TSDZ2/TSDZ2B cooling kits tests

Cooling kits:

Test setup:

Test methodology:

Tests were conducted with a 10A load from a fully charged 48V (13S) battery. The battery power draw hovered around 500W. The power figures dropped with the battery voltage going down during the discharge process. The amperage remained the same and was set at 10A. The original TSDZ2 throttle was used to run the motor at exactly 10A

For testing, we chose two cadence levels (the number of revolutions of the crank per minute). One was 90 revolutions per minute and the other was 60 revolutions per minute 

Each test started with the motor temperature set at 28°C. The floor fan was set to its highest setting and blew directly in the direction of the front of the motor. Power from the battery was cut off when the motor temperature exceeded 70°C. Except for the premium cooling test at 90 cadence. In this test, the motor didn't reach the 70°C. The maximum recorded temperature in this test was 61.2°C. After the power was disconnected, the motor was cooled down to 40°C

In addition, the temperature of the motor side cover was measured. The values have not been added to the graphs but we will include this info in our data review

TSDZ2 cooling test at cadence 60 for a 48V (13S) battery and 10A current:

The blue color shows the unmodified motor results. 

The motor temperature reaches 70°C after 5 minutes and 40 seconds. After cutting the battery power, the temperature continues to rise to reach 75.5°C after 6 minutes and 30 seconds. The temperature of the motor side cover reaches 33°C: 

The power measured on the elite trainer was around 331W. The efficiency is about 65%: 

The red color shows the unmodified motor results with the open source firmware (OSF) version TSDZ2-v20.1C.2-update-2 for VLCD5. 

The motor temperature reaches 70°C after 7 minutes and 45 seconds. After cutting the battery power, the temperature continues to rise to reach 75.6°C after 8 minutes and 37 seconds. The temperature of the motor side cover reaches 33°C: 

Flashing the open source firmware to the motor controller vastly increases the motor efficiency. The power measured on the elite trainer was around 353W. The efficiency is about 70%: 

The yellow color shows the basic cooling modified motor results with the open source firmware (OSF) version TSDZ2-v20.1C.2-update-2 for VLCD5. 

The motor temperature reaches 70°C after 10 minutes and 34 seconds. After cutting the battery power, the temperature continues to rise to reach 70.8°C after 11 minutes and 3 seconds. The temperature of the motor side cover reaches 41°C. Heat transfer and heat capacity have improved significantly when compared to the unmodified version:

The power measured on the elite trainer was around 356W. The efficiency is about 70%: 

The violet color shows the basic cooling modified motor with the additional thermal conductive ring results with the open source firmware (OSF) version TSDZ2-v20.1C.2-update-2 for VLCD5. 

The motor temperature reaches 70°C after 13 minutes. After cutting the battery power, the temperature continues to rise to reach 70.5°C after 13 minutes and 20 seconds. The temperature of the motor side cover reaches 45°C. The thermal ring further improves heat transfer to the motor's cover:

The power measured on the elite trainer was around 355W. The efficiency is about 70%: 

The green color shows the premium cooling modified motor results with the open source firmware (OSF) version TSDZ2-v20.1C.2-update-2 for VLCD5. 

The motor temperature reaches 70.1°C after 20 minutes and 58 seconds. After cutting the battery power, the temperature stays at the same level and doesn't go up. The temperature of the motor side cover reaches 45°C. Motor cover heatsinks significantly improve the motor's heat capacity and increase its cooling efficiency:

The power measured on the elite trainer was around 353W. The efficiency is about 70%: 

TSDZ2 cooling test at cadence 90 for a 48V (13S) battery and 10A current:

The blue color shows the unmodified motor results. 

The motor temperature reaches 70°C after 4 minutes and 58 seconds. After cutting the battery power, the temperature continues to rise to reach 73.8°C after 5 minutes and 53 seconds. The temperature of the motor side cover reaches 33°C. It turns out that the original firmware causes the motor to heat up more at a higher cadence. It is certainly not optimized for higher cadence with the original firmware: 

The power measured on the elite trainer was around 328W. The efficiency is about 64%: 

The red color shows the unmodified motor results with the open source firmware (OSF) version TSDZ2-v20.1C.2-update-2 for VLCD5. 

The motor temperature reaches 70°C after 11 minutes and 7 seconds. After cutting the battery power, the temperature continues to rise to reach 72°C after 11 minutes and 53 seconds. The temperature of the motor side cover reaches 38°C: 

Flashing the open source firmware to the motor controller vastly increases the motor efficiency. Higher cadence also results in better motor efficiency. The power measured on the elite trainer was around 370W. The efficiency is about 73%: 

The yellow color shows the basic cooling modified motor results with the open source firmware (OSF) version TSDZ2-v20.1C.2-update-2 for VLCD5. 

The motor temperature reaches 70°C after 15 minutes and 37 seconds. After cutting the battery power, the temperature continues to rise to reach 70.4°C after 16 minutes and 4 seconds. The temperature of the motor side cover reaches 45°C. Heat transfer and heat capacity have improved significantly when compared to the unmodified version: 

The power measured on the elite trainer was around 372W. The efficiency is about 73%: 

The green color shows the premium cooling modified motor results with the open source firmware (OSF) version TSDZ2-v20.1C.2-update-2 for VLCD5. 

The motor temperature reaches 61.2°C after 35 minutes and 55 seconds. The motor temperature doesn't go up any higher. It stops at that level and never reaches the 70°C. The maximum recorded temperature for this test is 61.2°C. The temperature of the motor side cover reaches 43°C. Motor cover heatsinks significantly improve the motor's heat capacity and increase its cooling efficiency:

The power measured on the elite trainer was around 373W. The efficiency is about 73%: 

Final thoughts:

Open source firmware vastly improves the efficiency of the TSDZ2 motor. A motor without cooling modifications can be easily damaged after running it at higher assistance levels. 

Cadence matters on open source firmware. Riding with a higher cadence improves motor efficiency. You should make sure to make use of the gears on your bike and make sure to keep the cadence high. 

A motor without cooling modifications is only suitable for very light usage on low assistance levels. Riding at higher assistance levels without any cooling modifications can quickly cause motor temperature issues and might lead to motor failure.