Electric Car Controller/Battery Question!?
So if I buy a controller now for an electric car, are there any models that will be able to handle higher voltage outputs by future battery advances?
In other words, if I start out with an array of lead-acid batteries and want to switch to lithium ion or some such, will the controller still be able to communicate with the motor properly and not fry?
Also, does this apply to the Zap line of electric vehicles, namely the zaptruck? Thanks!
September 3rd, 2011 at 2:13 am |
It will probably work, but hard to say for sure. You might be better off waiting. Technology is advancing rapidly.
September 3rd, 2011 at 2:55 am |
The weight of the batteries is the problem. It needs to be to travel about 400 miles without a recharge.Well just add more battery and your frame will break.U must solve the battery problem first.
September 3rd, 2011 at 3:52 am |
“Controller’s” may control different things. A typical motor controller in an AC circuit for a fan motor primarily is a safety on the amount of current being drawn by the motor. If too much current is being drawn over time “heaters” melt and disconnect the power. A circuit breaker does the same thing in a shorter time but is reusable. A controller for a automotive motor might be expected to control the speed of the motor and thus the speed of the vehicle.
Controllers for batteries (Also known as a BMS [battery management system] typically regulate the maximum amount of voltage reached when charging a bank of batteries. Some controllers may be adjustable. This is particularly true where their parameters of control are based upon software rather than built into the hardware. Some software may be more easily programmable than others.
On some homemade controllers you only would have to put in a new disk with the program parameters changed. On others you might have to flash an eprom to install new “software.” These are questions you will need to ask as you look at specific controllers. For a better idea you might look over an article where a knowledgeable person has created their own battery controller.
One expample of a do it yourself project is the article below. This owner swiched from one battery set to another. There are many others.
September 3rd, 2011 at 4:13 am |
If you are building your own set of batteries, you will be able to set the voltage of your system using series ties and parallel ties where needed regardless of what technology you use (lead/acid vs. lithium ion).
As another person noted, the issue with electric vehicles is range and charge time. The longest range that I have heard for an all electric vehicles is in the neighborhood of 60 miles. This would be sufficient for a lot of people on days they commute but this effectively means that they would need an extra car for either commuting or for weekend, depending on how you look at it. Companies are currently trying to build a plug in hybrid to meet these requirements.
From a controller standpoint, I would say that it may need a new set of software when the battery pack is switched due to different ideal charge/discharge characteristics between the two types of batteries.
September 3rd, 2011 at 4:37 am |
contact the folks who do conversions. check out EV Canada’s site click on links. EV World and Electrifying times has good reading
September 3rd, 2011 at 5:05 am |
Go here http://www.evdl.org/ and ask that question.
I’m guessing the answer will be “Yes, no problem” … but go there to know for sure.