4th week

During the fourth, week we got the BLDC motor working. We found out that the error was in the twist throttle, so we replaced it with a three wire potentiometer. Also, the green LED on the motor controller was not functional. The reason why we had trouble debugging the motor controller was because we checked if the throttle was working with a multimeter and it gave a voltage, but then later found that the twist was not being sensed on the controller connected to the throttle.

After we got the BLDC motor working, we decided to integrate the wireless and speed control functions from our rapid prototype. We used a joystick connected with the Arduino Uno which was the transmitter and the throttle connected to the Arduino Mega as the receiver.

Then we designed a relay to control the direction of the motor. If the throttle starts off at maximum then the motor will not run, so it should be noted that the the throttle should be set on minimum before starting the motor.

We also 3D printed a box to hold the wireless transmitter.

Next week, we plan on integrating everything onto the bogie.

3rd week

This week we did a presentation on our progress and discussed the next steps from there. We received the parts that we ordered and we followed the simple wiring diagram to test if the motor controller would work. We ended up getting a green flash and then two red flashes on the LED and that was it. If the motor controller is operational then the green led would stay lit, but there was no light at all.

We tested various factors to see what was wrong with the motor controller because it should have some red flashing code but there were no codes at all. When we disconnected the hall sensors the led code for it flashed and when we took the throttle out the led code for that flashed. When everything was connected together, there were no flashing errors that would indicate what was wrong with it. In the manual, if the green is not lit then the problem may be due to no power or the switch was off. We knew that the switch was on so that was probably not the problem and it is likely the power. We checked all the wiring with the multi meter and we guessed that it might be the type of batteries that are used; however, Dr. Furman does not believe that it is the batteries and we also did more research and believe that this should work with the batteries.

The only problem we can think of now is that the motor controller is shorted or faulty. We went on e-bike motor forums and contacted Kellycontroller support to see what was wrong with our wiring. We uploaded pictures and we are waiting for replies. If there is no solution, then we may have to purchase a new motor controller.

Prototyping Week:

Last week, we tested all the functions and parts to see if it was working and this week we integrated everything together to see if we can control the speed of a small stepper motor through a wireless potentiometer. We were able to successfully control the stepper motor wireless, but it was unable to run as fast as when we directly hooked it up from last week. There was a day when the motor did not even run, but the next day we tested it with the same code and wiring and it worked normally. We predict that the driver gets too hot and that it needed time to rest before drawing more voltage which we should keep in mind when we implement it into the final design if we run into unexpected errors. 

We also worked on our bill of materials which consisted of parts that we needed to complete the circuit diagram for the large brushless motor. 

Link for drive containing our BoM labeled as controlsteambom.xlsx :

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1WysY1aOznvRtr32Mrqf4XCdFsG2Rc3vj

We hope that the parts can come by next week, but there is one important part which is the precharge resistor that may come in between 7 to 10 days meaning that if we are lucky we should get it by next Thursday, and if not then we will not be able to test the motor until the fourth week of this program. Until then, we will have the code and everything else ready so that we can swiftly integrate the programs into the circuit with the large motor. 

We connected the motor controller to the computer with a JS232 to usb converter and received two error codes which were related to the hall sensors and voltage. We are still contacting Kelly Controller support team for troubleshooting the motor controller. We have asked them many questions such as the preferred wiring diagram and error codes from the controller. They replied saying the motor controller works best with a pre charged resistor and a main contactor. We ordered these parts and also ordered a fuse, a diode, and a switch. They also told us that the error codes are there because we have to have everything wired before we connect it to the computer. They also said that the motor should not be running when connected to the computer. We are now waiting on the parts to come in so that we can connect the controller for the main wiring diagram.

We also researched how to run a linear actuator with an L298 motor driver and we were able to get it to successfully extend and retract at different speeds. We now need to figure out how to run the actuator at the exact time in which the railways switch. We were thinking of doing this with hall sensors and keeping track of the position on the track. We were also thinking of putting an ultrasonic sensor on the railway which would sense the bogie arriving and send a signal.