My Cromotor E-Bike Build -> more like a moped

[madin88]

i dug around some and found the 23 pole info somewhere.... that what i was doing wrong,using the 46,not23. (but i used wheel circumference in mm),and now im getting believable speedo.

i believe i have a 10k thermistor already installed in my cromotor from methods. perhaps i can just wire that straight into the max-e pin? although i dont know if it compatable.

You are right, circumference is in mm and not cm. NTC 10k thermistor is supported by latest firmware.

Today i was at home and the weather was nice, so i went out for a short ride (to test acceleration etc.). it was short because i had a crash.
during accelerating i was looking to the display. with the eyes back to the street i see i was riding towards the road bank with a big puddle.
No more chance to pull around because to much speed (60kmh+). I fell to the right and bike and i chafe over the asphalt. I hurt my top lip and my arm..
The wound on my arm is almost not worth to mention, but my lip is swollen big. I would say it could have beed more worse and i had luck.

until now i
- always wear a helmet
- never look to the display anymore while driving fast

 

[izeman]

you know that girls pay lot of money to get such big kissing lips
no joking: glad you wasn't hurt badly and that the nice bike is ok.
btw: weather was nice? i was in linz today and a1 was so foggy that i had to decrease speed below 150

 

[ridethelightning]

lucky your ok!

thanks for the warning. its easy to forget when cought up in figures on display. i have had some near misses with parked cars with my cav3 before , im much more wary now. things can just sneak up on you.

 

[trevc2]

lucky your ok!

thanks for the warning. its easy to forget when cought up in figures on display. i have had some near misses with parked cars with my cav3 before , im much more wary now. things can just sneak up on you.

I think it's important to place the display somewhere it can easily be viewed at a glance too. I see quite a few builds (not this one) where the CA or whatever is mounted somewhere very far from your line of sight. Seems like such a liability as you're inevitably going to want to glance down at the figures.

madin88: Glad you're ok. Think it's time for one of these?

I've been contemplating the same thing given the speeds our bikes can reach. They're motorcycles, but we still address safety issues like they're bicycles

 

[madin88]

you know that girls pay lot of money to get such big kissing lips
no joking: glad you wasn't hurt badly and that the nice bike is ok.
btw: weather was nice? i was in linz today and a1 was so foggy that i had to decrease speed below 150

maybe some girls like it too on man :lol: over night it grew almost twice as big.. I don't know if this is blood or water in there. Does somebody know what it is that normally makes body tissue swallow?
thx. i was riding at my other home. this is near german/czech border and it was sunny till lunch time.
below 150? thats still fast in austria..

madin88: Glad you're ok. Think it's time for one of these?

I've been contemplating the same thing given the speeds our bikes can reach. They're motorcycles, but we still address safety issues like they're bicycles

thx. i have such a full face helmet (the "cover" on the bike front is made from the shield of it), but i didn't wear it. Absolutely my fault.
Yes, e-bikes are silent, light, (which suggests not dangerous), but the speed of many DIY builds is often higher as mopeds out there.

 

[ridethelightning]

hey maddin, did you end up flashing the firmware for 10k thermistor or install new one? how did it work?

i ask because it could cause problems... il ooked on the velomastera .ru site, i think they recommend not to if you can avoid it.

 

[madin88]

hey maddin, did you end up flashing the firmware for 10k thermistor or install new one? how did it work?

i ask because it could cause problems... il ooked on the velomastera .ru site, i think they recommend not to if you can avoid it.

hi, i have no problems with the newest firmware. In some cases controller can hang (for example during THRlimits calibration) - i know this, but i think this also was with older firmware. Aside from this it works well.
i personally always would flash to the newest firmware if this offers me some new features. For example in "RC8" firmware there is a new algorithm for measuring current, lock wheel, motor brake to zero km/h etc..

These controllers are still in beta stadium and we are beta testers. If something does not work or if you notice a bug, tell this Adaptto so they can fix it :wink:

 

[xenodius]

When I tried writing the new firmware to the SD card, the application failed. I formatted it and no dice. Did you run into any troubles flashing the new firmware Madin?

 

[ridethelightning]

i saw somewhere on velomastera .ru that the older type sd cards dont always work......

 

[xenodius]

It's an 8gb SanDisk sdhc... I don't know why it wouldn't work. I'll pm Andrei.

 

[madin88]

When I tried writing the new firmware to the SD card, the application failed. I formatted it and no dice. Did you run into any troubles flashing the new firmware Madin?

there are two tools on the homepage: MaxControllerFlash.rar and RSDWriter.exe

in my case only RSDWriter worked. It has russia menu/buttons, but to me it was self explaining:

1. choose usb device sd card in first drop down menu (at my computer it was listed automatically if sd card was inserted)
2. choose firmware in second drop down menu
3. click the lower button on the right to start flash

put sd card in controller, power it on and follow the instructions on display

 

[ridethelightning]

thanks for posting that madin. it will be handy in future.

