EPSolar AN series to RS485 to Ethernet

[PVorBust]

Hi All. First post - have to start somewhere.

I run a collection of single panel systems:

• one for a water pump
• one for security camera and electric fence energiser
• three for keeping start-batteries in good condition when their equipment is not being used.

I've replaced all the PWM CC's with Tracer AN series (1206 mostly) on 44V, 175W panels. This works well, but feature-creep has kicked in and now I want to monitor the three colocated 1206an's via an ethernet link.
As EPSolar don't offer a wired adapter, I've started with an Elfin EE11 RS485-Ethernet adapter (has anyone used one of these?)

I can connect to the EE11 and the network side seems fine, but this is my first expedition into Modbus and RS485.
I'm not completely confident I've got the data lines the right way around as manufacturers label them differently.
My real question is: which communication protocol is most suitable?

As a backup, I've ordered a second adapter that will present as a virtual com port as that will allow Solar Station Monitor to work directly.




cheers from down under.

Edit:
Also open to suggestions of alternative RS485 to Ethernet (not wifi) devices if you've had a positive experience.

 

[svetz]

Welcome to the forums!

I don't know the answer to your question, but there are a lot of folks that have posted about modbus (e.g., @GXMnow, @Symbioquine, @coil1002, @upnorthandpersonal ). I'll move this to the general forums where hopefully someone knowledgeable can help you.

 

[PVorBust]

Thanks - the right place is always a good start!

 

[upnorthandpersonal]

Have a look here:

SolarShed/getTracerData.py at master · BarkinSpider/SolarShed

Realtime data monitoring of solar power equipment metrics - BarkinSpider/SolarShed

github.com

This is part of this project by @BarkingSpider which collects the data and plots it in Grafana. This should get you started - feel free to ask questions.

 

[PVorBust]

Thanks @upnorthandpersonal .
An interesting project, but at this stage, I'm not trying to read the data with a Pi, I 'simply' want to put the regs on my local network.

However, logging to a Pi and putting that on the network may be a better approach.

 

[upnorthandpersonal]

Doesn't matter what you want to do really. That Python code has all you need to read the registers from the Tracer over Modbus.

 

[PVorBust]

I'll get to the software side later, my immediate problem is setting up the EE11 ethernet adapter.

 

[Symbioquine]

For the pinout see http://www.solar-elektro.cz/data/dokumenty/1733_modbus_protocol.pdf

The serial communication parameters: 115200bps baudrate, 8 data bits, 1 stop bit and no parity, no handshaking.

 

[Symbioquine]

It's pretty different than your requirements (wifi/arduino vs ethernet/commercial) but you can see an example of the wiring in my article here: https://symbioquine.net/2020-10-27-epever-esp-8266-controller

 

[PVorBust]

Thanks @Symbioquine , that's the pinout I've used, except I've used pins 1,8 to power the EE11.

One thing I found a bit disturbing is that the MT-50 manual shows a different pinout.
The numbering is the same, but the physical pin numbers is ... strange.

I can load the EE11's web page and set it up, but I'm not clear on the protocol to pass the RS485 data.
I'll add a screenshot of the options, but they include HTML, Telnet, IoT and a few others. I've tried a few, but haven't seen any data.

On the hardware side,

I'm not completely confident I've got the data lines the right way around as manufacturers label them differently.

RS485 standard

Which is nice, but doesn't agree with the pinouts on the EE11

So this leaves me with the problem - Do I connect: A+ to A- or to B+


I ran out of RJ45's, but I'll make a new cable with the RS485 pins reversed to see if that performs differently.


EE11 manual

 

[PVorBust]

Seems I've got the EE11A, not the EE11.
As far as I have determined, they are the same, but the 'A has a wider operating supply voltage.
As you can see, if you have an RJ45 crimping tool, the cable can be very neat


These are the communication options offered:

 

[Evado]

I believe there is an official solution for this :

28.0US $ 20% OFF|TCP module eBOX TCP 02 Serial Port Networking Server Ethernet Convert Module Serial port For Solar Controller And Regulator|Solar Controllers| - AliExpress

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

 

[PVorBust]

Well spotted.
I stared at it thinking it's exactly what I've been trying to do with the EE11A.
Then it occurred to me the RS485 should be on an RJ45 like all the other EPSolar/EPEver/Tracer devices.
So I had a look at the official EPSolar & EPEver sites and there is no mention of this eBOX-TCP-02 at all.

While it's obviously being sold for doing exactly what I want, it seems it's not an official product.

 

[Symbioquine]

So I had a look at the official EPSolar & EPEver sites and there is no mention of this eBOX-TCP-02 at all.

While it's obviously being sold for doing exactly what I want, it seems it's not an official product.

It looks like it's an official product, just not as widely marketed. It does appear on the CN language version of their site; http://www.epsolarpv.com.cn/product/62.html Maybe they just haven't ported the software/documentation to english yet...

 

[PVorBust]

stranger and stranger, the part numbers are very different

 

[PVorBust]

Update:
my Network Cable Tester arrived, so I was able to go over the data cables I'd made and to put it simply - I hadn't done a good job. I think the problem is the 4-core telephone cable is a bit thinner than Cat5 cable and the crimped pins don't make reliable contact.
I could have tested it with a multimeter, but "they looked good" so I assumed they were ok and searched for a problem elsewhere.

At this point, the second RS485-Ethernet adapter arrived, so I started playing with that.
At first it looked DOA as it wouldn't power-up (lights on, but no one home). Tracked the problem to trying to power it from the 1210AN's com port. It can supply 12V, but only 50mA (5V 100mA) - fine for the EE11, but not the new ZLAN 5143D.


After a lot of stuffing around I got the virtual com port installed, reconfigured SSM to the VCom and then spent hours playing with the network / com settings until it finally came to life.

I'll get back to the EE11 and see if I can get it to cooperate, but for now, I'm happy to have one working system.

 

[Symbioquine]

[...] the 1210AN's com port. It can supply 12V, but only 50mA

The RS485 port on the Tracer 1210AN (and similar models) provides 5V power pins and can supply ~100mA;

 

[PVorBust]

The RS485 port on the Tracer 1210AN (and similar models) provides 5V power pins and can supply ~100mA;

Well spotted - thanks
(at least someone read my post!)

The point is, 0.5W is not enough power to run the ZLAN adapter

Not sure where I got 50mA from, but I got 12V from the MT-50 manual


For a reality check, I put a meter on the reg and it is 5V

 

[Symbioquine]

I got 12V from the MT-50 manual

I think that might be from the Renogy MT-50 manual (https://www.renogy.com/template/files/Manuals/TrcrMtr-MT-50.pdf) rather than the Epever MT-50 manual. My understanding is that they are different and incompatible devices on a number of levels - despite sharing the same name.

That said, the Epever MT-50 manual (https://www.epsolarpv.com/upload/file/2107/MT50-Manual-EN-V3.2.pdf) is similar in that both devices can be powered at 12V - though the Epever MT-50 manual seems to support a wider range (5V - 12V compared to the Renogy's 8V - 12V).


The naming overlap was confusing to me at first too. I have no idea why they didn't just give them different names...

 

[Symbioquine]

The point is, 0.5W is not enough power to run the ZLAN adapter

Agreed - at least for the ZLAN 5143D. You might be able to build something custom around some of the other ZLAN chips that would take less power, but I didn't see anything of the DIN-rail/plug-and-play which would be happy powered off the Tracer-####AN RS485 port.