Andy, I received my JK 200A inverter BMS last week It arrived with version 15.10 Fireware, and yesterday I attempted to update to 15.11 and of course, I bricked it, using the firmware file from your site, I then attempted to restore but no go, the bottom line is that I eventually downloaded from the JK website and that worked a treat just by pressing the on off button, maybe the newer hardwire version does not like the file name change? I see that JK have put a link to the unbricking password generator. I have been watching your videos for about 18 months and must congratulate you for the wonderful work you are doing! I have gained a lot of knowledge by watching your channel and believe that I owe you more than a beer so would like to buy you a case of your favourite oettinger, please let me know your nearest DM’s that you can collect from. Cheers from sunny Cape Town RSA
There is not just one chip. First chip is USB to serial single ended like you would use for an RS232 port. There are several different chips for USB to serial, all do same thing but require different PC drivers. All drivers will usually install automatically as long as you have web connection to download driver. You have to look up the assigned COM port number.by your PC. The COM port assignment depends on what devices you have previously installed. Sometimes you need to check the assigned baud rate but the JK PC software likely defaults the setup to 9.6 kbps or 19.2 kbps. Second chip is the 8 pin SOIC which is usually MAX485 or Chinese clone of it. It takes in serial data and converts to RS485 two wire balanced data. Balanced line impedance for twisted pair is about 100 ohms impedance which is close to standard internet CAT5e, CAT6 cables which have four twisted pairs in one cable. For long lines and multiple RS485 devices connected, the first device and last device should have 120 ohm termination resistors to prevent data pulse reflections on cable that can corrupt data reception. Some USB to RS485 converters have the 120 ohm termination resistors across the twisted wire pair and some do not. Again, only the first device and last device in the string of connected devices should have the 120 ohm termination resistors. You can check across the two terminals with ohm meter to see if it measures about 100 ohms indicating the USB to RS485 converter has the termination resistor. This first and last termination rule also applied to multiple connected BMS's. The documents should say something about the last BMS in the string should get an RJ45 connector plugged into second RS485 port with a termination resistor in the RJ45 plug. The BMS communications is actually MODBUS protocol on top of RS485 twisted pair, balanced data for physical data link. On top of the MODBUS protocol is another protocol of the various inverter/BMS protocols which includes particular functional register location assignments, like where cell #3 voltage is stored and how to request a lowering of inverter's or charge controller's charging current to prevent an overvoltage cell shutdown by BMS.
Hi again Andy, I am finally there with getting the PC working with the JK software, I have updated to the latest version aswell, after all the adapters I tried around 5, the one that worked for me was the industrial usb to rs485 with the FT232 FTDI chipped adapter from aliexpress,(pictured on your website) with drivers downloaded from FTDI website, which arrived this morning, Running on my Win10 laptop on usb 2.0, with version 2.4 JK software (would probably worked with 2.7 but 2.4 was what I had running on my laptop) my original firmware on my bms was V. 4.03 and now is 4.20, I used dip switch to 1000 and used the first port on the right hand side RJ45, for connection of the ethernet cable I used pin 1 (white/orange) on A and pin 2 (orange) on B and didn’t need the ground at all, sorry for the lengthy message, but I wanted to let anyone who may have been following my previous messages. Enjoy the SPATS and thanks for putting this video up for us struggling with connecting JK inverter bms, regards Dean Rowles in not so sunny UK 🇬🇧
Thanks for your donation recently🙏 At the end you can only try and especially with the cheaper adapters, they sometimes come with counterfeilt chips and drivers don't work correctly. Thanks for sharing, that is great help!
Hi Andy, As always your video is informative and most importantly understandable for beginners. I would love it if you did some videos on home automation, ESPHome and Home Assistant. The topic is vast and interesting for many users. Of course there are many videos on the subject, but unlike others, you make things understandable for beginners. Thank you for that.
Thanks for your feedback and suggestion. I really only use Home Assistant to display data, not really automate anything (apart form a few lights and pumps). Making videos about HA is very specific and and a bit off-topic for my channel. I'll see if I can make some in the future when it is related to the solar and battery topic.
