Programming the Bafang Middrive BBS01+BBS02

[darth_elevator]

For effective unlimited speed, change your wheel size to make mp/h show as km/h.

I.e. if you have a 26 inch wheel, set it as 16 inch wheel in the display (i.e. 26/1.61 = 16 - 1.61 is also roughly the same ratio as km to miles, as in 26km is 16miles). After making this change, then 25km/h on the display will in actual fact be 25mph in reality. No BBS unit is capable of 50mph, so it's effectively now unlimited (or more accurately, speed limited by max current).

Brilliant! Thank you!

 

[Rusty123]

Getting ready to buy or make a programming cable. Two questions:

1. My BBS01 (36V/350W, from Lectric Cycles) is about one year old, and does not have the green colored plugs that newer versions seem to have. Did the pin configuration change, along with the color?

2. Along the same lines, has Bafang changed the controller firmware such that my older controller is incompatible with the programming software that you're all using?

Russ

 

[bgt]

I see different connections here. Colors like writen here in the quote don't match. Green on this(PL2303TA) adapter is TX. So I guess the white and the green connections should be cross connected?
30-9: update....it works ok like this.

 

[izeman]

colors are not standardized. red/black for vcc/gnd is most common. all others will vary.
and PLEASE refrain from quoting a whole half side long post just to ask a question.

 

[Rusty123]

Getting ready to buy or make a programming cable. Two questions:

1. My BBS01 (36V/350W, from Lectric Cycles) is about one year old, and does not have the green colored plugs that newer versions seem to have. Did the pin configuration change, along with the color?

2. Along the same lines, has Bafang changed the controller firmware such that my older controller is incompatible with the programming software that you're all using?

Russ

After poking around a bit, it seems that I need a "V1" compatible cable. Anybody know where I can find such an animal? The links on this thread seem to point to the "V2" variety (green plug).

Thanks,

Russ

 

[tomjasz]

It should be available from any BBS0X supplier. Many of us just bought an extension cable and used the pexio method. The German supplier some of us used has them but they don't come cheap. Talk to your vendor.

 

[fingret]

I've been using my bbs01 for about 4 months now and had no problems, until now.

I am using only PAS. And sometimes it takes about 2-3 seconds for the motor to start after I begin pedalling? Did someone else have this problem and knows what could be wrong? I did some custom programming but only changed the first tab settings, and on the second tab keep current.

Bike is still usable but kinda annoying that it doesnt work as intended.

 

[Tom L]

On the second tab, what is your startup degree setting set to? Should be low, like 2,3 or 4.

Also what is your Pedal Type set to (top of the tab)?

 

[astmacca]

Been following this thread as i know at some point i will tinker with the BBSO2 i have on the way.

But have been thinking about the actual output from the drive?

48V 500W Drive with a 46.8V 11ah EM3ev battery.

With the "standard" programming current is "limited" to 18A so the max output at PAS9 or full throttle is 18 x 46.8 = 842 Watts when the battery is full.

To get an "actual" max output of 500W once the voltage drops to say 41V, I would drop the current limit to 13 - 14A??

I dont mind pedaling to move the bike. If i reset to 14A wouldn't that give better range on the battery, motor run cooler while still getting the advertised output from the motor?

Would it give problems at the lower PAS levels with cogging since at PAS 2 it would probably only draw 30% or 4A??

 

[fingret]

On the second tab, what is your startup degree setting set to? Should be low, like 2,3 or 4.

Also what is your Pedal Type set to (top of the tab)?

Startup degree is set to 4
Pedal type is DoubleSignal-24

Should be ok?

 

[Tom L]

Yep that seems normal. I'm out of ideas.

 

[pjgold]

On the second tab, what is your startup degree setting set to? Should be low, like 2,3 or 4.

Also what is your Pedal Type set to (top of the tab)?

Startup degree is set to 4
Pedal type is DoubleSignal-24

Should be ok?

What are your Start Current and Slow Start Mode settings or better yet can you post a pic of the settings tab

 

[fingret]

On the second tab, what is your startup degree setting set to? Should be low, like 2,3 or 4.

