Robitronic EXPERT User manual

Sounds to signalise end of charge:
There is a choice of 10 different melodies for signalling. Pressing the Start-button will play the selected melody.
Sound repeat will select the time to repeat the signal after charging is completed and may be set between 0 and 50 seconds. This will make
sure that any accidental cut-off will be noticed. To switch off the signal press any key or disconnect the battery.
CHARGING
Connecting a battery:
Connect the battery to charge to the front side wires - red to the positive (+) pole and black to the negative (-) pole. Reverse connecting the
battery sounds an alarm.
To start charging:
Correctly connected batteries will show "RDY" and the battery voltage on the mutlifunctional display.
Pressing the Start-button will start the charging process. The control LED lights up to confirm the charging process. The charging current,
battery voltage, temperature and time elapsed since start will be shown on the display.
End of charging:
Charging will be terminated automatically whenever the Delta Peak voltage or the preset temperature is reached and will be made heard
by a melody. The time for charging and charged capacity will be shown on the display.
To manually terminate the charging process just press the Start-button again (LED goes off).
Preset profiles:
TIP:
For better battery care we recommend our Robitronic Equalizer Discharge Tray (# RS111).
Regular use of our discharge tray should prolonge lifetime and enhance performance of your packs.
Specifications:
·Quick single cell discharge of saddle or side-by-side packs.
·Automatic cut-off at 0,8 V/cell to prevent deep discharge.
·Equalises discharge level for all cells.
·LED indiactor for single cells.
·Suited for packs with or without soldered socket connectors.
TROUBLESHOOTING
Asterix in current display:
Whenver an asterix is shown on the display near the charging current the current had to be reduced because of overload conditions.
To correct this problem reduce the supply voltage or reset the charging current to a lower setting.
Wrong display of temperature:
Strange or constantly changing values for the temperature display indicate a broken wire to the probe. As this may lead to false cut-off one
should disable the temperature cut-off as a quick work-around. Repair of the defective temperatue probe is recommended.
Charging won't start:
"OFF" is still displayed after pressing the Start-button: Check for correct connections, broken wires or defective cells.
Robitronic EXPERT Charger - Instructions
Features:
·EXP-3P-Software for Expert-charging control in 3 steps
·Programmable charging modes for NiMH and NiCd batteries
·Charging capability: 4 to 8 cell packs
·Charge rate adjustable between 0,1 and 10 Amps
·Peak voltage and/or temperature cut-off detection (may be used in combination)
·6 different pre-programmed charge profiles (may be modified individually)
·Backlit multifunctional display
·Display of input voltage, charge time, capacity, charge current,
battery voltage, peak voltage and battery temperature
·Internal resistance is displayed when using EXP-3P mode
·Automatic charge resume after power source failure
·Built-in delay timer for programmable start of charging
·Adjustable trickle charge rate (may be switched off for NiMH)
·Input Voltage between 12 and 15 V= (automotive battery or stabilised power supply)
·Overload protected power MOSFETs
·Reverse voltage protection circuit
·Select one out of 10 melodies to signalise "charging completed"
·User selectable repeat rate for charging completed melody
·Choice of temperature display in Celsius or Fahrenheit
General information:
The Robitronic Expert is a computerised high performance charger. It was developed with ergonomics and reliability in mind. The backlit
multifunctional display provides total information about the charging progress and the state of the battery on charge.
ATTENTION
When using high current settings internal pressure may build up during the recharging process causing a risk of explosion when charging
old or defective cells. Therefore always keep the charger and batteries on charge well away from small children.
When charging from an automotive battery avoid contact between output leads and car body. Positive wire is connected straight through
from input to output shorting out the car battery when this happens.
CONNECTIONS
Connect the red wire (positive) and the black wire (negative) from the backside(!) of the Expert Charger
to a suitable power supply.
Suitable power supplies are automotive batteries or stabilised power supplies with a high enough output
current rating and an output voltage between 12 and 15 V=.
Connecting the charger the wrong way will trigger an electronic protection circuit. If this happens there is
no need to change a blown fuse, just connect the charger correctly (red wire to + and black wire to -).