Thanks again for the informative video! Last week i tried whole evening to get it working like this with an even cheaper usb-rs485 adapter. It only has super small A an B port, but yeah, for €2.95.... Recognized in windows, but no communication with the JK software at all. Checked with different cables, swopped A and B at the end, but no luck... Now bought the one with blue transparent housing for €6 and it works immediately! Connecting the BMS is indeed simple, but using an adapter for €2 was too good to be truth😂
You are a clearvoyant!! The adapter is the problem many guys have. Last week I bought to be prepared 5 different ones, nearly the same you tested. Thanks and greetings from former West-Berlin. Michael
Greetings Andy from sunny Florida USA (don't hold that against me!). I wanted to thank you for all of your videos and ESPECIALLY this one. I purchased a DIY kit that came with a JBD BMS for 16S LifePo4 batteries. I am completely new to battery packs and solar but I am addicted! I started off with this relatively simple DIY pack since it was a kit, and had good instructions from the seller. However there was ZERO information about the JBD BMS, even when installing it I struggled to find the actual part # because everything I thought was it would come back with nothing on Google. Anyways I saw this video and your BMS looks identical to mine only its a JBD not a JK (if there's even a difference). I had no idea what the ports were for (well I had an idea but no clue about the parallel and how to communicate with the BMS using computer software). I immediately went out and purchased one of the RS485 devices you showed and wired it up with an old ethernet cable just like in your video. At first I was having trouble communicating with the BMS, apparently JBD makes several versions or types of its software, none of them worked right, I tried the JK BMS and that did not pick up the BMS. So I went to the Ali-Express website and went to the official JBD webpage, from there I was able to download yet another varient of the software. This one looked a bit more promising when unzipped, many more files/folders. After some fiddling with it I was able to connect!! I had suspected that the values for high voltage cutoff were being set too low (3.3v) vs 3.5v. I remember manually charging the battery with an appropriate charger and then seeing the LCD screen showing I think around 3300mV give or take. I could have been wrong. However I think I'm right based on the parameters I could see in the BMS software. I made a change from 3.3 to 3.5 with a absolute cutoff voltage of 3.6. I also adjusted the maH to properly represent my batteries capacity. I am charging one up now to see if it does indeed charge the batteries to a nice full 3.5v instead of 3.3 if it works I will be wildly happy! I took a backup of the default configuration just in case. I want to thank you, without this video I would have never probably been able to connect to the BMS. Also thank you for your videos in general, your videos helped me learn how to wire up JK BMS's as well as I use them a lot. Keep up the great video's! Cheers mate!
For your information, CH340 is the USB chip, this is the one reported by Windows when you connect adapter. It's not related to RS485 and this is the same chip on most Arduino/ESP32 modules. In the last adapter, the chip is a MAS485 which convert RS485 signal to TTL signal routed to CH340 then to USB port. You also should have another chip than CH340 on the blue adapter.
Dear furydonnico, you are right by 200 %. Most people don't know the difference between RS232 and RS485. All the adapters that Andy is looking at are indeed pure RS232 to USB adapters. Internally there is also another chip to convert the RS485 voltage levels to TTL RS232 levels. Those TTL signals are routed to the CH340, to the FTDI RL232, ... As a consequence these adapters will only listen to "the character based RS232 protocol". Of course , RS232 is not a protocol, but it does RX/TX of bytes , starting each byte with a startbit and ending with a stop bit (mostly they don't use the parity bit). As a consequence , other RS485 protocols that are not using the concept of start-bit, 8 data bits, one stop bit, will NOT be compatible with those so-called RS485 converters. Those so-called RS485 adapters are only usefull if they are dealing with the startbit,8databits,stopbit as communication brick. Most of the time the JK_BMS company is to blame : they call whatever com port a RS485 port, (even when it is a pure RS232 port). Too much moutai at the engineering department of JK_BMS. Dear Andy is making a short-cut. The wrong one ....
There are various combinations of progressive higher quality and more expensive adaptor. Basic level is what you mostly showed. Just USB to serial chip followed by serial to RS485 chip. No isolation, no or little ESD protection. The FTDI chip has advantage that it has a Tx/Rx direction enable pin to control the direction of the one-way simplex RS485 chip. Many of the cheap units use the Tx data line to feed the data direction switching of the RS485 chip. This causes a problem with logic zero not being force driven, relying on 120 ohm pull down resistor for logical zero Rx data. This can cause issues with distorted data when you have long lines on RS485. Second level of quality is having more elaborate ESD protection on RS485. Third level of quality is having full galvanic isolation between USB/serial circuitry and RS485 circuity. These are the most expensive but provide the best electrical isolation between source and destination devices. These USB to RS485 converter has a black rectangular box that is an isolated 5vdc to 5vdc DC to DC converter. You can have several thousand volts between 5v circuitry on one side and 5v circuitry on other side of DC to DC converter. In addition to 5vdc isolation, there is also an optical or magnetic data transfer isolation for the serial data going from USB to serial chip and RS485 chip. You can have several thousand volts between source and destination chassis and data flow will still work and there will no damage of the source and destination equipment. Industrial applications use this to control various equipment, like powerful electric motors with VFD drives that may have their chassis ground potential jacked up in the air due to long AC power wiring runs. Also protects source device when destination circuitry gets a lightning hit voltage gradient.
CH340 is a very common USB-to-Serial asynchronous (UART) communications converter. On the USB side, together with its Windows device driver, it emulates a COM port on a Windows computer. On the UART side, it works with both 3.3V and 5V TTL voltage levels for the RX / TX signals. Then they used another chip (e.g. MAX485) to convert from TTL levels to RS485 voltage levels. It can also be paired with a MAX232 to generate RS232 voltage levels.
I tried 2 adapters with the CH340 chip and no matter what I did driver wise, neither worked for me, first time I tried FT232 chipped adapter it worked straight away
Hi Andy (and others) 18:00 . In the documentation you're showing from the Victron manual, you're showing cable type A, with GND on Pin 6; However when I look at the JK BMS, it describes GND on number 15, which corresponds to pin number 2 for GND. This means it would be a Type B cable in de Victron documentation/world. This leads to confusion in the forums. Is my conclusion correct, it should be a type B cable instead of type A?
