Review on 💪 Enhanced Performance: HiLetgo BTS7960 Driver Arduino Current - A Perfect Choice for Efficient Motor Control by Dave Brummet

If you read the reviews; You already know that devices have bent pins and overheating issues. However, this review addresses the root causes of fundamental design and manufacturing defects. The header pins will be bent as all blocks are placed directly into an anti-static bag without protection; 80/20 chance of getting a damaged contact pin. More serious are design and manufacturing issues that render the device inoperable and limit its claimed performance. The design uses the BTS7960 chip, a high-performance H-bridge driver. However, the design of the PCB allows for a poor heat transfer mechanism from the pin to the heatsink. The PCB uses multiple vias to transfer heat to the aluminum heatsink. This approach is totally inadequate to get enough current off the chip to operate anywhere near 43A as advertised. To make matters worse, there is no thermal pad under the heatsink to electrically isolate or increase Q flow. Both units were purchased non-operating, with a direct circuit between the motor output terminals. This short was due to the aluminum heatsink being screwed directly onto the exposed PCB vias with no electrical insulating pads. Apparently, the designer intended to use an aluminum heatsink with a thin layer of anodizing to ensure reliable galvanic isolation between the motor outputs (which, most likely, was enough to pass factory tests). This problem can be solved by installing a thermal pad under the heatsink. However, the Q-flow problem is still insufficient to dissipate energy for full-flow operation. Solution: Remove both chips from the board. Punch two square holes in the PCB just below the IC thermal pad. Place copper heat transfer pads on the back of the IC to get the Q-flow through the PCB. Place a silicon insulating pad between the copper pads and the aluminum heatsink. Finally, place the 50mm fan on the threaded standoffs just below the cooling fins using the existing mounting holes on the board. Now the block works as intended.