MULTIFUNCTIONAL DISPLAY
Overview:
!
Robitronic Electronic Ges.m.b.H. -Stutterheimstrasse 16-18/2 *A-1150 Vienna *Austria
Tel.: [phone] *Fax: [phone] *Em@il: [email protected] *Homepage: http://www.robitronic.com/
Input +/-
Output +/-
Multifunctional Display
Minus (-)
button
Plus (+)
button
Led
Start/Stop
Setup
Menu
Sound
Repeat
Rate:
0 sec
Sound
Nr: 1
Play
= START Key
No. Method Current setting Delta Peak Peak-Lock Temperature Trickle Best for
1 Linear 5.0A 8mV/cell 0min 50°C No NiMH
2 EXP-3P 9.0A / 6.0A / 4.0A 50°C No NiMH
3 Linear 5.0A 20mV/cell 0min 50°C Ye s NiCd
4 EXP-3P 9.0A / 6.0A / 4.0A 50°C Yes NiCd
5 Linear 4.5A 8mV/cell 5min 50°C No NiMH reduced current setting
6 EXP-3P 7.5A / 4.5A / 3.5A 50°C No NiMH reduced current setting
Attaching the temperature probe
English
1
Main display
Timer display
Charging profil
Charging mode
Linear
Temperature and trickle
Select melody
Select repeat rate
CHG
23.5 C 03:14
6.0A
9.25 0264
o
--->>
SETUP <---
StartTimer
0min
Profil
#: 1
Chg-MMode:
EXP-33P
Chg-MMode:
Linear
Current
: 5.0A
Current:
3-PPhase
9.0A
6.0A 4.0A
Current:
5.0A
Overcharge:
3min
Peak:
8 mV/cell
Peak-LLock:
0min
CutOffTemp: 50 C
Trickle
: No
Sound
Repeat
Rate:
0 sec
Sound
Nr: 1
Play
= START Key
o
Charging mode
EXP-3P
Peak Voltage
Peak Lock
4. charging
phase
Version 2

To start the countdown just press the Start-button. A blinking colon shows when the countdown is running. The delay timer will be reset to
0 after activation but the selected delay time is not saved to memory (it has to be set newly whenever the delay timer is used).
Charging modes:
6 different charging profiles (settings) may be stored to the built-in memory to give a personalised and convenient choice of charging modes
for NiMH and NiCd batteries.
Linear mode and EXP-3P profile:
There is a choice between the conventional linear charging mode using constant current or the sophisticated EXP-3P profile developed by
Robitronic. "EXP-3P" stands for "Expert 3-Phase Charging", a software programme to optimise the current setting depending on the status
of the battery on charge.
·Phase 1: battery is charged with a very high current (8 - 9 Amps) to gain maximum voltage under load (during discharge)
·Phase 2: battery is charged as in linear mode (current is 5 - 6 Amps)
·Phase 3: current is reduced to 3 - 4 Amps to enhance capacity
After reaching the Peak-voltage you can adjust a 4. Phase for charging. Where you can continue charging with a settable time and current.
This is in order to get more Temperature on the batterie when you use the EXP charging mode.
Using 4 charging phases in combination with different current settings will result in higher output voltage and increased capacity (compared
to conventional charging modes using one constant current setting only).
Adjusting the charge current:
When using the EXP-3P profile there is a need to adjust the current settings for all 3 phases seperately. Current setting for phase 1 should
be as high as possible - depending on the ability the of power supply in use to deliver high currents.
At the 4. Phase you can adjust a time (0-20 minutes) where the charger continue charging after reaching the Peak-Level. With this method
you can reach a higher Voltage Level (means more punch) when using at competition.
Peak Voltage and Peak-Lock timer setting:
Peak voltage and Peak-Lock timer may be set only in Linear Mode, when using EXP-3P mode the peak voltage setting will be adjusted
automatically to the battery on charge. Peak setting is used to determine the Delta Peak voltage for cut-off and should be selected
according to the battery to be charged. For NiMH batteries a value of 8 mV/cell and for NiCd batteries 20 mV/cell are recommended. The
range for the Delta Peak detection may be set between 4 mV/cell and 40 mV/cell. Delta Peak detection may be deactivated to cut-off on
temperature only.
