Powering a Starlink Mini on a Motor bike

Support
1

Hi all, I am mounting a Starlink Mini to the back of a motorbike, on the top of luggage in a case from BeamMeUp Technologies. It is to be used while riding and then for a couple of hours when camping. I will be in remote areas with no mobile coverage.

I have an Anker 220W powerbank that can supply the Mini with power via its USB-C port using the cable from Starlink. I want to also charge the powerbank while the bike is running. The powerbank can accept up to 100W input. I have 12V DC available and am after a device that will take the 12V and output up to 100W via USB-C to charge the powerbank. This charging will only happen while the bike is running. I will have a XH-M609 LVD module to stop power from the bike battery at 11.5V. Should I make that 12V ? The bike typically runs at 13.4-14V DC.
The Anker 220W powerbank should keep the Mini running for 2-4 hours after the bike is stopped, depending on usage.
I did Chat with Core staff -Blayden - earlier and he was concerned about the drain on the bikes system to produce this much power for the charging.
I don’t know enough about the ramifications of such a charging system.
Can anyone help with parts needed to create this charging ability, and any info on what may happen to the bikes battery ?

Thanks, Col.

1 Like
2

Hi Colin

Blayden would be quite right expressing concern.
100W is 8A+. The battery and generator on your bike is probably small compared with a car and the load is increased from earlier days by all the modern electronic aids etc available on the modern motor bike so you would really need to research this a bit.

My first port of call would be the Bike dealers to see what info they have and what they think of your idea.
You will have to go armed with your estimates of requirements to get any realistic response. Add a “fudge factor” don’t stretch everything to limits or you will find yourself at the back of beyond with a bike that won’t start and no outside coms (phone etc).

Your use of Starlink suggests out of the way places and if you interfere with the bikes systems too much or at all you could find unpleasant trouble.

You might think about setting up a schedule with your proposed contacts so Starlink is not on at all times and having a lithium battery and mains charger to recharge this battery while stopped. This would stay away from the bike electrics.
Cheers Bob

Regarding your proposed use of a Power Bank.

Don’y forget the quoted 20000mAhr will probably be AT THE BATTERY (3.7V). Read the fine print. By the time you factor in conversion losses (3.7V to 5V) the capacity will be much less, probably in the region of 14000mAhr. This will also be at the 20hr discharge rate and will reduce as the discharge rate is increased.
Lots of things to consider.

The above capacity was only a guess. Just did the math and allowing a conversion factor of 85% the capacity works out to be 12580mAhr. Lower than I thought.

2 Likes
3

You can charge the Anker powerbank from your bike. Use a 12V to 100W USB-C PD boost converter. Draw will be about 8–9A from the battery. Only charge while engine runs to avoid draining battery. Set the LVD module to 12V for protection. Use proper wire gauge and a 10A fuse. Converter will get warm; ensure ventilation. Rely on powerbank alone when camping. Check battery voltage under full load while riding.

2 Likes
4

Thanks for the thoughts, both of you. I will forge ahead and just measure what is happening once all the parts are in place. If it looks like the system will kill the battery or bikes charging system, I’ll work something else out.

1 Like
5

@Colin114097 you may find the Anker power pack can’t be charged and power the Starlink at the same time.

You would have to disconnect the bike power supply from the Anker power pack to use the Starlink Mini.

See here for the full story;

Cheers :+1:

1 Like
6

Hey there, @Nix.Hard, and welcome to the forum, glad to have you here.

Thanks for linking to that video. It’s always good to see some actual test results in a review.

7

You’re welcome @Jane

Devil’s always in the detail hay…

8

Thanks for the video.
Reading the comments though and it specifies the method that the Anker uses for Passthrough power, essentially whatever you use to charge the Anker with, is what it then supplies. So I’m going to be using a PD with 100W, so that should Passthrough to the Mini and function fine.
The USB power measuring device he had looks really nifty, but for nearly $180, I can live without it. I did get a cable with the LED display and will see what that tells me.

1 Like
9

Looking forward @Colin114097 to more feedback & results.

Maybe Jeffs charging power supply unable to do higher voltage pass through?

Little power meter was on my new tools list till you mentioned the price :hushed_face:

1 Like
10

I just checked and I I found other places selling them for around $150 AUD. Still too much for something I won’t use much, but maybe..:slight_smile:

2 Likes
11

Hi Colin

If you care to Google "USB power meter you will get loads of results and I did not see any that went for any where near $180. More like $20 to $40.

I have a fairly old AT34 which measures 3.7V to 30V but only 4A and has type A connectors. Measures cumulative power (MAhrs) and all sorts of other things. Still a current device, about $20 from Amazon.
The Type A connectors are a bit of a downer ut there are plenty of type C available.
A very useful little device

Cheers Bob

2 Likes
12

Hi Jane
All good I suppose. But what is this bloke doing putting Anker down for having a device that will do exactly what it is designed to do.
Namely: Supply an alternative CHARGING supply for charging other batteries in the absence of mains powered chargers.
I have stressed many times that a Power Bank IS NOT a power supply and there has been much discussion on this subject.

