# Help debugging Kelly KD controller



## Guest (Jul 20, 2011)

It seems like this is an OLD controller. I have one just like it except it is the old sepex one. The main Relay on the back is the contactor driver and should check all functions and if they are good then allow the contactors to open. It is the contactor driver. I found on my OLD controller that the contactor driver did not work at all like yours and I just wired it manually so it would turn on the contactor via a switch in the cabin. I wired it up from my DC DC power. It worked just fine after that. Not sure what the deal was with the old Contactor Driver. If it happens to be a NEW controller I'd advise a different controller if you need to have it replaced. 

What do you have your controller connected to? What vehicle and motor and all that good stuff. 

Is your controller an OLD one? Looks real OLD to me. Do you have a proper heat sink attached to the bottom of that controller? If not you need one if you plan on using it.


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## Roy Von Rogers (Mar 21, 2009)

I just looked at the PM KD diagram, it seems that the positive from the battery pack goes to the key switch and from there to one side of the main contactor coil, and the other side of the coil goes to the controller.

It seems that the contactor voltage is the battery pack voltage, I dont see anything on the diagram indicating a 12 volt supply.

Roy


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## flashedarling (Jun 30, 2008)

gottdi is correct in his guess that this is an older controller. It is not old enough to require me to use the old software but it is nearly 3 years old. It is mounted on a solid aluminum plate right now which should act as a heat sink. Although if I can't get it to run it is a moot point. 

As for your questions Roy the manual that came with my old (although new at the time) controller had "alternate wiring diagrams" that indicated I could run the main PWR terminal off of the 24V pin of my battery pack. And it looked like in either configuration the + lead of the main contactor would be connected to the same source as the PWR terminal and the - lead would connect to the RLY terminal on the controller. Applying both 72V and 24V results in the same behavior from the controller. A solid "everything is good" light when the contactor is off and a "3,2" or "3,1" error when the contactor is on. 

Oddly while testing I have seen two behaviors from the RLY terminal. In one case it shares the same voltage as B- (leading to a total voltage of either 72V or 24V across the contactor depending on where I connect PWR). In the other it starts at B- but then increases until the difference between RLY and PWR is held at 2.5V. Sadly neither case is conductive to running the contactor. This is why I took the contactor off of the main circuit and am driving it separately for now.

For further illumination I'm attempting a motorcycle conversion. The controller is connected to (and hopefully will be running) an Agni 95B motor and is using a 0-5K throttle. The battery pack is a LiFePO4 pack with a nominal voltage of 72v and a fully charged voltage of ~80v. The contactor is a Kilovac EV200 series contactor. The controller connects to and updates its settings with no problem from a standard windows XP computer.


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## flashedarling (Jun 30, 2008)

I figured out the issue. The precharge resistor was too large. I followed the instructions in the manual "300 Ohms/ 10 V". So I used a 2400 Ohm power resistor. The problem was the B+ voltage was stabilizing at 12V lower than the battery pack voltage. So when the contactor closed there was a rush of current causing the controller to reset.

I replaced the 2400 Ohm resistor with a 300 Ohm one and the voltage at B+ stabilized at 76V, only a 3V difference from the battery pack. Then when I closed the contactor the smaller jump in voltage didn't bother the controller and it worked! I connected the contactor to a separate 12V battery for the test.

Unfortunately after only 2 minutes in service my contactor let out its magic smoke and died. I am wondering what burned out. Was it due to the 80V across its contacts or was applying the leads directly to a 12V source the wrong thing to do?


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## Guest (Jul 23, 2011)

What contactor are you using? Lets figure that one out first. Mine is a Kilovac 200 and the coil uses 12 volts to activate. The pack voltage through the main contactor points should pose no problem. I am thinking you are having full pack voltage through the coil. If you have a 12 volt coil on your contact switch and you put through the full pack voltage through the coil you will fry the coil. 

So what contact switch are you using?

Pete


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## flashedarling (Jun 30, 2008)

It is entirely possible that it was my fault that the contactor burned out. I was experimenting with it and had the positive terminal loose and the negative terminal to B-. I was about to plug it into the 12V pin to run it when my hand strayed too close to the B+ terminal and a giant spark lept to the lead. It was likely this that caused the initial burnout damage. Even if it continued to work for a few more minutes after I had it appropriately connected to a 12V source.

I've ordered a replacement and I'm going to come up with a slightly better system for triggering the contactor now that I've tested my system.


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## Guest (Jul 23, 2011)

The contactor has two large terminals for pack voltage and two small terminals for the 12 volt coil. The main large terminals are only on the positive cable. Not the pos and neg. It is just a switch in the line. A switch is connected either to pos or neg and not both. The coil is connected to 12 pos and ground. You need a 12 volt switch in the line to turn on and off the contactor. 

Do you have a photo of how you have the contactor connected?


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