Noooo, it's always Type A cable. JK shows the numbering from the wrong side! This is a bug in their manual for... for... I don't know why they don't fix this. You actually don't need GND at all CANL and CANH will work without. I should probably do a video about it and we build our own Type AB cable for the JK-BMS.
For a reliable communication (e.g. monitoring with dbus-serialbattery) you should connect GND. The cheap RS485 implementation inside the BMSs are not isolated and therefore are limited by their common mode (voltage) range. Because the BMSs are not isolated, the adapter used in the Victron system (or in the computer) must be an isolated type to prevent large ground currents.
Great Stuff Andy, answering a lot of questions people have... One Thing you haven't Tested / Commented on : Have you tried these BMS with Diffirent Sized Packs linked together into a bank ? IE a 100AH with a 200AH & 300AH in parallel (or similar) to see how the BMS' interact & operate through the ranges and how will the BMS cope with that. There may be an "eye opener" lurking there.
Hey Andy was watching an old video of you building the battery shelf, where did you get those cool red bus bar stand offs from ? their so much simplers than the stand offs we had to use in PMG/ TELSTRA telephone exchanges!!
You have to have a look in the Voltronic manual what communication standard they are using (RS485 or CAN) and what the pin-out is for this inverter. They are all different unfortunately.
Heya, just yesterday I ordered the jk BMS will be here in 7 - 14 days. still not ready testing all the cell's will keep you informed and want to upload it to YT
Hi Andy, can tell me the connection between the Peter Board and the Victron Cerbo, witch can port ? the BMS-CAN or the VE-CAN, thx !!! love your comments
Hello, Andy. Do you advise interfacing the Raspberry Pi (with isolated CAN adapter) with the new JKBMS via CAN port? Thanks for your advice and the for the awesome work with the OGG!
Thank you. Yes, that should work as well. I've connected the Pi and CAN hat with the Peter boards but it should also work with the JK Inverter-Boards directly.
Hello i tried with Can raspi hat but nothing works with jkbms directly Can port. I change bitrates to 250k With seplos it was ok. Did you have any advice ?
I have the older JK B1A20S15P, which I think you had at one point (or one similar to it). Did you ever do a video on RS-485 communications with it, and/or upgrading it's firmware? I will have a couple banks of 304Ah EVE batteries soon, and have ordered the JK inverter BMS for those banks. I saw your video on the communications with the inverter BMS, thank you. The older JK BMS runs fine, but there is no comm with the inverter. My inverter supports Pylontech as one of the options...I have the Waveshare RS-485 adapter.
Hi Andy Can I connect my old JK bms with new? In my garage 3 battery with old bms b1a20s15p, I want to buy new jk bms with new battery, but dont know can it work together? Or do I need to sell all my old boards and buy new ones
12:21 in video. What if i used USB-RS485 Peacefair and i see all parameters from my JK bms 200a 16s, but i do not have options to click like "settings, control, logging,detail log, about"? These tabs are grey on my pc. What should i do? I would like to update a firmware.
Thank you Andy. I am using the DTK DRF2659C RS485 to Zigbee (wireless) converters to overcome issues with long RS485 cabling. Believe that the DRF2659C and DRF2658C (USB version) can be combined to convert from RS485 to USB over Zigbee.
Thanks Alfred. I wasn't aware that RS485 has long cable issues. I thought it was specifically designed for long distances...? I would not recommend using Bluetooth or even Zigbee for such time sensitive data transmission. Zigbee is not made for that and is very very slow.
Thanks Andy. You are absolutely right, RS485 supports transmission over very long cable distances (up to 1200m). The reason why I am using Zigbee was the difficulty of installing a cable from the front of the house to the garage (separate building) around 30m away. Because of signal strength issues and WIFI interference, I am using a DRF2659C in a router mode in between the two end-points. The connection is slow but very reliable.
Not the cheapest but I really like the Waveshare stuff. They have lots of interface converters in very good quality. Just recently add a RS232/485 to ethernet converter to my system and it works perfect to sit in my office and have running the BMS Computer Software running on my Desktop PC. I although added a 7“ Touch Display from them to my Victron Cerbo and it works perfect out of the box without any need to configure in the Venus OS. Just plug and play… A very good alternative display for the original Victron one and only around 50€ + some usb and hdmi cables 👍🙂
Thanks for the info. That is a very interesting project. Do you have a part list of what is needed? Happy to make a video if you send me an email with all the details.
I bought an RS485 adapter but it never came with USB adapter just 3 bare wires. Then I bought the USB adapter with FT232RL chip and it still did not work. JK-BMS monitor V2.8 on Win 10 PC showed it was connected but there was no data showing. After 2 days messing around it turned out I had to change an Advanced Setting on the BMS first (using smart phone with BT) namely change to UART 1 Protocol No - 001 JK BMS RS485 Modbus v1.0 Then the adapter works perfectly.
Exactly the same as me, I do it also with my Inverter (PowMr) via RS-232 (ESP32, MAX3232, and AMS1117) powered from the inverter's 12V async port. I do Grid AC Monitoring via a PZEM-016 connected via RS485 (ESP32, MAX3485, and AMS1117) powered from the PZEM's 5V output. Everything goes to Home Assistant (MQTT) via WiFi. Doesn't require any vendor specific websites to store (or lose) the data.
