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Author Topic: How to make a powerful regen lever for your Zero  (Read 10638 times)

Nuts n Volts

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Re: How to make a powerful regen lever for your Zero
« Reply #15 on: March 05, 2015, 01:13:05 AM »

Ok so 10V will most likely fry a 5V transducer.  I suppose it is most likely just a strain gauge setup on some sort of diaphragm so overvoltage could quite easily damage it.  I'm going to try a 5V regulator from radioshack and tap the throttle line 10V.  I want something that I can wire right into the harness
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Burton

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Re: How to make a powerful regen lever for your Zero
« Reply #16 on: March 05, 2015, 01:49:09 AM »

Yes 10v will fry your 5v transducer ;)

Also I think you have remap your throttle high / low voltage I you tap into the throttle 10v source. This is why I instead used the pin 28 24vdc power source :D

Most 5v regulators can accept more than 10v in, mine I think accepts from 10-30 v dc for example. Just have to hunt around or them online.

Also have you pre-fitted the clutch on your bike to ensure the transducer doesn't bump anything? This was a problem on mine when I had it pointing straight down as well but my handlebars have been cut down to size. I know you have a different "tank" then we do ;)
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Nuts n Volts

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Re: How to make a powerful regen lever for your Zero
« Reply #17 on: March 05, 2015, 07:48:37 AM »

Yea I think I am going to tap the 24V CAN line with a 5V linear regulator.  I can just solder it inline and heat shrink it into the harness. 

And you called it, the master cylinder doesnt fit on my bike.  The unit, even without transducer, hits my headlight and the bodywork  :(  So I need to order a smaller master cylinder, one that matches my right hand lever better.  This should be able to fit.  My issue is that I have a race fairing and clip ons on my bike.  Greatly limits the clearances.  Itll be a week now before I have regen  :-\

If anyone needs a master cylinder and lever let me know.  I can include the transducer as well if necessary
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Burton

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Re: How to make a powerful regen lever for your Zero
« Reply #18 on: March 17, 2015, 05:26:44 AM »

These settings look right per your suggestions dgh853?

Quote
  sevnoregspeed   - Prevent Regen At High Speed :  No was (Yes)
  sevmaxregrpm    - Max Regen RPM               : 6000 rpm (was 4500)

  sevnoregfull    - Prevent Regen When Full     :  Yes
  sevmaxregv      - Max Regen Cell Voltage      : 4160 mV

  sevmaxchgcur    - Sevcon Max Batt Chg Amps    :  -90 A per brick (was -20 A) [set at -90A at sevcon to]
  sevmaxdischgcur - Sevcon Max Batt Dischg Amps :  250 A per brick

Just an FYI for anyone interested to know. My transducer died, the low voltage creeped up over time till it was no longer responsive despite setting the lower voltage before each ride via the sevcon. So I purchased the same style but 300 psi. Using the same clutch as before the max voltage was 4.8 which is equivalent of  288psi with the z14r clutch setup.

I have my sevcon set for 15% on eco of 40Nm and sport is set to 100%, this gives me -30ft/lbs when in full regen mode. I have not tested anything greater yet. From my calculations dgh853 your actual Nm is 43.2Nm or 31.8 Ft/lbs (72Nm *.6)

This all seem right?
« Last Edit: March 17, 2015, 05:45:28 AM by Burton »
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Burton

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Re: How to make a powerful regen lever for your Zero
« Reply #19 on: March 17, 2015, 06:18:41 PM »

After talking with Terry last night we came to the conclusion the base Max Regen Cell voltage technically could come up some, and the -90A per brick is over 1C per brick.

This morning I set the Amps per brick back down to -20, despite knowing it can go up to ~25A to see what effect if any it would have. I left the cell voltage where it was as I am not pressed to have a little extra voltage sitting around.

The highest value ft/lbs I noticed coming into work was -36, so I suspect I could go a full 40 under the right conditions but I will keep an eye on it to see if this is the "max" I can reach with these settings.

Regen at high speed, at least on one test, produced -20 ft/lbs which felt a lot better than the capped -9 I was getting previous to changing the max regen rpm and the high speed regen setting. The new lever has slightly better range than the last one but the change wasn't too noticeable.

