NewMar DCE User manual

15272 Newsboy Circle
Huntington Beach
California 92469
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
E-Mail: [email protected]
www.newmarpower.com
Introduction
The DCE provides accurate low cost instrumentation
for 3 banks of batteries between 9.5 and 33 Volts. The
unit displays voltage for three banks and amps or
amp-hours for your house bank. It tracks all current
entering and leaving the house bank and applies
Peukert’s and efficiency factors. You can set Low and
High voltage alarms and Low Amp-Hours Remaining
alarms on the house bank. When activated, the
built-in 85 dB alarm will sound and the display will
flash. The DCE outputs NMEA 0183 serial data or
the data line can be programmed as an external
alarm output or as a charger on-off control. Five
levels or backlighting can be selected and all set-up,
calibration constants and alarm values are saved to
non-volatile memory. The DCE comes complete with a
precision 500amp shunt and is designed to work with
50-500 amp 50mV shunts. (Unit must be recalibrated if
other than 500 amp shunt is used.)
Installation
Before starting the installation, please read this entire
section first. The instrument may be installed in a
bulkhead. Remove the rear bracket, attach wiring as
explained in the following section, then reassemble and
install as shown in the diagram below. Finger tighten
the nuts that secure the bracket – do not use tools. (You
may use Lock-Tite to keep the nuts from vibrating loose.)
Be sure to slide the bulkhead gasket over the instrument
body before you install the instrument.
Drill a 2-1/8” (55mm) mounting hole (or use NEWMAR’s
Single or Dual Universal Meter Panel Blanks) as shown
in FIGURE 1.
Figure 1
Bring the shunt wires, ground, and power lines out
of the mounting hole and through the large opening
in the DCE mounting bracket. Use a small flat-tip
screwdriver to make the connections to the screw
terminal on the instrument case back as shown in
FIGURE 2 and FIGURE 3.
Figure 2
1
DC Energy Monitor
Model: DCE
M-DCE
As of 112718

15272 Newsboy Circle
Huntington Beach
California 92469
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
E-Mail: [email protected]
www.newmarpower.com
Figure 3
*Note: Optional programming On-Off switch may
installed in line with terminal C. Locating this switch
near the DCE will simplify the programming of certain
functions such as the battery bank capacity, charge
efficiency and Peukert’s Exponent. While the factory
set (default) values of the latter two functions will work
in most situations, the default value for battery bank
capacity (factory set at 500A-H) will vary from installation
to installation.
Carefully check all your wiring against that shown in
FIGURES 2 and 3. If everything is wired correctly you
can mount the DCE in the instrument hole. Be sure
the bulkhead gasket is in place and use only finger
tension to tighten the bracket hold-down nuts. Do not
overtighten the bracket or you may damage the case –
do not use tools to tighten the nuts.
Auto Zero Procedure
To make the ammeter read zero when no current
is flowing, press and hold the +key for 10 seconds
while viewing Amps. The DCE will display “AUTO”,
automatically zero the reading and save the auto-zero
information into memory. If the reading does not stop
at zero, repeat the above procedure until it does.
Calibrating/Zeroing the Instrument
The DCE is factory calibrated and under most
circumstances should not require re-calibration after
being installed. If however you suspect, then confirm
incorrect voltage and/or amperage readings, the unit
may be recalibrated as follows:
To re-calibrate the voltmeter, first remove power from
the DCE, press and hold the Vkey and then
re-apply power to the DCE. Use the ∆ and ∆ keys to
make the displayed value read correctly. Press the +
key for 1/2 second to save the calibration data to
memory.
To re-calibrate the Ammeter, first remove power from
the DCE, press and hold the Akey and then
re-apply power to the DCE. Use the and
key and then
keys to
make the displayed value read correctly. Press the +
key for 1/2 second to save the calibration data to
memory.
Key Functions
The VA
+
Hkeys are used to select what to
display, backlights, calibrate volts/amps/turn alarms
on/off, set alarms and set/change constants. New
information is automatically saved to memory.
