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Power and Communication Connections

Hardware Installation

Step 1

 - Unpack materials: Remove all materials from shipping box and verify all required components are available

Step 2

 - Mount the A90DC-12 inside the electrical enclosure.  Be sure to provide enough room to route the load wires 

through the hall effect sensor openings. 

Step 3

 – Attach the power supply to the A90DC-12.  Be sure to observe the polarity.    Note: Power can be 

disconnected by removing the screw terminal plug from the A90DC-12 power connection socket.

The A90DC-12 can operate on 

Step 4

 - Connect the RS485 Modbus network loop as shown in the wiring diagram.  Follow the manufacturer’s instructions 

for installing and powering the Modbus Master device. Verify that the Modbus address settings are unique for each device 
(i.e., no two devices with the same address). Connect each device in the chain by “daisy-chaining” the devices together . 
O and - polarity on the Modbus devices. For more information about Modbus loops, please read our  Modbus FAQ 
available at 

 

 .

Do not ground the RS485 shield inside the electrical panel.  All RS485 and 24vdc power wires, including the shield should 
be insulated to prevent accidental contact to high voltage conductors. 

The RS485 and 24vdc power cable should be mechanically secured where it enters the electrical panel. 

The wire used to provide RS485 communications should be insulated to meet requirements of the voltages present inside the 
box that the A90DC-12 is mounted within.  For example, Belden 1120A has a 600v insulation rating and can be used in 
many applications.  Check with your electrical installer for details as local code requirements may vary. 

Page 6

A90DC-12 – DC Current Monitor

www.

.com

[email protected]

1.800.561.8187

Summary of Contents for A90DC-10

Page 1: ...A90DC 12 DC Current Monitor Obvius LLC Installation and Operation Manual Model A90DC 12 A90DC 10 Date Sep 4 2013 Page 1 A90DC 12 DC Current Monitor www com information itm com 1 800 561 8187 ...

Page 2: ...his warranty provides specific legal rights that may be varied by state law Obvius s products are not designed for life or safety applications Product Application Limitation Obvius strongly believes in continuous improvement therefore we must reserve the right to change specifications and product offerings without notice Where possible we will substitute products with equivalent functionality when...

Page 3: ...ister List 11 Register formatting 14 Alarm configuration 14 Mechanical Drawings 15 A90DC 12 Firmware Update 16 Markings and Symbols WARNING A potential risk exists if the operating instructions are not followed General Warning Symbol This symbol indicates the need to consult the operating instructions provided with the product This symbol indicates the presence of electric shock hazards This symbo...

Page 4: ...is instrumental in detecting failed equipment in applications such as Solar PV arrays Applications The A90DC 12 Series DC Current Monitor has several applications These include DC Load Monitoring Solar PV Power Generation Battery Charge and Discharge monitoring Installation Checklist An A90DC 12 system installation has the following components Required hardware A90DC 12 Series DC current monitor r...

Page 5: ...brief events Unused channels may be disabled to exclude them from total and average calculations Communications1 RS 485 S 9600 baud N 8 1 two wire Supports up to 32 external devices expandable Isolation The RS485 terminals electrically isolated to 1500V from the remainder of the A90DC 12 board Environmental2 North America Temperature 30º 70ºc 0 95 humidity non condensing Altitude up to 2000M For i...

Page 6: ...e for each device i e no two devices with the same address Connect each device in the chain by daisy chaining the devices together Observe and polarity on the Modbus devices For more information about Modbus loops please read our Modbus FAQ available at Do not ground the RS485 shield inside the electrical panel All RS485 and 24vdc power wires including the shield should be insulated to prevent acc...

Page 7: ...printed on the product packaging label If other A90DC 12 devices are to be used in the system you must verify the Modbus address on each is unique one to prevent two devices from having the same address A Modbus master device or software package is required to configure options on the A90DC 12 as well as read the output data The Obvius Config Console software free at www obvius com can be used to ...

Page 8: ...sulated wire may be used depending on the application see specifications page for details It should only pass through the hall effect sensor opening When installing the load wire do not pull on or otherwise stress the hall effect sensors Step 9 power up the A90DC 12 and the load wires and confirm the readings match the expected current flow Note If cleaning is required use a dry towel to remove du...

Page 9: ...o computes several system wide values including a total and average value for all channels For each of these both an instantaneous and long average value is reported Total instantaneous current is the sum of the instantaneous values for all 12 channels If any channels are disabled the current value for the channel is not included in the totals When using the A90DC 12 with the AcquiSuite data acqui...

Page 10: ...tantaneous AMPS 100 average of 12 channels eg 1234 12 34A 5 40006 INT16 average current long average AMPS 100 average of 12 channels eg 1234 12 34A 6 40007 UINT16 Alarm Channel 0 no alarm 0xFFFF invalid No alarm 1 12 range alarm channel 102 internal positive powersupply bad 5V 103 power input over voltage 104 power input under voltage 105 Internal reference powersupply bad 2 5V 106 Current overran...

Page 11: ...NT16 reserved 43 40044 UINT16 input broken wire alarm bitmap 1 broken wire 0 not broken bit0 input1 offset point type desc modes mA 44 40045 UINT16 input 1 mode NV r w 45 40046 UINT32 input 1 value MSW inst 46 40047 input 1 value LSW 47 40048 UINT32 input 1 ave MSW ave 48 40049 input 1 ave LSW 49 40050 UINT32 input 1 min MSW min 50 40051 input 1 min LSW 51 40052 UINT32 input 1 max MSW max 52 40053...

Page 12: ... status of the input represented in ohms mA or volts The value uses a short term average of the last 16 a d converter readings to compute the value of this register In voltage and current mode the instantaneous value is calculated several times per second In resistance mode the value is calculated at least every two seconds 0xFFFFFFFF will report an off scale high condition or any other invalid da...

Page 13: ...ombiner box to monitor the current levels on all 12 strings at the same time If a panel in one of the strings fails the A90DC 12 can detect the reduction in current from the failed string and set an alarm flag to indicate the problem To configure the A90DC 12 to detect this fault condition several options must be configured These options include the following Deviation threshold Minimum current th...

Page 14: ... mounted inside an appropriate enclosure rated for the weather location and electrical components located inside it The A90DC 12 mounting holes are detailed below Page 15 A90DC 12 DC Current Monitor www com information itm com 1 800 561 8187 ...

Page 15: ...tep 4 Power up the 24vdc supply to the A90DC 12 The Green Alive LED should light up and blink Step 5 Run the LPC2000 Flash Utility The following screen will be displayed Step 6 Set the following communications options COM1 or COM2 depending on your computer serial port Use baud rate 38400 or slower Check Use DTR RTS for Reset XTAL Freq kHz 14745 Step 7 Click the Read Device ID button The PartID an...

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