@@DavidPruei have also powmr hvm pro 6.2 kwt model and i have older bms (black one with 2a balancer), use it with Syssi integration from Github over bluetooth, its works good. But i have questions did you use this new jk bms with Powmr communication over cable, and what protocol did you chose on inverter and bms?If its not supported by Powmr, can i just connect this bms to the battery and use this new bms without connecting to Powmr?Thank you
@@JohnBercow-e1h Yes, you do not need to connect the BMS to the PowMr. I made an ESSP board with rs485 and async serial so that it can talk to both devices and update the inverter with up to date info about SOC etc.
@@DavidPrue can you please David share some more information about an Essp board? How it works, and how to achieve communication between bms and Powmr. Seems like i have very similar setup to yours and the same goal. Thank you
Hello! We are struggling in connecting JKong BMS to our Daxtromn 6.2kw inverter which has a built in BmS… the batteries we got are simple 105Ah with no input/output for communication with the inverter’s BMS. Could you please please help us with understanding what cable we should use and how to make it (or where to buy it)? Thank you!!!
Hi Andy, could you make a video with the same level of explanation for connecting the EBC-A20 to the computer? I've already connected mine, but sometimes it connects and sometimes it doesn't. In addition to losing connection in the middle of the test. I use Windows 10.
Sooooo…. I get the wiring 485 to usb to connect to PC. But will a rj45 cable( victron) not work out of the rs485 port of the jkbms and plug right into my cerbo and I have to splice the wires because the CAN H and CAN L pin orders are different in the jkbms Vs cerbo???
Correct. You either need a Victron Type A cable or make your own by connecting the pins according to this document (www.victronenergy.com/live/battery_compatibility:can-bus_bms-cable). A standard LAN cable will NOT work.
I guess I'm behind in times lol... I only got the older style JK a few months ago but they are working great. All 3 doing like they should as far as I can tell
You're not behind. The newer JK just has some additional features and communication. To achieve the same with your models, you would need some additional hardware to upgrade (like the Peter board)
Hey Andy @OffGridGarageAustralia where it is nice and Sunny. :) CAN is not working here, could anyone point me? :) Good video as always!!! Though i want to mention that i was missing the JK BMS test with the CAN connection and that was the part i was looking for to see if i am missing something in my setup. I watched multiple videos of you about the CAN topic, but i cannot find my situation and problem, and i am looking for the solution. I hope you or anyone else can shine a light on it, or perhaps i found a bug? I am connecting the raspberri PI Venus OS through the CAN hat with the JK BMS on pins 4 and 5 and the right RJ45 port (the CAN port) as per your explanation and it just does not work. In comparison if i connect the same raspberri PI Venus OS through the CAN hat with the Victron MPPT on pins 7 and 8 it works fine without any issue. Now let me give you some connectiondata background as well: In both situations, with the MPPT and the JK BMS i see in Venus OS the settings->services->can0->network status mentioned as ACTIVE and i can see the RX and TX packets going up. In that same screen in both situations no overruns, error packets or dropped packets. As far as i can tell, everything from a hardware and packet perspective works fine. However the Venos OS refuses to see the JK BMS, but it does see the MPPT when connected through CAN. Furthermore this connection does: The Venus OS does see the JK BMS when i connect them both through bluetooth with the driver from Louis, however bluetooth is not reliable and gives often disconnects, so i want a CAN connection between the Venus OS and the JK BMS. My setup: - 1x Victron Multiplus II, 5000, 230V - 1x Victron MPPT 450/100 - 1x Victron Smartshunt - 32x LFP 280 Ah cells (currently connected only 16cells, to make it work) - 2x BMS of JK-PB2A16S20P (currently connected only 1, to make it work) - 1x RS485 CAN BUS Module HAT Expansion Board for Raspberry Pi (from your website) - 1x Raspberri PI with Venus OS large. Now i see in your videos you test the CAN situation with a different JK-BMS, could that be the difference? Could it be that only the version i am having has this issue? Thank you for reading and hope to see a video with a solution soon or a text reply from anyone. Both will work fine!
Thanks for your question. I am also interested in finding the solution for my future setup, too. As far as I remember, Andy connected the BMS with the Cerbo via CAN and it worked! No clue about Raspi, however.
Well the thing is that the CAN connection from my Raspi works with Victron equipment without issue. It is the JK BMS that gives me the issue. Hopefully there will be a reaction from Andy or someone else who has figured out howto properly connect those 2.
@@OffGridGarageAustralia yes i have tried different CAN protocol settings in the JK-BMS, including the Victron one. I will try some things out, with specifically only the Victron option selected and get back to tell the outcome and what i bump up against during the journey.
Did you get it to work? Im trying the same - without sucess. Victron Can-Type A cable, between Cerbo and the JK-CAN-Port. Victron is configured in the JK. The protocol in the JK is configured to "Victron". Is there anyone out there who got this running with a cerbo ?