Turn Alarms ON/OFF
Press the key 1/2 second to turn alarms ON. In
Voltage mode, the Battery 1 icon will blink. Press the
key 1/2 second to turn the alarms OFF.
Backlight Intensity
Press +the key 1/2 second to adjust the backlight
level for night-time viewing. Each time you press
the +key 1/2 second, the level will get brighter 1,
2, 3, 4, OFF, 1, 2..etc. Screw terminal pin (D) must be
connected to battery hot (+) for the backlights to work.
Display Volts/Amps/A-H/ A-H % Remaining
Quick Press the V, Aor Hkeys to select
Battery Voltage, Amps or Amp-Hours display. Pressing
the Vkey repeatedly will step the display
through Battery 1, 2, 3, 1 etc. To display the Capacity
Remaining (Amp-Hours % Remaining), press the A
and Hkeys simultaneously.
Setting High Volts Alarm
While viewing Battery #1 volts, press and hold the ∆
key for ten (10) seconds. You will hear a beep and the
High Volts alarm will be displayed. Use the ∆ and ∆
keys to set the desired alarm value. Press the +key
for 1/2 second to save the High Volts Alarm value to
memory.
Setting Low Volts Alarm
While viewing Battery #1 volts, press the key for ten
(10) seconds. You will hear a beep and the Low Volts
alarm value will be displayed. Use the and
(10) seconds. You will hear a beep and the Low Volts
keys
to set the desired alarm value. Press the +key for 1/2
second to save the new value.
2

15272 Newsboy Circle
Huntington Beach
California 92469
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
E-Mail: [email protected]
www.newmarpower.com
Setting Low Amp-Hours Alarm
While viewing Amp-Hours, press and hold the key
for ten (10) seconds. You will hear a beep and the Low
Amp-Hours alarm value will be displayed. Use the
and ∆ keys to change it. Press the +key for 1/2
second to save the new value.
Changing Battery Capacity
First remove power from the DCE, press and hold the
key and then re-apply power to the DCE. The
Battery Capacity (in Amp-Hours) will be displayed.
Use the and
Battery Capacity (in Amp-Hours) will be displayed.
keys to change it. Press +key for
1/2 second to save it.
Change Charge Efficiency
The Default Charge Efficiency is 80% (meaning you
get back 80% of what you put into the battery). To
change it, remove power from the DCE, press and hold
the and
change it, remove power from the DCE, press and hold
keys and then re-apply power to the
DCE. Charge Efficiency % is displayed. Use the and
DCE. Charge Efficiency % is displayed. Use the
keys to change it. Press the +key for 1/2 second to
save the new value.
Changing Peukert’s Exponent
Peukert’s Exponent relates how efficiently you can
draw current from a battery. Because of inefficiencies,
the faster you drain the battery, the smaller it appears
to be. The default Peukert’s Exponent is 1.25 (shown as
125), which is typical for many batteries. To change
it, remove power from the DCE, press and hold the +
and ∆ keys and then re-apply power to the DCE.
Peukert’s exponent will be displayed. Use the and
Peukert’s exponent will be displayed. Use the
to set the desired value. Press the +key 1/2 second
to save the new value. If you battery seems to
discharge faster than what the DCE is telling you, try
increasing Peukert’s Exponent slightly. Lower the
exponent if the reverse is true. The correct setting will
depend upon how you battery was manufactured
and it’s age, etc.
NMEA 0183 Sentences
Volts: $IIXDR, U,xx.x, V,VAH35,*C
Amps: $IIXDR,I,xxx,A, VAH35, *CS
A-H Remaining: $IIXDR,G,xxx, ,VAH35,*CS
*CS =Check Sum
Selecting NMEA 0183, External Alarm or Charger
Control Output
Screw terminal pin (B) can be programmed as NMEA
0183 Data Output, or as a Charger On-Off Control. The
factory default is NMEA 0183 serial data output.
