Getting Started with the bq76PL455EVM
NOTE:
Although it is not strictly required due to the presence of on-module protection circuitry, when
using a battery stack, it is recommended to first apply power from the top and bottom of the
stack to BAT16 and BAT0, respectively, in order to power the bq76PL455EVM, before
applying power from the intermediate stack cell connections to BAT0S, BAT1, BAT2 through
to BAT15, and BAT16S. This is achieved using a make-first, break-last type battery
connector if hot plugging or using switches to sequence power application.
Start the GUI. This step is explained in greater detail in the
of this document.
6.7
Configuring Stacked bq76PL455EVMs
Instructions for configuring stacked bq76PL455EVMs are as follows:
1. Identify the bq76PL455EVM that is connected to the bottom 16-cell module and the bq76PL455EVMs
that is stacked above it - connected to the higher 16-cell modules within the battery system. On the
bottom bq76PL455EVM that is connected to the PC, connect the bottom end of the twisted pair daisy
chain cable to the J5 - Diff Comm High connector. Then, connect the other end of this twisted pair
daisy chain cable to the J4 - Diff Comm Low connecter on the second bq76PL455EVM. Continue with
this pattern for all subsequent bq76PL455EVMs in the daisy chain stack.
2. On the bottom bq76PL455EVM that is connected to the PC, set the
SW2 - COMM Mode Select
switch
as shown in
. On all other stacked bq76PL455EVMs, set the lever on the
SW2 - COMM Mode
Select
switch package in the opposite direction, toward the DIFF label
3. Set
SW1 - OUT Filter Select
switches on all bq76PL455EVMs to the desired setting as outlined in
or as shown in
.
4. Connect any desired temperature sensors to the J2 - Thermistor connector on any of the
bq76PL455EVMs in the system.
5. Connect the lowest bq76PL455EVM J3 - Serial header to a PC USB port using an FTDI USB-to-TTL
Serial (5 V) cable.
6.8
Connecting and Powering Stacked bq76PL455EVMs
Power a stack of bq76PL455EVMs, as configured in the previous section, with the following steps:
1. Connect the bottom evaluation module J1 - Battery connector to the lowest 16 cells of the battery stack
and apply power.
NOTE:
When using a battery stack, it is recommended - although not strictly required - to first apply
power from the top and bottom of the stack to BAT16 and BAT0 respectively in order to
power the bq76PL455EVM, before applying power from the intermediate stack cell
connections to BAT0S, BAT1, BAT2 through to BAT15 and BAT16S. This is achieved using
a make-first, break-last type battery connector if hot plugging or using switches to sequence
power application.
2. Connect the next higher stacked evaluation module to the next higher set of 16 cells, for example, cells
17–32, using the same relative powering sequence described in step 1. Then, connect
bq76PL455EVM 3 to cells 33–48, and so on.
3. Start the GUI (as described in
).
7
Software
7.1
Using the Software
Start the GUI by double-clicking the
bq76PL455_GUI
shortcut on the PC desktop. A prompt is presented
to select the COM port number for the Serial-to-USB connection, as shown in
and
. In
most cases, the highlighted COM port is the appropriate COM port. If this is not the case, due to a custom
installation, determine the appropriate COM port by checking the Ports section in the Windows Device
Manager.
23
SLUUBA7A – April 2015 – Revised July 2015
bq76PL455EVM and GUI User Guide
Copyright © 2015, Texas Instruments Incorporated
