worked again. No idea why! If anyone has a clue so I could understand it would be very helpful!

 

[hedsik]

My guess would be the plug

 

[elt93]

As soon as I went for a ride after my last message, although everything was working perfectly under no load (raising the back wheel), after 10 meters of accelerating, same thing the motor just stopped responding to throttle inputs...

 

[elt93]

Sorted it out if someone has a similar problem: there was a fault in the ebrake system which activated randomly and cutoff the power to the motor.

 

[Skrzypas]

I had similar thing when my battery circuit unsoldered itself. It had only a single point contact, so when I got on the bike, not more than maybe 1A was flowing. This gave very little power to the wheel. After lifting the wheel it was rotating with ca. 50% normal speed.

Repairing the bad solder helped in my case.

 

[jerome_speedy]

Hello all,
I'm hijacking this thread to ask my own question:

I bought a supposed-to-be infineon controller from West Coast cycles electric bikes, when they were selling parts a few years ago.
After using it in a 19s configuration (battery voltage close to 80V when full) for some time, now the controller refuses to work.
I connected a working battery, a working BLDC hub motor (Nine continent 1000W+), the controller and a working throttle, but nothing happens when I push the throttle (not even a buzz like when the hall configuration is wrong).
The controller definitely outputs 5V on its throttle connector, which can be seen on the brake connector as well. However, when the throttle is plugged into the controller, the signal line stays at 0.75V, no matter what. I opened the controller to inspect anything, the mosfets seem to be fine, nothing looks or smells burnt.

Anyone has an idea ? Thanks

 

[neptronix]

I don't know about diagnosing the throttle electrically, i've always just had a spare/duplicate of everything. Try another throttle?

Infineon controllers will fail to start when they sense hall problems. That's the least obvious problem you could have. What condition is the motor in? is it old? if old, any rust inside?

 

[TommyCat]

I don't know about diagnosing the throttle electrically

To this point…

I would recommend verifying the throttle output, as your description would indicate a bad throttle.

Here is a link to easy throttle testing…
Throttle Testing Guide - ElectricScooterParts.com

And for an in depth look into the fascinating world of hall sensor throttles, see this thread…
Guide to Hall Sensor Throttle operation, testing, and modification. - Electricbike.com Ebike Forum



Regards,
T.C.

 

[jerome_speedy]

I wish the throttle was dead, I wouldn't be here complaining if it was the case. The throttle works fine in another ebike setup. Hence my post.

 

[TommyCat]

A previously working throttle that now appears “stuck”, voltage wise in the home position.

A possible theory would be that the sensor’s magnet is no longer moving with actuation.
Foot throttle, or cable throttle with remote sensor box?


EDIT: Better yet, try this first…
With your throttle connected to the controller as is, just disconnect the signal wire.
And see if variable voltage output is now available at the open ended bare wire…
If voltage is still static or stuck, continue on.


I would do a bench test of this throttle to verify current correct operation and wiring.
Or try another throttle if available to place the problem squarely on the controller/wiring.

 

[jerome_speedy]

OK, I solved my problem, thanks to you guys !

The throttle was perfectly working (it was new, basically) so I almost didn't check it... But then, I got an idea. I have a Cycle Analyst version 3.1 lying around my garage, and I knew the CA offered throttle connectors, where you can check the state of the throttle on-screen (visual indications are always nice). I also thought that the CA could somehow bypass the throttle input on the controller and get my wheel to rotate. So I took an extension cord (a piece of 3 wire cable with a Julet 3 pin connector at the end) for my throttle connector (they sell some on aliexpress) and connected that to the CA throttle connector. I was stumped when I saw the motor not reacting to me moving the throttle and the CA showing no sign of activity on the side of the screen. So I figured maybe the obvious color scheme for this extension cord was not good in this context (Red=5V, Black=GND, Blue=Signal). Long story short, I tried all permutations of the wiring until at some point the wheel was rotating and the CA was showing the normal activity of the thumb throttle. The Good combination was: Red= Signal ; Black = +5V ; Blue= GND (!) I'll mark this down for future reference since I bought quite a few of those Julet extension cords.
I feared there was something wrong inside the controller (for instance the MCU input for throttle was dead), I'm so relieved it was not the case !
I'm so so happy ! My controller is perfectly fine and I'm so eager to get back to put everything back together to have my bike working ! Thank you, thank you for pointing me in the right direction, very very appreciated guys

In the meantime, I ordered replacement controllers on AliEx as a workaround, but I much prefer having my old trusty 3077-based controller working.