Hi Andy, danke für all deine Videos 🧡. Ich habe eine Frage, die sicher auch irgendwo in deinen Infos vergraben ist, ich aber nicht gefunden habe. Es gibt das Thema mit dem Ground trennen bei den Victron-Systemen. Wie schaut das bei der Kombi mit dem JK BMS und Victron aus. Wo / wie muss hier auf die Trennung der Masse geachtet werden. Könntest Du mir da eine Info zu geben - oder wo ich die finde? Vielleicht wäre es auch mal wieder ein aktuelles Video wert - die Gesamtverdrahrung / Übersicht deines Systems. Lieben Dank, Marco Hi Andy, thanks for all your videos . I have a question that I'm sure is buried somewhere in your info, but I haven't found it. There is the issue of ground isolation with the Victron systems. What does this look like for the combination with the JK BMS and Victron? Where / how must the ground be separated? Could you give me some information on this - or where can I find it? Perhaps it would also be worth making an updated video - the overall wiring / overview of your system. Many thanks, Marco
Hello Sir, thank you for the good guideline film. Just curiosity, is it so that RS485 to RJ45 translation wiring is not defined by the standard ? I see that on many devices RJ45 signals are on pins A(5,6) B(3,5), 5V(1,2), GND(7,8) while JK use the A(2,7), B(1,8) and GND (3,6) ? BR KP
Andy, thanks for testing. Question is the JK BMS monitor also working with the old style BMSes? Would be great if we can adjust them via RS 485 instead of Bluetooth. Thanks for sharing and keep up the good work down under!
Hi Edward, that will not work. The software on the PC will only communicate with the new style inverter BMS. For the DB series of inverters you have to use BT.
Hi. I bought JK inverter BMS in December and 4.3 display from different suppliers. But display came without metal circle screws to mount it. I think Andy also get displays without them. They are necessary to mount display in XR07-48V280AH Power Box LiFePO4 from AliExpress and should be in display package box. Any advice? Where I can buy them separately?
they are normally included. on one side is a special insert to fix in the backside of the LCD (2 flat hooks), the other side looks like a gearwheel 30mm diameter. Where do you live?
@@OffGridGarageAustralia he is talking about the "screws" of the 4.3" LCD. they should have been also attached to your JK-4.3 LCD. Come in a silvery plastic bag. on one side is a special insert (look like two flat hooks) to fix in the backside of the LCD, the other side looks like a gearwheel of 30mm in diameter.
hello , think you are the one on the planet who can answer my question .... i have a Daly 250a li-ion bms 14s , and the problem is that , i only have 12 balancing wires and the ground wire ... is it possible to wire up the balancing wires so i can use the bms ... because it will not work with only 12 wires ... and i cant change the config of the battery because it is 2 Tesla modules at 25v with 6 balance wires each .... hope it would be possible , thx ... and great videos you produce ...
It seems like a lot of people in the comments are using the JK Inverter BMS here. Does someone know if it does also support the pylontech can bus protocoll? If yes it should be able to communicate with the same inverters as the seplos bms, right? thanks for answers in advance.
Hi Andy, for the test you used a battery monitor. Is this the one from SEPLOS which you can be downloaded from your Google-Drive, or does it come from JK?
@@upper_deck All resources are on my website. Have a look under the JK Inverter BMS here. There are the links to firmware, documents and also mobile and PC apps: off-grid-garage.com/battery-management-systems-bms/
Hi Andy I always follow you, I purchased the jk pb2a16s200a, obviously I have yet to receive it, it's on its way, but I wanted to ask you to manage the software needed, the RJ45 interface (there are really many types) and the USB interface or a network cable could be fine normal? another question is; What does the term 20A current limiter mean in the JK? you will have understood that I am a layman and besides, a retired metalworker manager we cannot have learned everything. good day from Italy greetings Stefano
That depends on your inverter model and what pins it uses for RS485 or CAN. Have a look in the manual of your inverter under communication. It should be described there.
Hello Dan, Greetings from France. Thanks you for this cristal clear video. Do you have a solution to replace the Victron MK3-USB interface (VICTRON to PC USB)? It's sold here for more than 70 Euros!
@@OffGridGarageAustralia When you order at the minerals official store you can choose including the adapter or not (+11 $), when you order the JK-V4 battery box from EEL it is included.....
Hi Andy. Do you know how to connect with JKBMS support. I've tried email them and write a request on the site but they haven't responsed. Seems they have an error in MUST CAN protocol in there current vertions 15.30, 15.33
Can anybody explain which connector to use between the jk bms CAN and the raspberry usb port? Any of shown adapters, the victron mk3 to usb or anything else?
