99 EZ GO txt ITS testing

[radioman]

It helps to have 45 or more years experience in electronics troubleshooting electric golf carts and sometimes that is not enough.

[JohnnieB]

Originally Posted by radioman

It helps to have 45 or more years experience in electronics troubleshooting electric golf carts and sometimes that is not enough.

You've got that right.

[Knothead]

Originally Posted by radioman

It helps to have 45 or more years experience in electronics troubleshooting electric golf carts and sometimes that is not enough.

BGW members don't need all that much experience.....we've got JohnnyB!!

[radioman]

Originally Posted by Knothead

BGW members don't need all that much experience.....we've got JohnnyB!!

It is good to have knowledgeable people that will help others with problems. JohnnyB is the best.

[Knothead]

Originally Posted by radioman

It is good to have knowledgeable people that will help others with problems. JohnnyB is the best.

I agree! There are several guys on here that are knowledgeable, & are nice enough to help others with problems, oftentimes repeating information a lot, that they could otherwise say "use the Search feature"......

This site has been VERY helpful (& entertaining!) to me.....

[radioman]

I am new to all this. I stumbled across this site looking for help with a suspect ITS problem. I have shared the information I found with the ITS as a result.

[Knothead]

Originally Posted by radioman

I am new to all this. I stumbled across this site looking for help with a suspect ITS problem. I have shared the information I found with the ITS as a result.

I have a feeling that if you stick around, you might be able to add some valuable electronics info to this site!

[JohnnieB]

Originally Posted by radioman

I am new to all this. I stumbled across this site looking for help with a suspect ITS problem. I have shared the information I found with the ITS as a result.

I'm relatively new to this also. I'm not a golfer, but had seen golf carts being used as NEVs (Neighborhood Electric Vehicle) and other roles, so we decided to get one for picking up a few items at the store and going places that were too far for us (senior citizens with bad legs) to walk and impractical to take a car. We quickly discovered that riding around on the cart was a lot of fun and found many practical uses for it as well.

I stumbled onto this site about two and a half years ago and have learned a lot about what make electric carts tick from it. And I am still learning. Having some prior knowledge and understanding of the technical stuff helps, but even though an electric cart is a relatively simple and straightforward system to me, there is a lot more to it than meets the eye initially.

There are still a lot of mysteries to be solved and with your help, maybe they will be. The ITS is an example of this.

To the best of my knowledge, nobody on the forum knows exactly how the ITS works or how to bench test the sensor. Thanks to you we now know it isn't just a simple coil of wire and thanks to the guy that broke one open, we know there is a PC board hidden inside the sensor. Also thanks to you having an O'scope and looking at the sensor input/output while in operation, we are pretty sure it works on DC. While we may never find out precisely how they work, with a little experimenting, somebody may figure out an easy way to determine if they are good or bad when they aren't installed in the cart.

Having shed blood for the USA, I hate to say it, but this forum operates somewhat akin to the slogan popularized by Karl Marx in 1875: "From each according to his ability, to each according to his need"

Many people come here with questions about things they do not know and end up answering questions about things they do know. We've all got skills and knowledge about something or other and it is surprising how much of it applies directly and indirectly to golf carts.


Glad to have you on-board.

[JohnnieB]

Originally Posted by JohnnieB

..............To the best of my knowledge, nobody on the forum knows exactly how the ITS works or how to bench test the sensor. Thanks to you we now know it isn't just a simple coil of wire and thanks to the guy that broke one open, we know there is a PC board hidden inside the sensor. Also thanks to you having an O'scope and looking at the sensor input/output while in operation, we are pretty sure it works on DC. While we may never find out precisely how they work, with a little experimenting, somebody may figure out an easy way to determine if they are good or bad when they aren't installed in the cart...........

I was wrong - Now we Know!!!

Just opened a box with an ITS sensor in it. (Thanks Tony!!!!!)

Noticed there was a Patent number on it.

Attached is a block diagram and a copy of the patent.

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It is a proximity sensor. Basically the current flow through the input bridge is proportional to the position of the plunger inside the coil.

Looks like feeding it a voltage in the right range through a resistor and measuring the voltage across that resistor as an iron slug is pushed through the coil will tell us if it works or not.

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Looking up patent documents is a backdoor I've used before.

[Knothead]

Amazing! JohnnyB is sneaky, too! Hahahaha