Fusing the battery connection?

[FighterCat57]

OK, most electronics have fuses, to prevent overload or over current. EVERY FET based amplifier I've worked with has used fuses.

None of the ESC's that I've worked with have fuses or recommend them in their guidelines.

Why not?

Conversely I have read that if battery power is removed while the motor is running it will "damage" the ESC.

Would anyone else surmise that fuses/circuit breakers may help protect from ESC from overload?

It's more than possible to implement heat protection, short protection and overload protection, just as in audio amplifiers, so why aren't ESC's doing the same?

I'm really curious. I would pay quite a bit more for an ESC for the rest assuredness that it will safeguard itself before turning into soggy toast.

[driftah]

well to begin with the fuse would have to be large kinda.....like think of a 200amp wafer fuse for car audio,dont ya wish that could be smaller somehow lol.However Im sure that a smart electrical engineer could work something out for us????????? or just make 400amp escs... that way we have lots of headroom hehe they may be the size of a big mac tho.

[johnmaclean]

OK, most electronics have fuses, to prevent overload or over current. EVERY FET based amplifier I've worked with has used fuses.

None of the ESC's that I've worked with have fuses or recommend them in their guidelines.

Why not?

Conversely I have read that if battery power is removed while the motor is running it will "damage" the ESC.

Would anyone else surmise that fuses/circuit breakers may help protect from ESC from overload?

It's more than possible to implement heat protection, short protection and overload protection, just as in audio amplifiers, so why aren't ESC's doing the same?

I'm really curious. I would pay quite a bit more for an ESC for the rest assuredness that it will safeguard itself before turning into soggy toast.

As an industrial electrician I've wondered the same thing. I work with variable frequency drives and soft starts for three phase motors every day. All of the drives are protected on the supply side with fuses and the motors are protecected by the electronic overload settings programmed in the drive parameters. A faulty motor will not damage the drive.

[johnmaclean]

well to begin with the fuse would have to be large kinda.....like think of a 200amp wafer fuse for car audio,dont ya wish that could be smaller somehow lol.However Im sure that a smart electrical engineer could work something out for us????????? or just make 400amp escs... that way we have lots of headroom hehe they may be the size of a big mac tho.

Yep. . . I expect that size and weight are factors when it comes to fusing but I suspect that ESC manufacturers could include overload parameters in the speed controller themselves. Typical class 10 overoload settings allow for a 600% surge above the motor nameplate full load amps for 10 seconds.

[FighterCat57]

As an industrial electrician I've wondered the same thing. I work with variable frequency drives and soft starts for three phase motors every day. All of the drives are protected on the supply side with fuses and the motors are protecected by the electronic overload settings programmed in the drive parameters. A faulty motor will not damage the drive.

Exactly my point. There is quite a bit of industrial technology readily available that applies directly to FE Boating that just... well. Isn't being applied.

Better technology = less money and more fun.

[driftah]

or somekind of circuit breaker that lets you know to stop...one that is reset capable and possibly replaceable as they wear over useage and lose capability.

[Fluid]

Thermal fuses large enough to do any good suck up a lot of power (relatively) and generate heat - not what you want in a confined boat hull. Many/most ESCs already have over-amp circuits to protect the ESC, but it is the heat not the amps that cause most failures. Yes the heat is caused by amps but running the ESC too long at a 'safe' amperage can destroy it. May ESCs have thermal protection too, but nothing works perfectly. If thermal fuses were practical, the ESC makers would use them and save themselves a lot of trouble.



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[FighterCat57]

Thermal fuses large enough to do any good suck up a lot of power (relatively) and generate heat - not what you want in a confined boat hull. Many/most ESCs already have over-amp circuits to protect the ESC, but it is the heat not the amps that cause most failures. Yes the heat is caused by amps but running the ESC too long at a 'safe' amperage can destroy it. May ESCs have thermal protection too, but nothing works perfectly. If thermal fuses were practical, the ESC makers would use them and save themselves a lot of trouble.



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Electrical fuses and firmware. No heat. Perhaps an on PC card sensor for heat, but firmware to recognize amp usage and adjust accordingly. Solderable cartridge fuses would address weight and help with resistance. You could even expose an exterior start loop and keep it there for easy inspection.

If motor controllers blew up like ours do in commercial applications... heads would roll.

[keithbradley]

My ICE160HV has a programable setting for over current protection. You can chose a set Amperage that the esc will shut down at. I got it wet once and on the logger it showed a current spike then it shut down. I dried it out in a bag of rice and corrosion x'ed it and it worked perfectly. Pretty sure the over current shutoff saved it.

[FighterCat57]

My ICE160HV has a programable setting for over current protection. You can chose a set Amperage that the esc will shut down at. I got it wet once and on the logger it showed a current spike then it shut down. I dried it out in a bag of rice and corrosion x'ed it and it worked perfectly. Pretty sure the over current shutoff saved it.

I really, really need to get one of those. I've been so curious about them.

[Fluid]

I have three ICE controllers (two 100s and one 200 below) and love them. My source at Castle says a marine version in the Spring...? Frankly I couldn't wait and am learning a lot from the logging feature - like how many amps we are REALLY pulling with our setups. No wonder we blow so many ESCs....

So far fan cooling keeps them intact. Yesterday I was running a P Sport Hydro pulling an average of 190 amps and the ESC IR'd at 135F after one mile plus on the big course on a 90F day. The internal temps on these (and I assume most other ESCs) are about 60 degrees higher than the IR gun reading on the outside. The ICE takes it in stride. Plus the BEC works up to 8S (although I haven't tried it past 6S).



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