Thank you very much for this video. Although, I do have a question because there is a clarification that I was hoping to get but which didn't come as I had expected. Anyone who has experience with it can assist with the relevant information. My MPPT charge controller has a communication port tagged RS485 and I noticed that it looked quite like the popular RJ45 port for ethernet cable connection. Unfortunately, my PC does not have a RJ45 port as it is one of those slim laptops. I will need to get me a converter which is what led me to this video. Before I purchase what will not work for me, I would like to know if the RJ45 cable will work with the RS485 communication port of my charge controller. If it will work, then I can look around for a RJ45 to USB cable converter thingy. So, I would also like to know if this will work because the video shows him using what looks like a RJ45 cable connection with the RS485 port on the inverter (I think) but still uses a RS485 to USB converter. If the RJ45 plug and cable can transmit from the device, wouldn't that directly work for the PC (and the BMS software) by just plugging the other RJ45 end to the RJ45 port of the PC? Why did you have to cut one side off, peel the wires and plug particular strands instead? Pardon my noobness. I wouldn't want to make a wrong purchase of items and then commit a painful mistake. Another question: is there a generic software for MPPT charge controller monitoring? Unfortunately, I can't reach out to the manufacturer in my own case because the seller delivered a generic looking MPPT box, although it seems to work as expected, based on all the information I have consumed around MPPT charge controllers and their battery charging work. Ordinarily, I would have reached out to the manufacturers to help with further clarification and information accordingly. Thanks to everyone.
Hello, I'm have strange issue with pb2a16s20p. When I'm connecting converter RS485 to connect with inverter it's time to time lost connection. So I check with RS485 usb converter but each conection BMS restart and give buzzer noise. After switch off led light from status are little light. And I hear noise from main board. Cable is ok and ground connected in RJ45. After I check CAN converter to usb. It's working but the same phenomenon. Each time when connection done BMS restart. And after 30min BMS switch off. I'm confused. It's new BMS. What can be wrong. In log file :Discharge short circuit protection released Please help. I want to use communication with Inverter. Thank you.
Hey andy, I have been watching your videos for a while to build my own DIY lifepo4 battery. I have ordered 8 cells to build a 24v battery. I want to use it with 3.2kw Solar inverter, with brand name 'Inverex' a chinese brand, which i bought 4 years ago. The inverter has usual Rj45 port (on manual, which supports Rs485 and Can bus). Now i am looking for a BMS which can communicate with my inverter. I have selected JK B2A8S20P with CAN bus port. Do you think this BMS can communicate with my inverter? Like using rj45 cable on inverter and on other side, rs485 or Can connector on BMS? Kindly guide.
Hi the moment I connect the usb to computer is behaves weirdly , the mouse keeps moving on its own and desktop becomes unstable, I am using wave share , is this a driver issue where can I get a driver ?
the Waveshare that Andy demonstrated is not isolated. The symptoms with your computer behaving weirdly is likely a ground loop. Replace your adaptor to one which has isolation - don't replace and in the worst case the magic smoke can come out of one or more devices. Some of the WS adaptors are isolated. Unfortunately i can't link due to FB preventions. In short the ones with 'industrial' are not the type you are after, you need to look for galvanic isolation keywords.
Hi Andy, have you tested with JK PB2A16S20P as well? For me, it only connects with JK-BMS-Monitor 2.1.0 and not all options are functional. At the manufacturer you have no one to talk to, they only answer what they want to answer. I have another problem with this model, from time to time, without my intervention, it warns of a short circuit and restarts the multiplus ll because the voltage suddenly drops to 35V. If I look at the Lynx shunt log at that time the current is 4-5 A., This is a false alarm I think, Have you faced such errors? If you have a support contact from JK please share it with me. Thank you, George
It's Chinese new year at the moment. Most companies are closed. They will answer it after the 20. Feb hopefully. Get the latest software from my website off-grid-garage.com/battery-management-systems-bms/
Hello, watching an interesting video and wondering if it works with a converter from rs 485 that converts the signal to wifi to grind cable. Is there a need for an app for a computer, if needed, where can you find it Hoping for an answer MVH Larry Hey
Thanks Andy, i learn in wikipedia, (not only) rs485 standart,(chinese arduino have same chip), is standart realy old, if chip right, no problems...(Thank You).
@@just_saw_dust I'm south east, and only have a small system with 8.74kW of panels, 8kW Quattro and 29kWh of batteries, BMS doesn't talk to the Victron system either. We do have a 50kW system where I work and I see just how badly that performs in the winter. In December it generated 735kWh, or average 23kWh a day, worse day though was 0.4kWh!!! So it seems a house with 47kW of panels and the amount of batteries the OP has could easily get by, but depends where they are and how much they use of course.
Off grid in my haulage companies yard noting but trailers no toilet no water...but happily living 5 nights in my self built campervan...nearly 2 years.
NEED YOUR HELP. i have bought JK BD6A20S10P BMS from Ali express few months before & asemble a 16 cell battery & now i want to communicate BMS with My invertor ( Solax X1-Hybrid-LV),please suggest me the accessaries .
Hey I have an older JK_B2A8S20P and B2A20S20P and a trying to get data from de GPS port with PL2303 TA USB TTL RS232 Converter, but no succes , I can sent data, but nothing in return in the JKBMS app, has anyone succeeded and with wich (chipset) converter?
Hi JK BMS Gott Könntest du bitte zeigen wie man beim JK BMS neue Generation denn Anschluss rs 485 auf victron gx hergestellt so das man auch das serialbattery betreiben kann. Das wäre super ich verneige mich hab so viel gelernt von dir, was du zeigst, funktioniert auch dann
Andy, I received my JK 200A inverter BMS last week It arrived with version 15.10 Fireware, and yesterday I attempted to update to 15.11 and of course, I bricked it, using the firmware file from your site, I then attempted to restore but no go, the bottom line is that I eventually downloaded from the JK website and that worked a treat just by pressing the on off button, maybe the newer hardwire version does not like the file name change? I see that JK have put a link to the unbricking password generator.