More testing to follow.
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evtricity

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Re: How to make a powerful regen lever for your Zero
« Reply #20 on: March 21, 2015, 05:04:46 PM »

These settings look right per your suggestions dgh853?

Quote
  sevnoregspeed   - Prevent Regen At High Speed :  No was (Yes)
  sevmaxregrpm    - Max Regen RPM               : 6000 rpm (was 4500)

  sevnoregfull    - Prevent Regen When Full     :  Yes
  sevmaxregv      - Max Regen Cell Voltage      : 4160 mV

  sevmaxchgcur    - Sevcon Max Batt Chg Amps    :  -90 A per brick (was -20 A) [set at -90A at sevcon to]
  sevmaxdischgcur - Sevcon Max Batt Dischg Amps :  250 A per brick

Just an FYI for anyone interested to know. My transducer died, the low voltage creeped up over time till it was no longer responsive despite setting the lower voltage before each ride via the sevcon. So I purchased the same style but 300 psi. Using the same clutch as before the max voltage was 4.8 which is equivalent of  288psi with the z14r clutch setup.

I have my sevcon set for 15% on eco of 40Nm and sport is set to 100%, this gives me -30ft/lbs when in full regen mode. I have not tested anything greater yet. From my calculations dgh853 your actual Nm is 43.2Nm or 31.8 Ft/lbs (72Nm *.6)

This all seem right?

Burton,

The MBB regen at high speed and max rpm adjustments are right. I didn't change any of the other settings for regen on the MBB you listed. By changing the RPDO on the Sevcon controller to ignore any limit coming from the MBB or BMS (hint: delete the existing charge limit and use a dummy 16-bit value in its place) you can set a higher charge rate - beyond the stock 91A limit and above the 1C rating or 100A for a standard 4 x 25A brick setup. I understand from someone familiar with the Zero batteries that running over 1C is no problem if you're only doing it for short periods (seconds rather than minutes).
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Nuts n Volts

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Re: How to make a powerful regen lever for your Zero
« Reply #21 on: March 23, 2015, 05:10:14 AM »

I have my regen lever installed.  I ended up stealing the 24V from the CAN power and ran that to a 5V regulator from radioshack. 

Using the DVT software I am able to see the analog 2 input change from 0-5V when I pull the lever.  Wiring seems to be just fine.  On the "Input/Output" tab, I have also change the analog inputs to "2" and mapped analog signal 2 to "footbrake pot in".  The problem comes in when I try to go to footbrake settings in the "Tree" tab.  I try to change the min and max voltages I get an error.  I attached a picture of the error.

ERROR: cant read "high_limit (2911,1)" 

The other odd thing is that the first field in the footbrake settings shows up as "????". 

Anyone have any tips?  Remember I dont have a Zero, just the motor and controller.



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evtricity

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Re: How to make a powerful regen lever for your Zero
« Reply #22 on: March 23, 2015, 05:26:19 AM »

This is an issue with the DVT software installation. I have one laptop that has this problem and one that works correctly and show the high values and will take the changes. Try installing the DVT Software on another laptop or do a complete reinstall on your existing machine (clear out all directories between uninstall and install).
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Nuts n Volts

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Re: How to make a powerful regen lever for your Zero
« Reply #23 on: March 23, 2015, 07:26:34 AM »

This is an issue with the DVT software installation. I have one laptop that has this problem and one that works correctly and show the high values and will take the changes. Try installing the DVT Software on another laptop or do a complete reinstall on your existing machine (clear out all directories between uninstall and install).

Worked right away!  Thanks for the heads up on this. 

Went for a quick go around the parking lot to try things out and change some settings.  Note I need a good road test before confirming what settings I like best.  Cold tires and smooth concrete dont allow very good rear traction on braking and a bad testbed. 

I tried brake feather out (200RPM to 0RPM) and didnt like it very much on the first go around.  First settings I am going to try on the road:
72Nm braking max torque, 30% max allowable in both eco/sport
Stop regen at 100RPM (I think I want it higher)
1V to 4.2V as active range. 
120A, 117.6V battery limits (with Nissan leaf pack)

There are a few quirks right now, that I want to investigate further.  Like more drag on the bike when in neutral.  And when I pull and release the regen lever at a stop the chain tightens and then releases.   

