On Thursday, November 9, 2017 at 6:52:27 PM UTC, Ian Field wrote:
Found a Tianjin Santrol WZKD3615KA power module that was obviously off an
electric bike. Its a potted assembly, so no salvage for my electronics
hobby.

Might end up a waste of time - but I'd like to satisfy my curiosity.

Thanks for any info.

Most common power supplies, if this is indeed a power module component, are 24V and 36V. Given that it is a name neither Muzi nor I have heard, and not on the internet, it is likely to be an OEM-only item. More interesting is the outputs. There is likely to be a 24V or 36V output, and perhaps 6V for lamps, and less likely but possibly a very clean 5.1V for USB charging.

Another possibility is that it is merely (!) a lipo battery charge control module, in which case you want to burn it immediately because it is a very, very dangerous item, causing nasty battery fires and/or explosions if mishandled or faulty. If that is what it is, you need to discover what it was used for before you mess with it.

Most interesting possibility is that it is a control system for an electric bike. The actual motor in a modern electric bike system contributes only about an eighth (a 16th if you count the battery as well) of the selling price but the control systems are much more expensive. A really good one would have a torque sensor, for instance; you don't get one of those "free" on your iPhone! If it has a torque sensor it might be built into the motor casing to be near its sensors, in which case it might like a power module. On my system there are various output programs that can be combined and overlapped. For instance, because I have a 14sp Rohloff gearbox and I use the central electrical motor (8FUN BBS) just to fill in near the tops of hills, or to start from standstill on steep hills, I have reduced the default 9-step output program to only 5 steps. There's also a very useful "walking the bike" program, a light on the display, a large number of reporting modes, etc.

Nor is such a control system tied only to electric motors. My old Di2 Trek has a hub gearbox but no motor; the electronics change gear automatically according to one of the programs and controls the reactions of the suspension (the other way round from the air suspension on a Range Rover) -- see
http://coolmainpress.com/BICYCLINGsmover.html
for more on this very handy system. The road Di2 system is a cut-down, crippled, version of what I have on the Trek.

Andre Jute
Tomorrow's Man OR Whatever happened to that bright technodream?