Calling Electrical Engineers: Can some please build a power switch that actually works?

I really need some help to figure out why things fail, and fail, and fail, regardless of the design.

It seems like more people than I can count tried the torqueboards anti spark switch with bad results, including myself. There was even a thread created about them failing and many many others chimed in to share their experience. I tried multiple myself, some died a day later, some died within seconds of getting hooked up (not shorted).

I thought maybe it was just this design, so I tried @JdogAwesome’s power switch. Everything worked good again for a day and then, same issue. So he found a problem, fixed it, and sent me another one. This one died almost instantly.

With @goldenHusky working on upgrades of the vedder anti-spark switch, I decided to try a 3x direct fet version. All was good for over a month. I used it day in and day out, no issues, until one day, the power switch, a capacitor, and my bluetooth module suddenly blew out at the same time on a steep hill at moderate speed.

So I sent it to the drv wizard, @JohnnyMeduse, to get fixed along with some vescs. Got ti back, and all was good. And now while setting up a new complete with one of my sample decks, before I could even get all of the electronics working (including new motors I’m currently winding), it blew again.

6 power switches, 3 designs, and running everything within specification, and still… Can’t get a power switch that works. And I don’t see anyone publicly working on a solution.

My only option at this point is an xt90 loop key. But an led power switch can drastically change a product like mine, where one of the main goals has been to stream line the board into looking more like a normal longboard.

Are there any engineers in the community who want to take on building a power switch?

If someone wants to build it on their own: great. If someone wants to work with me, we can work out a deal.

The goal though is to get rid of this problem that I and many others have had that really takes away from what builders can create.

Thoughts, comments, and onions are welcomed below!

P.S. Not trying to put either of your 3 on blast. Thank you all for your work on attempting to bring anti spark power switches to the community. I wish we could find the problem, tweak the design, and get rid of the bugs, once and for all.

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Best antispark switch: https://www.amazon.com/XT90-S-Female-Connector-Battery-Charge/dp/B00RVM8U5W/ref=sr_1_1/132-5237862-0097560?ie=UTF8&qid=1520305711&sr=8-1&keywords=xt90s

Never failed anybody who knows how to solder since day one (unless your wire is too long… don’t do that).

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But the guy specifically wants to make an anti-spark switch with the reliability of an XT-90-S loop key…

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Yea right. Burned up the internal resistor and male plug the second I connected them on 13s, half-charged. :triumph: Maybe it depends on where you got them from; mine was from amz too in a pack of 5.

I think the answer is a solid state transformer that automatically removes itself from from the circuit when the optimal amperage load is achieved, but it’s above my pay grade.

As of now I mostly use xt90s loop keys. I use Bestech BMS’s with an E-Switch when I can get them.

This is above my pay grade too.
When you say “solid state transformer,” I think, “If it’s solid state, how does Optimus Prime turn into a truck?”

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That’s caused by running it when it’s not fully, 100% inserted. 99% is not enough

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Before I could even push it in entirely, it burned. No load. :dizzy_face:

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Lol, that’s great :grinning:. I’ve been thinking if a slideing half deck so you could have a short board or a long board by popping a section out and pushing the 2 halve together using some carbon rails, but haven’t had time to anything other than think about it.

Anyways, I was gonna called the Optimus Grind :grinning:

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How much would one be worth to you that didn’t fail?

Maybe the most reliable but not the prettiest either…

I have to sacrifice looks for performance as it is to a greater degree than most want, so I need to balance out with good looking parts where I can. A power switch should be one of them…

Solid state relay

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@b264 10$ :joy:

I think, more importantly, we should look at why they fail. From the looks of the electrical industry, we probably aren’t experienced enough for high power electronics design from esc’s to solid state switch’s. Maybe post how you/others blew switches and pictures so the mistakes get around for people to avoid. :hugs: I have a eswitch I soldered myself with my own hand-picked components from Jameco and they worked fine, for now. Guess I am in luck. :sweat_smile:

you’re, uh, “special”

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This is why the shit fails and we don’t want to help design a better one that costs more.

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Post BOM. Post schematic. =P

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I’m currently studying electrical engineering in university so not a full on engineer yet. But the easiest way to begin to design a reliable anti-spark switch is to figure out what’s causing the existing ones to fail, and why. I’ve personally never used an anti-spark switch, (I have an alternative switch I use) so I’m not to familiar with them, but I am going to take a look at Vedder’s design and BOM to familiarize myself with them. Do you have any idea which components on your switch failed and what caused them to fail?

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fets… even the supower BMS’s with E Switches have trouble fully isolating the voltage ( voltage creeps up - drops when under load when off ) and doesn’t switch back on without momentarily shorting across the fet

I’m not sure what you mean. Do you mean that the voltage across the MOSfets slowly increases during operation, or that when the mosfets are switched off, the voltage slowly increases until they short?

Voltage measured at the output increases to about 33volts under no load. Under load the voltage is dragged down to about 5 volts.