Peak-Lock is set to block out Delta Peak detection for a certain time to allow reliable charging of older battery packs with inconsistent
voltage characteristics in Linear Mode.
Cut-Off temperature setting:
Temperature cut-off may be selected as an extra safety feature by attaching the provided temperature probe to the battery. Temperature
cut-off may be disabled by increasing the value untill "OFF" shows in the display.
When charging in EXP-3P mode the use of the temperature probe is strongly recommended because of the high current settings used in
phase 1.
Trickle charging:
Continued charging with short pulses after the regular charge is only recommended for NiCd batteries.
With no battery connected, "OFF" status and supply voltage will be shown on the display.
Status display:
OFF OFF - No battery connected
CHG Charge - Charging
RDY Ready - Charging completed
TRK Trickle - Trickle charging
ERR Error - Battery connection wrong or supply voltage too low
Display during charge in progress:
Display when charging is completed:
Calculation and display of internal resistance is only possible when using the EXP-3P mode for charging. Lower internal resistance stands
for higher voltage output during discharge and therefor higher revs.
Peak voltage is the maximum voltage reached during the charging process, a higher peak voltage is also a sign for higher intenal
resistance.
Switching the temperature display from Celsius to Fahrenheit (and back to Celsius):
To change the units for the temperature display just hold down the (-) button when powering on the charger. This setting will be stored even
when disconnecting the power supply.
Warnings and errors:
Whenever the power supply voltage is low or a battery is reverse connected the message
"ERR" will be shown and a warning sound will be heard.
If the power supply is interrupted during charging, the process will resume automatically after
the power supply is on and stabilised again.
SETTINGS
Setting the parameters for charging:
Switch to Set Up Mode by pressing the Mode-button - the display will change to show the programmed settings. Press the Mode-button
again to shift the cursor (= underline) to the next parameter. To change any underlined parameter press the Plus (+) or Minus (-) button.
Saving the paramters:
To store the modified parameters into memory hold down the Mode-button when pressing the Start-button again. When writing to
memory is completed there will be a signal heard. Settings stored to memory will be loaded whenever the charger is connected to a power
supply.
To use the new parameters without saving to memory just press the Start-button again to quit the Set Up Mode.
Delay timer:
To activate the programmable delay timer switch to Set Up Mode. Select a value between 0 and 99 minutes for the delay before starting
a new charge. This works similar to a tea timer. Charging will start after the count down timer reached 0. This delayed charging procedu-
re is especially useful for competition racing where charging "to the minute" is essential. And you will never again have to race with a bat-
tery charged only partially.
OFF
71.8 F 00:00
0.0A
13.5V 0000
Degrees Fahrenheit
OFF
22.1 C 00:00
0.0A
13.5V 0000
Degrees Celsius
--->>
SETUP <---
StartTimer
0min
Profil
#: 1
Chg-MMode:
Linear
Profil
#: 1
Chg-MMode:
EXP-33P
Chg-MMode:
Linear
Current
: 5.0A
Current:
3-PPhase
9.0A
6.0A 4.0A
Current:
5.A
Overcharge:
3min
Peak:
8 mV/cell
Peak-LLock:
0min
CutOffTemp:
50 C
Trickle
: No
OFF
22.1 C
00:00
0.0A
13.5V 0000
Status display
CHG
23.5 C 03:14
6.0A
9.25 0264
CHG
23.5 C 03:14
4.5
9.25 0264
Charging Battery temperature Time elapsed since start of charging
Current Battery voltage
(2 decimals showing)
an asterix behind the current appears whenever the current
was reduced (because of overload conditions)
Charged capacity in mAh
TRK
34.9 C 35:27
0.0A
10.3p 3416
Trickle charge
Peak voltage
(maximum voltage reached during charging)
RDY
34.9 C 35:27
5.6R
10.3p 3416
Ready (charge completed)
Internal resistance
(in mOhms - only when using EXP-3P mode)
Supply voltage
oo
*
o
oo
oo
o
2 3
ERR
22.1 C 00:00
0.0A
9.5V 0000
Error
o