Also what is your Pedal Type set to (top of the tab)?

Startup degree is set to 4
Pedal type is DoubleSignal-24

Should be ok?

What are your Start Current and Slow Start Mode settings or better yet can you post a pic of the settings tab

I think my problem is now gone. I reprogrammed an old backup of the default settings. Then I changed only limit current % and limit speed % on first tab, and keep current % on the second tab. Now everything seems to be running smoothly again. Dunno what was causing the problem, nor can I post a screenshot since I did not save my settings from before yesterday.

 

[tahustvedt]

My BBS01 behaved like that when I set "Time of stop(x10ms)" to 4. It would stop immediately after I stopped pedaling, but it also needed a higher cadence to start and run. Very annoying in hills.

 

[Avigo]

Im trying to program PAS by current, eg pas 1 drawing 1 amps, pas 2 1.5 amps pas 3 2 amps ...etc etc
I run my middy on 13 S. Has anyone come out with a way to set this up. Linear at starting current of 1 amp.

I have been playing with this setup..huge jump in current...
Pas 1 at 3% throttle 25% draws 0.25 amps
Pas 2 at 4% throttle 25% draws 3.5 amps

TA..

 

[pewee711]

BBS01, 350W, 36V, 26" MTB

The max. cadence (crank rotation) of my system is about 77 RPM (on PAS and throttle).
This is to far to low for me. I have already tried to change the limit changing the following settings:

Basic / Wheel Diameter (set to 17 and also to 28) --> no effect to the cadence
Pedal Assist / Work Mode (set to Undeterminated, 10 , 80) --> no effect to the cadence
Speed Limit is set to 40 km/h

Any ideas..?

Many Thanks in advance...

 

[cycborg]

The max. cadence (crank rotation) of my system is about 77 RPM (on PAS and throttle).
This is to far to low for me

My understanding is that there's no setting that sets this directly, but the best way to fix it indirectly is to jack up the "Keep Current" setting. Apparently this setting determines how much of the current from the Basic page is retained as the RPMs increase. I think Kepler, for example, just ended up setting this at 100% - search for his posts on this thread.

 

[pewee711]

The max. cadence (crank rotation) of my system is about 77 RPM (on PAS and throttle).
This is to far to low for me

My understanding is that there's no setting that sets this directly, but the best way to fix it indirectly is to jack up the "Keep Current" setting. Apparently this setting determines how much of the current from the Basic page is retained as the RPMs increase. I think Kepler, for example, just ended up setting this at 100% - search for his posts on this thread.

Hmmm, tried this as well. No change in max. cadence. Seems to me, this value can´t be changed within the software...

 

[eMax]

Been following this thread as i know at some point i will tinker with the BBSO2 i have on the way.
But have been thinking about the actual output from the drive?
48V 500W Drive with a 46.8V 11ah EM3ev battery.
With the "standard" programming current is "limited" to 18A so the max output at PAS9 or full throttle is 18 x 46.8 = 842 Watts when the battery is full.
To get an "actual" max output of 500W once the voltage drops to say 41V, I would drop the current limit to 13 - 14A??
I dont mind pedaling to move the bike. If i reset to 14A wouldn't that give better range on the battery, motor run cooler while still getting the advertised output from the motor?
Would it give problems at the lower PAS levels with cogging since at PAS 2 it would probably only draw 30% or 4A??

Hi mate, I would leave the current limit where it is but control your range using your PAS level. If you have 9 levels of pas in relatively equal increments 6 or 7 will be drawing around 13-14a. Regarding the cogging I believe this issue can be refined by adjusting the 'start current' from the pedal assist tab. By increasing mine it solved some of the low speed stuttering (I have a Internal Hub Gear not derailleur).

 

[astmacca]

Hi mate, I would leave the current limit where it is but control your range using your PAS level. If you have 9 levels of pas in relatively equal increments 6 or 7 will be drawing around 13-14a. Regarding the cogging I believe this issue can be refined by adjusting the 'start current' from the pedal assist tab. By increasing mine it solved some of the low speed stuttering (I have a Internal Hub Gear not derailleur).

