Electric Longboard - Motor mount design advise....

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James

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Jun 18, 2015, 6:57:28 AM6/18/15
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Hey Everyone,

I am looking to equip my longboard with a motor as:-
  1. I don't like foot pushing my way up hills
  2. I'm lazy (see point 1)
  3. It's frickin' cool!
Motor mount
My first thought was to go for this sort of design for the motor mount which is then welded to the truck on the board.



but, I like the idea of an easy (toolless) way to disengage the motor to be able to switch back to a normal board (if the battery runs out/on a long downhill section etc). Obviously just taking the belt of would do this but it would not so easy to do with out slacking off the motor which would be a pain if your out an about. 

I can't help thinking there must be a far more unnecessarily complicated and cooler way of doing it ;) - Some lathes I have seen have a lever which takes the tension off the belts so you can swap to different speeds for example - Maybe something like this? Would be even better if belt did not have to come off the board at all??
 
Any ideas???

Thanks,

James

p.s. Don't get the wrong idea - I am a relative novice to skateboarding and spend most of my time chasing after my board after I have jumped of it so you would think sticking a motor on it would not be the best idea......and you would be right! :oD I just can't resist!!!

Stuart Livings

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Jun 18, 2015, 7:00:10 AM6/18/15
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1) Very cool.

2) Over-centre lever on the motor mount to slacken off the belt?

3) You know this is not legal on public roads/pavements, right?

4) Still very cool :D
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Richard Ibbotson

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Jun 18, 2015, 7:05:02 AM6/18/15
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I some sort of centrifugal clutch possible?

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James

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Jun 18, 2015, 7:08:02 AM6/18/15
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On Thursday, 18 June 2015 12:00:10 UTC+1, Stuart wrote:

1) Very cool.
 Indeed!

2) Over-centre lever on the motor mount to slacken off the belt?
 Yes that's the kind of thing - Little bit of a pain to have to take the belt off and carry it around though - I guess I would also need to then "lock" the mount in place after the belt had been removed 

3) You know this is not legal on public roads/pavements, right?
 I had not even considered that.....bummer - On the flip-side I have not intention making this any faster than I would normally go (walking kind of pace) and I always try and be considerate to other when I am out and about so worth the gamble maybe?

Norro

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Jun 18, 2015, 7:10:25 AM6/18/15
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freewheeling gear like on a bike?

James

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Jun 18, 2015, 7:11:44 AM6/18/15
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:) I have no idea and wouldn't know where to start! - but you had me at "centrifugal"!

Do they make small centrifugal clutches (skateboard wheel size)?

James

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Jun 18, 2015, 8:10:49 AM6/18/15
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That's an interesting idea....I guess it would hamper the possibility of having some sort of motor/controller braking (i hear that this is possible with some set ups) but the idea of a quick blast of power and then coasting for while sounds fun.

Do you know of any freewheeling gear designs that wouldn't produce the "clicky" noise when freewheeling?

Andy Noyes

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Jun 18, 2015, 8:45:29 AM6/18/15
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Look at how a car starter motor disengages the pinion from the the flywheel, basically an inertia system with a screw and return spring.

Or as you won't need reverse, just a freewheel would do. There are toothless designs usually with ball bearings rolling on ramps.

James

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Jun 19, 2015, 1:33:15 PM6/19/15
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Thanks for the pointer Andy, food for thought.....

Here is a vid explaining starter motors and how they work for anyone who may be interested:-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITFW2PkqXWw

For the pulleys sizes and belt length etc, does anyone know the best way to calculate this?

Thanks,

James


On Thursday, 18 June 2015 13:45:29 UTC+1, Andy Noyes wrote:
> Look at how a car starter motor disengages the pinion from the the flywheel, basically an inertia system with a screw and return spring.
>
>
> Or as you won't need reverse, just a freewheel would do. There are toothless designs usually with ball bearings rolling on ramps.
>
>
>
>
> On Thursday, 18 June 2015 13:10:49 UTC+1, James wrote:
> That's an interesting idea....I guess it would hamper the possibility of having some sort of motor/controller braking (i hear that this is possible with some set ups) but the idea of a quick blast of power and then coasting for while sounds fun.
>
>
> Do you know of any freewheeling gear designs that wouldn't produce the "clicky" noise when freewheeling?
>
>
> On Thursday, 18 June 2015 12:10:25 UTC+1, Norro wrote:
> freewheeling gear like on a bike?
>
> On Thursday, 18 June 2015 11:57:28 UTC+1, James wrote:
>
> Hey Everyone,
>
>
> I am looking to equip my longboard with a motor as:-
> I don't like foot pushing my way up hills
> I'm lazy (see point 1)
> It's frickin' cool!
> Motor mountMy first thought was to go for this sort of design for the motor mount which is then welded to the truck on the board.