The author apparently fond a device that will do what he wants. Fine, then use it. But don’t rubbish another device that is doing what it is designed to do. There are obviously other devices that DO have PD (PD??? Used to mean “Potential Difference” and I think it still does. Confusing to us old blokes what!!) pass through.

The only thing I can suggest to Colin is he try this device he has but don’t be too disappointed if it does not work. he will just have to find a device that does the job.

I am not familiar with the Starlink power requirements but if it is just 20V @ 5A why bother with this PD business. Why not just a boost converter to jack up the 5 or 12V to 20V and be done with it.

Just don’t forget that 5A @ 20V is 20A @ 5V and 8A+ at 12V plus the conversion losses.
But, I don’t think the Starlink device would need anything like 100W. That video seems to indicate about 13W so estimating 20W should be enough.
Cheers Bob

Edit. Further reading suggests about 45W and up to 60W at start up. I think the 100W mentioned leaves a bit of head room.

2 Likes
13

Hi Colin
A lot more info regarding powering the Starlink Mini here.
Enter this in your search bar

starlink mini power requirements australia

Cheers Bob

1 Like
14

A note about cutoff voltage for drawing from a 12V lead-acid battery or similar chemistry. A voltage of 11.5V or 12V is basically saving the battery from total discharge which can result in battery failure. If the aim is only to draw from the battery while the alternator is running, set it to 13V. When a battery is charged but hasn’t been used for a day, it should settle to a voltage around 12.5 to 12.8V. To actually get a charge into the battery needs a higher voltage, as noted 13.4 to 14.4V. 13.4V is what the smart charger system drops to if the battery is fully charged. 14.4V is about the maximum before the charging process causes excess gas. And the actual values are temperature dependent, slightly higher for colder temperatures. So 13V will allow drawing current while the battery is being charged and a small time after charging stops, but will leave the battery in a good state of charge if the system is not disconnected.
Quoting a power bank in mAh is pretty useless, the actual storage should be in Wh (Watt hours). I found the figure 72.36 Wh, which should power a starlink mini for more than an hour of full use, but may not make 2 hours - especially as that 72Wh is before conversion, the conversion to 20V has to take a small hit.
Just thinking out loud.

1 Like
15

Hi Alan

I think that could be for a discharge rate 0f C20 or 20 hour rate. It would be somewhat less at a rate of 1C. I don’t know exactly what the de rating is for the modern Lithium but if the same were to be applied to lead acid battery you would probably get something like 15 minutes instead of the hour.

Regarding conversion losses

There would be 2 conversions. One in the power bank from 3.7V to 5V which could be as bad as 85% and another from 5V to 20V, the conversion factor would be dependant on the device used but I would be surprised if it would be much better than 90%

So I think a starting point in practice should be a 12V lithium and charge it somehow when able and keep Starlink use to a minimum.
Cheers Bob

2 Likes
16

So the video of the Anker battery cutting out is what happened to me too and that process of running the Mini from the battery, that was always charging during the ride, isn’t going to work. However I have got it working with the Mini powered more directly and the battery charging also. It just means that shortly after stopping somewhere I will have to manually move the Mini to be powered by the Anker battery.

So I have the XH-M609 Low Voltage Disconnect module being powered directly from the battery. This is set to turn off its output at 12.2V now and come back on at 13V. The output goes to a cigarette lighter power outlet. In that I have plugged a car charger that has 2 USB-C and 1 USB-A outlets. The USB-C outlets are advertised as PD 3.1 140W and PD 3.0 30W.

With the Anker 220W battery plugged into the 140W outlet and trying to charge my phone on the other outlet of the Anker, it works. However, the Anker has a display that shows W in and/or out on each port. You can also see this in their app via bluetooth too. I never saw the Anker charging go above 45W. Why, I do not know. It may be that the charging protocol negotiated a lesser amount as it didn’t need more.
When it was working charging my phone, the display showed W In and Out. The Out to my phone was less than the In W, so Passthrough worked. It was indicated on the display that Passthrough was on.
So when the Starlink Mini got plugged in to the other port on the Anker instead of my phone, Initially the Mini powered up and got a Blue light, but within seconds the Power Negotations had taken place and the Mini decided it was not going to get enough power and shut down, almost. According to the Anker display it was still using 0.2W. Maybe monitoring for an increase in power ?

What does seem to work, with the bike running and stationary so far, is this way:

Run the Starlink Mini from the 140W outlet of the car charger.
Charge the Anker through the 30W outlet of the car charger.