 

[xenodius]

Okay, I'll try using the other utility when I get home- I thought the one I used was English buttons, but otherwise as you described. Except it did nothing when I tried to flash the SD.

 

[madin88]

Okay, I'll try using the other utility when I get home- I thought the one I used was English buttons, but otherwise as you described. Except it did nothing when I tried to flash the SD.

it was the same in my case. It did nothing when i click on the flash button.

 

[Allex]

How do you find your Konion cells?
How fast can you charge the pack, how many amps can you draw from them(are they getting worm?) and how about regen, ho much current can you put in?
You think they are batter than Samsung 20R?
Oh and also, what about life time of those cells compared to lifepo4, are they aging faster? Heard that lifepo4 can hold for about 10 years and li-ion for 3 years.

 

[madin88]

@ Allex

the Konion VTC4 i ordered from a german dealer.
The faster you charge, the earlier they will get weak. I charge with 7A which is about 0,4C. As far as i know 2C is the max for the VTC4. Max discharge is 15C. There are some graphes here around the forum how this affects lifespan.
On my bike they don't get warm with the average 30Wh/km i have during my rides. Will take a closer look to this in summer :wink:

Konion normally do not need a balancer - this is a big advantage, but i don't know how much the Samsung 20R cells do drift. In general: the more in parallel, the better they mix up and the less the drift. Internal resistance should be about the same as 20R.
The newest Samsung 24R are better than Sony VTC4. According to capacity and c-rate these are currently the best 18650 cells for high power use.

A123 LiFePo4 are a loot more robust than these LiIon cells. They can take hard abuse without shorten their lifespan much. I know this from some RC model builders. They charge those A123 26650M1B in <15min and have still full capacity after lots of cycles. This is awesome. Voltage sag in cold temps is also better.
disadvantage: less energy density

 

[Allex]

Yeah, the 25R looks good here:
http://dampfakkus.de/akkuvergleich.php?akku1=79&akku2=170&akku3=484&akku4=485&akku5=490&akku6=&a=5

 

[madin88]

Yeah, the 25R looks good here:
http://dampfakkus.de/akkuvergleich.php?akku1=79&akku2=170&akku3=484&akku4=485&akku5=490&akku6=&a=5

so this is the proof the 25R are no fake! It would be interesting what de difference is between 24R and 25R.

 

[Allex]

I got this msg from cell_man, he build packs with great quality:

"Samsung 24R are not listed as a Samsung product, I buy from official sources, they are not available or even listed as an available product, maybe they were pre-production samples or something. The new 25R cell are being released soon, I am trying to get some, but do not have any firm dates on when I will have them. "

 

[madin88]

are you know this "exhaust sound generator": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqpcBpSsj1A
its a toy for kids, but i think this will make riding on crowded streets or in case of jaywalker more safe.
cost about 20€
buy or not? :lol:

 

[Allex]

Better make it electric all the way!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YM-0xr2lGAY

 

[ridethelightning]

hey madin
did you end up charging through your controller?

i managed to charge at 200w or so but above that the cap and inductor got very hot

i used the components recommended in the manual diagram, but they dont seem beefy enough, unless im doing something wrong.

 

[madin88]

No, i never used this option. i only charge direct into the battery (controller is off).
Did you use the parts from adaptto or did you fabricate your own coil/cap for charging?

 

[Allex]

The coil, motor and controller will be hot if your power supply is 12V rated
You need to have 24V on your PSU or more to be able to charge fast and without heat.

2Amps to the battery, that will take forever

 

[ridethelightning]

thanks guys

i have 2x12v psu in series for 24v 50A max(wired by ecross)

i tested with meter at time of charge and indeed had 25v supply.(indeed running 7A, set by controller)



i fabricated my own charge choke but strictly followed the adaptto manual for this.

capacitor rated ,470uf-1000uf rated greater than supply voltage rating (i use 400v,470uf)
inductor rated 15uh-30uh rated greater then suppluy current rating (30A 22uh)

(as in range specified by adaptto.)

still, above 7A supply current, the solder joints melted of the large cap

2Amps to the battery, that will take forever

yes indeed the display indicated between 4-5hours from half charge

i had previously blown up a smaller cap, 36v,1000uf, doing this but it was also supposed to be within recomended values. so as a newb to electronics, you can imagine i might think im doing something wrong!

i have just ordered a small choke from Andrey, good for 30a charging, but would still very much like to understand whats going on here.
your advice much appreciated