Simon Green

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Jun 19, 2015, 4:23:55 PM6/19/15
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Jon T has a half complete project (just waiting on the ESC I believe) to do this same thing with a mountain board.You should team up :)

Simon


On Thursday, 18 June 2015 11:57:28 UTC+1, James wrote:

James

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Jun 20, 2015, 5:44:11 AM6/20/15
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Perfect! I don't think I have met Jon T yet (apologies if I have Jon!) but a mountain board sounds ace and I would interested in seeing the progress :)

On Friday, 19 June 2015 21:23:55 UTC+1, Simon Green wrote:
> Jon T has a half complete project (just waiting on the ESC I believe) to do this same thing with a mountain board.You should team up :)
>
> Simon
>
> On Thursday, 18 June 2015 11:57:28 UTC+1, James wrote:
>
> Hey Everyone,
>
>
> I am looking to equip my longboard with a motor as:-
> I don't like foot pushing my way up hills
> I'm lazy (see point 1)
> It's frickin' cool!
> Motor mountMy first thought was to go for this sort of design for the motor mount which is then welded to the truck on the board.

Sylvain

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Jun 20, 2015, 4:59:44 PM6/20/15
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Hi James,
I would suggest an anti back rotation spring to link the motor to the pulley, it will do the same job as a freewheeling gear without the noise.
I can explain further if you need more info.

On Thursday, 18 June 2015 11:57:28 UTC+1, James wrote:

Sylvain

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Jun 20, 2015, 5:20:58 PM6/20/15
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I have just checked on my electrical long board, there is no system disengaging the motor from the wheel and it can be used with the motor turned off without too much drag. 
It is mainly due to the inertia of the battery pack which hides the motor magnetic drag.
If the electric phase wires are open when the motor is off (i.e. you do not run it as a generator), the drag may be acceptable.  
I can bring my board to the club if you want to take a look.


On Thursday, 18 June 2015 11:57:28 UTC+1, James wrote:

Andy Noyes

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Jun 20, 2015, 6:41:00 PM6/20/15
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These are tiny and can handle loads of torque: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/321030401650

James

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Jun 22, 2015, 8:41:29 AM6/22/15
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Hi Sylvain - Really interesting to hear the drag is not too bad with the motor still engaged - I would love to see your board and chat more, when are you next down the lab?

Thanks for the link Andy - I think I will buy a couple to play about with (even if I don't end up using them) :)

James

Sylvain

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Jun 22, 2015, 5:19:38 PM6/22/15
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I can bring the board on Wednesday, it is functional, I just need to find the bluetooth hand control


On Thursday, 18 June 2015 11:57:28 UTC+1, James wrote:

James

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Jun 24, 2015, 5:31:41 AM6/24/15
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Damn - forgot its parents evening tonight so I wont be able to make it - Can you make any other day?

Sylvain

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Jun 24, 2015, 5:06:51 PM6/24/15
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I left the board in the storage room downstairs. You are welcome to play with it.
to run it, just switch on the battery and hand controller.
I'll pick it up next week.


On Thursday, 18 June 2015 11:57:28 UTC+1, James wrote:

James

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Jun 25, 2015, 1:18:23 PM6/25/15
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That's great thanks very much - Looking forward to seeing it.

martinkayak2000

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Jul 1, 2015, 4:51:02 PM7/1/15
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Message for Sylvain 

A young prospective member Farrah  showed a great interest in the design of your electric skateboard Sylvain, She is interested in making one and may like to borrow the board to learn more about it. Her email address is flordn...@gmail.com

 

On Thursday, 18 June 2015 11:57:28 UTC+1, James wrote:

James

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Jul 2, 2015, 5:54:47 AM7/2/15
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Hey Sylvain - Thanks again for bringing your board down. I got a chance to try it last week and it was great fun. Could not believe how loose you have the trucks.....I couldn't even stand on it let alone skate! After tightening them slightly I managed a few laps of the car park without incident. :)

I found the controls interesting. I think I was expecting more of a remote control car sort of thing with gradually increasing power across the range of the trigger but with yours it seemed more of an on/off switch. First pull of the trigger with me on board gave me a slight surprise!

I liked how it was all put together and felt very solid - Also pushing was far easier than I thought it would be.

Gave me lots of ideas for my board....

Cheers,

James 
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