This afternoon we pushed through and completed the new test bench setup, ready for the next batch of Scouts hitting the benches late this week.
The new(ish) Victron Ektrano GX device accepts up to 25 x VE Direct inputs, and we’ve plugged in 2 x 13 way USB hubs so we can utilise it as much as possible. Into each of those hubs is 12 x 500A Smart Shunts. The bench has 24 shunts in total so we have half plugged into each. We’re guessing this is probably a first for this being done but in typical Victron style it was smooth sailing.
Still some cable tidying to do, once we’ve fully tested it. Murphy’s law says as soon as we tie everything up neatly, something will go wrong.
The system gets a little sluggish on the VRM side, but works well overall. We will still need a display for each test rig, so we have some very basic Android tablets coming for each rig. This gives us the ability to see the data when we’re standing in front of a battery, and the reset functions are easily available without logging out and in each shunt.
It also gives us the ability to produce accurate graphs of the battery performance during these tests if/when needed.
If anyone wants to know if a USB hub works in these units, the answer is YES 🙂