To toggle Screw Terminal Pin (B) between NMEA 0183,
External Alarm Output and Charger Control, press
and hold down both and
External Alarm Output and Charger Control, press
keys for 10 seconds
(unitl you hear a long beep). The display will toggle
between showing “dAtA(Data), “E-Al” (External Alarm)
or “-CC-“ (Charger Control) to show you which mode is
selected. The new output mode is automatically
saved to memory.
A 5V signal (10 mA Max.) is output on screw terminal
(B) whenever an alarm condition exists and the
alarms are enabled or whenever a charger is to be
turned on automatically.
Setting Charger Control On-Off Limits
If the Charger Control function is selected for screw
terminal (B), the DCE can be programmed to
automatically turn a charger on and off, depending
on the amp-hours remaining. The factory default is to
turn the charger on when Amp-Hours Remain drops to
50% of battery capacity and switch off when it returns
to 90% of capacity. Screw terminal (B) outputs a +5V
signal to activate the charger.
To set the upper charger output limit (charger “off”
point) in percent, press both the + and keys to
display amp-hours remaining in percent. Then hold
the ∆ key down for 10 seconds (until you hear a long
beep). The upper charge limit will be displayed in
percent. Use the and
beep). The upper charge limit will be displayed in
keys to set the desired
value. Use the +key to save the new value to
memory.
Resetting Amp-Hours Remaining
While viewing Amp-Hours Remaining press and hold
the key for 10 seconds (until you hear a long beep).
The Amp-Hours Remaining will be reset to full amp-
hour capacity of the battery.
Adjusting Amp-Hour Drift
If the battery systems remains unused for several
weeks, the amp-hour tracking function of the DCE will
start to lose accuracy. This is because small
calibration and measurement errors can accumulate,
causing the displayed amp-hours to “drift” so that it no
longer reflects true amp-hours remaining. To minimize
this long term drift, you can program an amp-hours
drift compensation value between 0 and 100, which
will increase the accuracy. The nominal drift value is
55; to change this value, remove power from the DCE,
press and hold both the +and
55; to change this value, remove power from the DCE,
keys and then
re-apply power to the DCE. Use the and
keys and then
keys to
set the desired value. Press the +key for 1/2 second to
save the new value.
If the displayed amp-hour is drifting down faster than
actual amp-hours, increase the drift compensation
value slightly. If it is drifting upward faster, then
decrease the value slightly.
3

15272 Newsboy Circle
Huntington Beach
California 92469
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
E-Mail: [email protected]
www.newmarpower.com
4
Notes and Warnings
a) When setting functions that require you to hold
down a key while applying power – turn OFF the
power, then hold the key(s) down during and for at
least 3 seconds AFTER the power has been applied.
b) A display of “----“means the unit thinks the amp
reading is greater than -500amps.
c) It is important to run the ground wire from pin A all
the way back to the shunt negative.
NMEA 0183 Sentences
Volts: $IIXDR, U, xx.x, V,VAH35,*C
Amps: $IIXDR,I,xxx,A, VAH35, *CS
A-H Remaining: $IIXDR,G,xxx, ,VAH35,*CS
*CS =Check Sum
Specifications
Power Supply: 9.5 to 33.0 VDC, .018 amps nominal
Operating Temperature: 32 to 122 F (0 to 50 C)
Size: 2.5” dia X 4.1” deep (61mm x 104mm).
Accuracy: Better than +/- 0.1 VDC for volts and 1% +/-
1 Amp for amps, front panel adjustable.
Ranges: Volts 1,2 &3 - 9.5 to 33.0 VDC
Amps - -500 to +500 Amps*
Amp-Hours - 100 to 3000 A/H*
Capacity Remaining - 0 to 100*
Shunt: 500 Amp, 50mV*
*Applies to Bank 1 (house bank) only
Alarms: High, Low Voltage & Low Amp-Hours
Display: 4 digit LCD, 5 levels of backlighting.
NMEA 0183: $IIXDR, V; $IIXDR, A; $IIXDR,G