How do torque simulation motor controllers work?
Torque simulation controllers do not control torque
In recent times, there has been a surge in the marketing of motor controllers as torque simulation controllers. This led me to assume that these controllers control the motor torque rather than its speed. However, this turned out to be false, I discovered that these controllers merely regulate the motor voltage, just like regular motor controllers.
Torque simulation controllers do not control torque
Further examination revealed that the torque simulation is achieved by controlling the motor voltage through a combination of the throttle voltage and the cadence, which is the rate at which a cyclist pedals.
The behavior of the torque simulation controller was evaluated using a KT36SVPR-XD15D controller and a 2-speed motor from Xiongda. The motor was mounted on a test bench to facilitate measurements and data collection. The measurements were done with my Bluetooth Watt meter dongle.
On the whole, the results of my measurements indicate a lack of direct feedback from the motor torque. Nevertheless, it appears that the torque simulation controllers are functioning satisfactorily through a clever combination of cadence and throttle control.
Here are the charts I have measured from the torque simulation controllers:
How do torque simulation motor controllers work?
Speed & power vs cadence. Throttle voltage = 0V
Torque simulation motor controllers
Speed & power vs cadence. Throttle voltage = 2.5V
Speed & power vs throttle voltage 0-5V