Ikawa Home teardowns - Page 2

Discuss roast levels and profiles for espresso, equipment for roasting coffee.
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Peppersass
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#11: Post by Peppersass »

GDM528 wrote: It's interesting because electrolytic capacitors have very short lifespans at elevated temperatures.
Another reason for having the fan blow on them.

Jiduochou (original poster)
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#12: Post by Jiduochou (original poster) »

GDM528 wrote:Based on Jiduochou's pictures so far:

The closest match to the motor I've found is here:
https://www.wonsmartmotor.com/portable- ... r-product/

Part number not an exact match, and the last four digits "IK01" hint that it might be custom-built for Ikawa. Unfortunately, that implies only Ikawa could sell a replacement - and good luck getting them to agree to that.


The main power module does appear to be off-the-shelf:
https://www.skynetpower.com.tw/product. ... =200&id=21

The power module supplies the 24V for the blower motor. It's rated to 130W with forced air cooling, of which there'll be plenty of that, given a blower is right next to it ;)

Looking at the motor specs, it appears able to draw more power than the power module can supply, which implies Ikawa doesn't have to push the motor too hard - that should lower stress on the motor and extend its lifespan.
Agreed with you regarding the fan assembly. Based on the aviation field the last 4 digits of the part number might imply a minor deviation from the regular assembly. It might only be the wire bundle and the connector in this particular case. It is easy to distinguish the difference by pictures. Thus I assume the tech spec will be the same.

On the other hand, regarding the AC-DC power supply, I found the closest product is the EPP-150-24 which is manufactured by "Mean well". I check "Delta Electronics" and seems they are not selling the product to the end-users. However, the part number is MDS-100BPS24B.

GDM528
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#13: Post by GDM528 »

The wiring harness and how it exits the motor housing looks like it might be the key difference. I'm thinking that a similar blower could work with a bit of hacking.

The main power module should be even easier to multisource, given that it only has one output at a very common voltage. I bet Ikawa followed the path of least resistance, which would lead them to multiple suppliers.

Unfortunately, the red and green PCBs are clearly custom, given their unique shape. So, repairing those boards would have to be at the component level - not impossible, but takes a lot more diagnostic work. Perhaps an enterprising hacker could replace the green PCB with a Raspberry Pi and a thermocouple daughterboard.

nicolai
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#14: Post by nicolai »

Looking at the PCB I am almost certain that the home is identical, or close to identical HW wise to the pro version (Apart from the exhaust probe).
If you look at the PRO it has two buttons, and the PCB on the home looks like it has connection for two buttons.

This also makes sense as maintaining two development cycles for the two machines would be inefficient with the relative low volumes of roasters they sell.

Annoying about the FAN failure - Do you mind explaining why they were not willing to honor the warranty?

Jiduochou (original poster)
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#15: Post by Jiduochou (original poster) »

GDM528 wrote:
Unfortunately, the red and green PCBs are clearly custom, given their unique shape. So, repairing those boards would have to be at the component level - not impossible, but takes a lot more diagnostic work. Perhaps an enterprising hacker could replace the green PCB with a Raspberry Pi and a thermocouple daughterboard.
Yes, I totally agree with your opinions. Because the repair may take more time than I expect thus I am looking for a roaster as a substitution plan.

Jiduochou (original poster)
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#16: Post by Jiduochou (original poster) »

nicolai wrote: Annoying about the FAN failure - Do you mind explaining why they were not willing to honor the warranty?
I am not sure I can blame the fan assy for the malfunction, at least not quite yet. So far only I am able to do is disassemble and share information as much as I can. I expect maybe someone might be interesting to learn something from it and maybe help someone in future. For the reason that causes warranty dismissal, frankly, IKAWA says because I use the wet wipe to clean the chamber, and to do so, the component that underneath the chamber may cause the problem.

mgrayson
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#17: Post by mgrayson replying to Jiduochou »

They are HUGELY concerned about liquid falling below the roast chamber. The pro versions come with half-inch thick felt disks that block off the air vents while cleaning. Now that I see how close the electronics are to the roast chamber, I believe it might not be crazy. Still, leaving no cleaning instructions for the Home seems more than a bit unfair.

GDM528
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#18: Post by GDM528 »

Jiduochou wrote: the component that underneath the chamber may cause the problem.
Residue on a PCB is pretty easy to spot, and if caught early can often be fixed with a swab and some isopropyl alcohol. If the solvent in the wipes is corrosive (unlikely) it can dissolve the exposed bits of the copper traces - still not a disaster, but does take some skill with a soldering iron to repair.

Liquid residue on the circuit boards is only bad for the boards. I would be more worried about the volatiles from the superheated residue getting into beans that I later grind up and drink - yikes.

I see in the photos a large electrolytic capacitor on the red PCB that has been shrink-wrapped and sealed to the board - that is not typical. More than one reason to do that, but my favorite explanation is to contain any potential leakage from the capacitor finding its way into the airflow.

Jiduochou (original poster)
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#19: Post by Jiduochou (original poster) »

mgrayson wrote:They are HUGELY concerned about liquid falling below the roast chamber. The pro versions come with half-inch thick felt disks that block off the air vents while cleaning. Now that I see how close the electronics are to the roast chamber, I believe it might not be crazy. Still, leaving no cleaning instructions for the Home seems more than a bit unfair.
Based on the experience I have, in my opinion, extreme care shall be attended to while cleaning the unit inside out even the outside. Since the OEM considers the cleaning process is so restricted may violate the warranty. Also, I left a comment to Ikawa and point out they shall publish the cleaning process for the Home version for domestic and oversea customers and may eliminate the confusion about the warranty and yet I have not heard any feedback from them for a while.
Does anyone feel the customer support is some kind delay response?

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Chert
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#20: Post by Chert »

What exactly is the airflow path? One fan pulls cool air to cool the roast and pushes it across the element to roast the green batch? I don't think that sounds quit right. Is the element a single coil?
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