For the most part, I’ve been able to get by with my setup.\u00a0 The setup is stowing the battery pack, motor controller, watt meter, and boost converter in the pannier bag without any fastening.\u00a0 It’s been treated like luggage for the past 2 years.\u00a0\u00a0 The only issue that I’ve noticed in that time is broken wires, mostly the smaller gauge.\u00a0 Hot glue at the base of the connector heads has helped.<\/p>\n
I liked this setup because I don’t have the hassle if one of the components fails.\u00a0 It doesn’t take much time to replace a part or pull the battery for charging.\u00a0 Recently, I took it a step further and put my battery packs inside soft insulated lunch packs<\/a>.\u00a0 I’m able to carry the packs around easier and they have more protection against moisture.<\/p>\n The downside of the setup is the inside of the bag can become a mess.\u00a0 I spend more time if I want to bypass the boost converter or check my Ah usage.\u00a0 Ideally, these should be controlled and viewable from the handlebar.\u00a0 I plan to move in that direction, but I think the bag mess needs to be addressed before introducing more hardware in the bag.<\/p>\n The bag mess had an adverse effect on the signal and headlight controller board<\/a>.\u00a0 I had so many connectors tangled together, it was easy for one of them to come loose, and they often did.<\/p>\n This is a perfect fit for this quarter.\u00a0 I’ll be compartmentalizing all the electronics into a case, while utilizing connectors to simplify function and serviceability.\u00a0 That’s a long winded way of saying getting it together.<\/p>\n The starting point would be the 2 boost converters and the motor controller.\u00a0 They have mounting point on their heat sinks.\u00a0 The motor controller will need to have additional heat sinking.\u00a0 From that extra heat sink, I would then fasten all the components using standoffs to the casing.\u00a0 I’ve been able to source 2 vendors for the standoffs, Pololu<\/a> and Allied Electronics<\/a>.<\/p>\n With that hardware in place, I could wire them together without the use of connectors.\u00a0 Next in the mix would be the Turnigy watt meter available from Powerwerx<\/a>.\u00a0 Again, I wouldn’t need connectors since the device would attach to the casing using standoffs.\u00a0 The only connector that I would need would be the battery lead.\u00a0 The preferred option would be using a board mounted Anderson Powerpole.\u00a0 Powerwerx<\/a> also provides a mounting wing that clasps to the powerpoles and secures them to the casing.\u00a0 This same solution can be used for the phase lead coming from the controller.\u00a0 This completes the high voltage\/amperage portion of the electronics, now to focus on the low voltage\/signal portion.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" For the most part, I’ve been able to get by with my setup.\u00a0 The setup is stowing the battery pack, motor controller, watt meter, and boost converter in the pannier bag without any fastening.\u00a0 It’s been treated like luggage for the past 2 years.\u00a0\u00a0 The only issue that I’ve noticed in that time is broken wires, mostly the smaller gauge.\u00a0 Hot glue at the base of the connector heads has helped. I liked this setup because I don’t have the…<\/p>\n