I have been watching your videos for about 18 months and must congratulate you for the wonderful work you are doing! I have gained a lot of knowledge by watching your channel and believe that I owe you more than a beer so would like to buy you a case of your favourite oettinger, please let me know your nearest DM’s that you can collect from. Cheers from sunny Cape Town RSA
This weekend my first battery, inspired by Andy and using the JK BMS will be a year old. Great video as always.
That is fantastic. Happy Birthday🎂
There is not just one chip. First chip is USB to serial single ended like you would use for an RS232 port. There are several different chips for USB to serial, all do same thing but require different PC drivers. All drivers will usually install automatically as long as you have web connection to download driver. You have to look up the assigned COM port number.by your PC. The COM port assignment depends on what devices you have previously installed. Sometimes you need to check the assigned baud rate but the JK PC software likely defaults the setup to 9.6 kbps or 19.2 kbps.
Second chip is the 8 pin SOIC which is usually MAX485 or Chinese clone of it. It takes in serial data and converts to RS485 two wire balanced data. Balanced line impedance for twisted pair is about 100 ohms impedance which is close to standard internet CAT5e, CAT6 cables which have four twisted pairs in one cable.
For long lines and multiple RS485 devices connected, the first device and last device should have 120 ohm termination resistors to prevent data pulse reflections on cable that can corrupt data reception.
Some USB to RS485 converters have the 120 ohm termination resistors across the twisted wire pair and some do not. Again, only the first device and last device in the string of connected devices should have the 120 ohm termination resistors. You can check across the two terminals with ohm meter to see if it measures about 100 ohms indicating the USB to RS485 converter has the termination resistor.
This first and last termination rule also applied to multiple connected BMS's. The documents should say something about the last BMS in the string should get an RJ45 connector plugged into second RS485 port with a termination resistor in the RJ45 plug.
The BMS communications is actually MODBUS protocol on top of RS485 twisted pair, balanced data for physical data link. On top of the MODBUS protocol is another protocol of the various inverter/BMS protocols which includes particular functional register location assignments, like where cell #3 voltage is stored and how to request a lowering of inverter's or charge controller's charging current to prevent an overvoltage cell shutdown by BMS.
Thank you for the deep-dive and explanation.
For me the issue were because of windows drivers for ch340 (w10/w11), after installing older ones, I could connect to the device
Hi again Andy, I am finally there with getting the PC working with the JK software, I have updated to the latest version aswell, after all the adapters I tried around 5, the one that worked for me was the industrial usb to rs485 with the FT232 FTDI chipped adapter from aliexpress,(pictured on your website) with drivers downloaded from FTDI website, which arrived this morning, Running on my Win10 laptop on usb 2.0, with version 2.4 JK software (would probably worked with 2.7 but 2.4 was what I had running on my laptop) my original firmware on my bms was V. 4.03 and now is 4.20, I used dip switch to 1000 and used the first port on the right hand side RJ45, for connection of the ethernet cable I used pin 1 (white/orange) on A and pin 2 (orange) on B and didn’t need the ground at all, sorry for the lengthy message, but I wanted to let anyone who may have been following my previous messages. Enjoy the SPATS and thanks for putting this video up for us struggling with connecting JK inverter bms, regards Dean Rowles in not so sunny UK 🇬🇧
Thanks for your donation recently🙏
At the end you can only try and especially with the cheaper adapters, they sometimes come with counterfeilt chips and drivers don't work correctly.
Thanks for sharing, that is great help!
@@OffGridGarageAustralia you are more than welcome, stay charged
Hi Andy,
As always your video is informative and most importantly understandable for beginners. I would love it if you did some videos on home automation, ESPHome and Home Assistant. The topic is vast and interesting for many users. Of course there are many videos on the subject, but unlike others, you make things understandable for beginners. Thank you for that.
Thanks for your feedback and suggestion.
I really only use Home Assistant to display data, not really automate anything (apart form a few lights and pumps). Making videos about HA is very specific and and a bit off-topic for my channel. I'll see if I can make some in the future when it is related to the solar and battery topic.
Thanks again for the informative video!
Last week i tried whole evening to get it working like this with an even cheaper usb-rs485 adapter. It only has super small A an B port, but yeah, for €2.95....
Recognized in windows, but no communication with the JK software at all.
Checked with different cables, swopped A and B at the end, but no luck...
Now bought the one with blue transparent housing for €6 and it works immediately!
Connecting the BMS is indeed simple, but using an adapter for €2 was too good to be truth😂
I thought one of mine was even cheaper than $2. But yeah, you never know, could be a counterfeit chip as well and the driver didn't work correctly.
You are a clearvoyant!! The adapter is the problem many guys have. Last week I bought to be prepared 5 different ones, nearly the same you tested. Thanks and greetings from former West-Berlin. Michael
Well, one of them should at least work😄
All the best to the Hauptstadt
Hi Andy
The chip is a CH340 varient has shown in your device manager.