While the bike is running the Mini runs from the bikes system. Phone, GPS, etc all have internet. Waze should work for alerts etc. DMD2 Navigation doesn’t need internet, but it has some functions that use it.
When the bike is stopped, the LVD will disconnect power currently at 12.2V and enable again at 13V to stop the battery being killed. Then plug the Mini into the Anker later when camp is ready etc and we all have wifi again for calling Family etc. Time and usage will tell just how long the Anker will last. It should be somewhere between 1-4 hours, probably 1.5 or so.

I will need a switch in the input to the LVD as it is constantly monitoring the voltage and also has its display on all the time, at least so far in my testing. It may turn the display off after a long time. But still, if it doesn’t and the bike sits for a week or two, that may be enough to drain the battery.

When I had the Mini powered from the car adaptor, i touched the 12V fuse on the input to the LVD and it was remarkably hot. The wires I have used are probably too small though.

I am back to thinking I should just get the Mini with a straight 12V - 30V booster and swap to the Anker when stopped. Just the Anker charging will be generating much less heat and draw on the bikes system.

So thank you all for your info and insights, much appreciated. When I get an eventual working system, I’ll try and remember to come back and update more.

Cheers, Col.

1 Like
17

Hi Colin
One last bit of info that might (should) interest you.
I just found this. I think there is a bit of an error. I think the red curve should be 0.3C (not 1.3C).
“C” = rated Amphrs of the battery in question.

image
image1220Ă—764 104 KB

The curves could be applied to any battery. The important bit is the relationship between the battery capacity (Ahrs) and the current drawn. Expressed as 0.2C, 0.3C, 0.5C etc
Cheers Bob

1 Like
18

So my end result works fairly well. Just has a pause while swapping power cables into the Starlink Mini.

I have now a 20A fuse inline from the +ve battery terminal, it is going to a round latching push button switch with a blue ring led when pressed and on. This switch then feeds the Low Voltage Disconnect device, which uses enough power to flatten the battery in a week or so, which I find funny. That then feeds the terminal strip which has a couple of cigarette lighter outlets, with 10A fuses, and a power supply specifically for the Starlink Mini. The Anker power bank is constantly charged from one of the cigarette lighter outlets.
When the bike is stopped the bike battery will run for a very short time as I have set the LVD to disconnect at 12.1V and enable at 13V. So that should really only drain while the bike is running and charging.
I can then plug the Starlink into the Anker powerbank and run from that.

I have been for a ride for a few hours and the Starlink is working fine for wifi to my phone.
I have left the Anker powerbank running the Starlink for about 30 minutes so far and still had 65% left at that point. I was doing lots of speed tests and streaming video etc during that time.

Not sure if I am allowed to post links to other places to buy stuff. So just where from and the item description, I did check here and could not find any of this gear, but apologies if I missed something.

Parts:

  1. Inline fuse - from anywhere
  2. Switch - from Aliexpress for $1.04 - FILN 19mm 20A IP66 Waterproof 12V 24V 110V 220V Flat Ring Round Push Button Switch Black Metal Stainless Steel with 20cm Wire
  3. LVD - from Zaitronics XH-M609 for $8.90 plus a $5 plastic box from Jaycar
  4. Terminal strip

Feeding from the terminal strip:

  1. Starlink Power Supply - from Amazon for $25 - Starlink Mini 12V/24V to 30V Power Converter DC Step Up Adapter 3.5A Power Supply Starlink Mini 12V Power Supply Cord Conversion Kit for RV Truck Marine Off Grid Devices
    2 and 3. Cigarette Power outlet with 10A fuse - from Amazon, pack of 3 for $17 - I changed the inline fuses - 12V Cigarette Lighter Socket, 3-Pack Car Marine Motorcycle ATV RV Lighter Socket Power Outlet Socket Replacement Waterproof Plug

In one of the Outlets is a

  1. USB Charger - from Amazon for $35 - LISEN 170W Laptop USB C Car Charger Fast Charging 3 Ports Cigarette Lighter Adapter PD3.1 [GaN] 140W+PD30W QC4.0/PPS 45W for MacBook Pro M4 iPad iPhone 17 16 Galaxy with a 240W USB C Cable

Connected to the PD 3.1 140W USB-C outlet is the Anker powerbank - from Anker for $175. Anker Prime 20K Powerbank (200W, 3 Ports)

Starlink Mini - from Skynet, prices change a lot.
The Starlink is housed in a purpose built 3D printed enclosure from BeamMeUpTechnologies. Talk to Brad and he will make a design specifically for you. Mine is V-Strom yellow with a map of Aus and the V-Strom logo. It looks great, is rock solid and has worked perfectly so far.

Cheers, everyone.
Col.

2 Likes
19

Hi Colin
Thanks for the feedback.
It is nice to find out when a project is successful or indeed unsuccessful as this could be a lesson in what NOT to do. When a project is left hanging no one really knows if or what sort of help has worked or what help has not. So in effect when this sort of thing happens nobody really has learned anything.

So once again, thanks and have a good trip wherever you are going on your bike.
Cheers Bob

1 Like