Yeah makes sense. The weird thing is that with the settings the supplier put in, i get a "legal" 250W (5amps) on PAS 2. 500W (11amps) at PAS 5.

18amps actually works out to 842W (46.8 x 18).

I suspect i will not use PAS 9 very often.

Have the bits for a programing cable on the way and will make it a priority to check the Start Current. From what i have read here that should be 30% or less so that the controller doesn't get fried if you grab a handful of throttle from a standing start.

What was yours set at and what did you raise it to??

 

[dtx]

Hey everyone,

long time lurker, first time poster. I have some very, very specific questions about programming the bbs01 and maybe anyone here has enough knowledge to help me out.

I live in germany and have to deal with german law:

250W Max motor
Max speed 25km/h then the motor has to cutt off.
Throttle may only accelerate to 6 km/h without pedaling, then it may only assist you when you are pedalling.

...which is frocking boring... So heres what i want to do about it:

Get a 250W 15A kit and set it in software to 350W 18a. As long as 250W is printed on it nobody will even be able to measure the difference. Also i want to programm it to be street legal on every mode except one, somewhere hidden around level three where there's only the 45km/h hardware max speed limit.

The throttle is a problem. I want to see if it is possible to find a configuration where the throttle cuts off at 6km/h on all levels except the secret one. This is a case that is not exactly intended by the original programmers but depending on how certain settings work i think it might be possible to do. This is what i had in mind:


Set the display maximum speed to 45 km/h. Then use the following settings:

On the basic page, limit the speed on every assist level to 13% of 45km/h (the 6 km/h limit), except on level 2. This will set the maximum speed for the throttle.

On the pedal assist page i keep everything but set a speed limit of 25 km/h no matter what the display says.

On the Throttle Handle page i set it to displays command. This should keep the 6 km/h limit without pedalig on every mode except on the one where it goes too 100% of the 45 km/h set in the display.

Can anyone here test this or knows wether the controller actually does what i think it does? that would be great!

 

[eMax]

Hey everyone,

long time lurker, first time poster. I have some very, very specific questions about programming the bbs01 and maybe anyone here has enough knowledge to help me out.

I live in germany and have to deal with german law:

250W Max motor
Max speed 25km/h then the motor has to cutt off.
Throttle may only accelerate to 6 km/h without pedaling, then it may only assist you when you are pedalling.

...which is frocking boring... So heres what i want to do about it:

Get a 250W 15A kit and set it in software to 350W 18a. As long as 250W is printed on it nobody will even be able to measure the difference. Also i want to programm it to be street legal on every mode except one, somewhere hidden around level three where there's only the 45km/h hardware max speed limit.

The throttle is a problem. I want to see if it is possible to find a configuration where the throttle cuts off at 6km/h on all levels except the secret one. This is a case that is not exactly intended by the original programmers but depending on how certain settings work i think it might be possible to do. This is what i had in mind:


Set the display maximum speed to 45 km/h. Then use the following settings:

On the basic page, limit the speed on every assist level to 13% of 45km/h (the 6 km/h limit), except on level 2. This will set the maximum speed for the throttle.

On the pedal assist page i keep everything but set a speed limit of 25 km/h no matter what the display says.

On the Throttle Handle page i set it to displays command. This should keep the 6 km/h limit without pedalig on every mode except on the one where it goes too 100% of the 45 km/h set in the display.

Can anyone here test this or knows wether the controller actually does what i think it does? that would be great!

You should be able to up the Limit Current (A) on your unit to 18 no problem.

Your problem is a little difficult regarding throttle.To assign the throttle to a low speed is OK. You will need to set the 'throttle mode' to current then set it to a lower designated assist level (between 10% and 20% limit most likely).

Regarding the 'secret mode' this is easy also, just set one mode to 100% limit current, 100% limit speed for maximum power in that mode, as you have done in the image. However, as the throttle is assigned to a level with a lower 'limit current' value the throttle will not have much effect in this secret setting. At this stage there is no way to change the behavior of the throttle in each PAS level independently unfortunately.