-Kyle
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Burton

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Re: How to make a powerful regen lever for your Zero
« Reply #24 on: March 23, 2015, 09:04:13 AM »

From my experience is itsnt the software which needs reinstalling but a proper db files. I tried so many versions before realizing this and acquired a working set of db files, and it makes all previous versions work.
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Electric Terry

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Re: How to make a powerful regen lever for your Zero
« Reply #25 on: March 23, 2015, 07:45:45 PM »

This is an issue with the DVT software installation. I have one laptop that has this problem and one that works correctly and show the high values and will take the changes. Try installing the DVT Software on another laptop or do a complete reinstall on your existing machine (clear out all directories between uninstall and install).

There are a few quirks right now, that I want to investigate further.  Like more drag on the bike when in neutral.  And when I pull and release the regen lever at a stop the chain tightens and then releases.   

-Kyle

Well, the regen isn't really a brake as much as it applies negative torque trying not to reverse direction the best it can, so the chain tightening backwards and releasing at a stop sounds perfectly logical to me.   

Try it with your back wheel off the ground.  After using the throttle pull the regen lever fast and hard.  Does the back wheel actually reverse direction slightly before coming to a stop?  If it does don't be worried.  Off the ground mine goes backwards too briefly with my high regen settings.  But never have I ever gone backwards in 50,000 miles of using settings that on the road, or even felt that was happening in the slightest.
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trikester

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Re: How to make a powerful regen lever for your Zero
« Reply #26 on: March 23, 2015, 08:27:07 PM »

Quote
Well, the regen isn't really a brake as much as it applies negative torque trying not to reverse direction the best it can, so the chain tightening backwards and releasing at a stop sounds perfectly logical to me.   

Try it with your back wheel off the ground.  After using the throttle pull the regen lever fast and hard.  Does the back wheel actually reverse direction slightly before coming to a stop?  If it does don't be worried.  Off the ground mine goes backwards too briefly with my high regen settings.  But never have I ever gone backwards in 50,000 miles of using settings that on the road, or even felt that was happening in the slightest.

Since I have a reverse switch on my FX and my e-trike I decided to see if I switched to reverse while coasting down a hill if that would give me regen when I roll on the throttle. Sure enough, I don't get variable regen as I hoped, but it does go into the preset regen until I come to a stop and then it starts backing up. So the only reason we don't go backwards when we apply regen is because it cuts off just before we stop.

BTW - It was Harlan's suggestion that i try this since I had the reverse function. We both hoped I would get throttle variable regen, but no.  :'(

Trikester

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Nuts n Volts

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Re: How to make a powerful regen lever for your Zero
« Reply #27 on: April 06, 2015, 06:04:21 AM »

Wanted to give my experiences so far with the regen lever and my recent software changes.  So far I like having the regen.  My commute is all highway and I basically dont touch the brakes for 30miles straight.  Just letting off the throttle at 75-80mph is enough to slow me down for any traffic that pops up.  However with I am getting 1% of my energy back according to my cycle analyst over that commute.  I would guess 4-5% in city.  The best part is not having to wear my brake pads at all.  I havent been too impressed with the feel thus far but I think I just solved some of the problems.  I see peaks of 5kW braking force so far.

I have been running with 30% of max torque (72Nm) for braking.  Pot voltage range 1V to 4.2V and I was using "curved" characteristic.  The dead zone at the start makes the regen quite jumping and the curved setting made it feel more like an on off switch.  So I changed to 0.75V to 4.5V to spread my range out and I also went to linear.  Ride around the parking lot for a few minutes it feels much better.  smoother and more confidence inspiring.  I also upped the max pull to 45% because I have not felt any rear locking at all with the current settings.

On my next commute I will get a better idea of how the new settings work for me. 

PS I still have a spare ZX10 lever/master cylinder if anyone wants it (didnt fit on my R6).
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RNM

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Re: How to make a powerful regen lever for your Zero
« Reply #28 on: April 06, 2015, 06:10:48 AM »

Nuts n Volts,
Do you a build thread of your bike?
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Nuts n Volts

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Re: How to make a powerful regen lever for your Zero
« Reply #29 on: April 06, 2015, 06:26:20 PM »

Nuts n Volts,
Do you a build thread of your bike?

Not on this forum, but I do have one over on El Moto.  Dont keep it super up to date sadly
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