Someone else may have other ideas or parameters which may make your situation work, good luck and welcome

 

[dtx]

hey eMax,

thanks for your input!

At this stage there is no way to change the behavior of the throttle in each PAS level independently unfortunately.

Does that mean that the "By Displays command" setting under throttle handle -> designated assist not work? Or does it work different than i think it does? I was hoping to give the pedal assist a speed limit independent of the display and use the display settings only for the throttle.

Your problem is a little difficult regarding throttle.To assign the throttle to a low speed is OK. You will need to set the 'throttle mode' to current then set it to a lower designated assist level (between 10% and 20% limit most likely).

While that would techinically solve the problem i think the bike would go faster than 6 km/h when used in a speed test device as it woud roll freely, therefore breaking the law. So i have to set the throttle to a speed based limit unfortunatly.

 

[teslanv]

After struggling with My Custom Programming settings, I decided to ask Paul at EM3EV.com how he programs his BBS02 750W motor Controller.

Here was his response:

We currently use the attached settings for the 750W, mostly standard apart from some small adjustments to throttle operation.

The BBS02 controller are very easily damaged with a single bad setting, so for all these guys changing settings, they shouldn’t be expecting warranty replacements on controllers after they have made changes, no matter if they think they have done something reasonable or not. If I’m not mistaken, you wanted PAS set to 100% speed on all settings, which you may think is quite reasonable. In fact it is a terrible idea and cost me thousands of dollars and untold time fixing all the problems that resulted from making a change to our standard settings without fully understanding how the equipment functions and testing the results.

IMO, the PAS settings on the BBS02 kits are not bad, so long as users think about them in a certain way. Forget about assist level, IMO, that is not how it should be viewed. The PAS level should be used to set the pedal cadence. Just because it’s set to 9, does not mean it will pull more power (although it likely will of course), but if you pedal fast enough and hard enough to do much of the work, the kit will not provide much power.

PAS works like a switch on the BBS02. It does not adjust as you pedal faster or slower. When you set the PAS level it fixes the speed and it does not want to rotate at a speed much lower than that, or even accelerate smoothly to that speed. These are the reasons why the PAS settings should be left alone or only slightly adjusted. Most things in the software should be left alone, most of those messing with them are likely doing more harm than good and probably breaking them too.

and upon further prodding, he added:

It was kind of meant as a bit of a message to users in general and those that want to tinker with the settings. I’ve been intending to write up something more detailed and add it to my site on the BBS02 and how to use it, or at least my opinion on how it can be used effectively. The BBS02 controller is not properly protected against over current from what I can tell and the way they do the PAS seems rather basic and limited. The standard software settings seem to me, a way to get a reasonable function and fairly reliable setup, from what is basically a less than perfect controller. Once you start to go into the settings without some idea of how it works and it’s limitations, it is very easy to end up with a badly performing and unreliable unit. The software and hardware is simply not ready for end user changes, it is not ready for dealer usage, unless the dealers have some idea of the possible issues and they tread quite carefully, it is simply too easy to mess it up.

Thanks

Paul

 

[Kepler]

I can understand Paul's point of view and if i purchased a drive off him, would not expect warranty on a failure if I had made unauthorised programming changes.

Cant say I agree with his point of view on the PAS settings though. Having a speed limit of any of the PAS settings makes no sense to me unless you are trying to comply with regional statutory requirements. Having a current limit on each PAS setting doe's however make perfect sense.

Perhaps there is an underlying problem with setting the PAS speed to 100% across the board however 4000Km of testing without issue plus setting up a dozen other bikes the same, again without issue suggests to me that perhaps we don't all need to panic quite yet. Reading between the lines, Paul is suggesting the controller has poor current control capabilities. That may well be the case and certainly there are settings within the drive that I believe could cause damage if adjusted incorrectly. Personally though, I don't think 100% on speed PAS across the board is one of them.