Hence it is the chip 340E932 is the CH340
Finally the video I was looking for! Simple explanation and I succeded in one time! Thanks a lot.
Thanks for your great Videos, i learn a lot ;-) liebe grüße vom Fritz aus Österreich
Thanks a lot, Fritz. Great support. All the best from AU to A.
Greetings Andy from sunny Florida USA (don't hold that against me!). I wanted to thank you for all of your videos and ESPECIALLY this one. I purchased a DIY kit that came with a JBD BMS for 16S LifePo4 batteries. I am completely new to battery packs and solar but I am addicted! I started off with this relatively simple DIY pack since it was a kit, and had good instructions from the seller. However there was ZERO information about the JBD BMS, even when installing it I struggled to find the actual part # because everything I thought was it would come back with nothing on Google. Anyways I saw this video and your BMS looks identical to mine only its a JBD not a JK (if there's even a difference). I had no idea what the ports were for (well I had an idea but no clue about the parallel and how to communicate with the BMS using computer software). I immediately went out and purchased one of the RS485 devices you showed and wired it up with an old ethernet cable just like in your video. At first I was having trouble communicating with the BMS, apparently JBD makes several versions or types of its software, none of them worked right, I tried the JK BMS and that did not pick up the BMS. So I went to the Ali-Express website and went to the official JBD webpage, from there I was able to download yet another varient of the software. This one looked a bit more promising when unzipped, many more files/folders. After some fiddling with it I was able to connect!! I had suspected that the values for high voltage cutoff were being set too low (3.3v) vs 3.5v. I remember manually charging the battery with an appropriate charger and then seeing the LCD screen showing I think around 3300mV give or take. I could have been wrong. However I think I'm right based on the parameters I could see in the BMS software. I made a change from 3.3 to 3.5 with a absolute cutoff voltage of 3.6. I also adjusted the maH to properly represent my batteries capacity. I am charging one up now to see if it does indeed charge the batteries to a nice full 3.5v instead of 3.3 if it works I will be wildly happy! I took a backup of the default configuration just in case. I want to thank you, without this video I would have never probably been able to connect to the BMS. Also thank you for your videos in general, your videos helped me learn how to wire up JK BMS's as well as I use them a lot. Keep up the great video's! Cheers mate!
Kudos for the Gliedermaßstab ("Zollstock", folding rule) from Mühlheim a.d. Ruhr at 15:16 - Greetings from Germany ☀
For your information, CH340 is the USB chip, this is the one reported by Windows when you connect adapter. It's not related to RS485 and this is the same chip on most Arduino/ESP32 modules.
In the last adapter, the chip is a MAS485 which convert RS485 signal to TTL signal routed to CH340 then to USB port. You also should have another chip than CH340 on the blue adapter.
Dear furydonnico, you are right by 200 %. Most people don't know the difference between RS232 and RS485. All the adapters that Andy is looking at are indeed pure RS232 to USB adapters. Internally there is also another chip to convert the RS485 voltage levels to TTL RS232 levels. Those TTL signals are routed to the CH340, to the FTDI RL232, ...
As a consequence these adapters will only listen to "the character based RS232 protocol". Of course , RS232 is not a protocol, but it does RX/TX of bytes , starting each byte with a startbit and ending with a stop bit (mostly they don't use the parity bit). As a consequence , other RS485 protocols that are not using the concept of start-bit, 8 data bits, one stop bit, will NOT be compatible with those so-called RS485 converters. Those so-called RS485 adapters are only usefull if they are dealing with the startbit,8databits,stopbit as communication brick.
Most of the time the JK_BMS company is to blame : they call whatever com port a RS485 port, (even when it is a pure RS232 port). Too much moutai at the engineering department of JK_BMS.
Dear Andy is making a short-cut. The wrong one ....
Danke!
Thanks a lot for your great support!🍺👍
There are various combinations of progressive higher quality and more expensive adaptor.
Basic level is what you mostly showed. Just USB to serial chip followed by serial to RS485 chip. No isolation, no or little ESD protection.
The FTDI chip has advantage that it has a Tx/Rx direction enable pin to control the direction of the one-way simplex RS485 chip. Many of the cheap units use the Tx data line to feed the data direction switching of the RS485 chip. This causes a problem with logic zero not being force driven, relying on 120 ohm pull down resistor for logical zero Rx data. This can cause issues with distorted data when you have long lines on RS485.
Second level of quality is having more elaborate ESD protection on RS485.
Third level of quality is having full galvanic isolation between USB/serial circuitry and RS485 circuity. These are the most expensive but provide the best electrical isolation between source and destination devices. These USB to RS485 converter has a black rectangular box that is an isolated 5vdc to 5vdc DC to DC converter. You can have several thousand volts between 5v circuitry on one side and 5v circuitry on other side of DC to DC converter.
In addition to 5vdc isolation, there is also an optical or magnetic data transfer isolation for the serial data going from USB to serial chip and RS485 chip. You can have several thousand volts between source and destination chassis and data flow will still work and there will no damage of the source and destination equipment.
Industrial applications use this to control various equipment, like powerful electric motors with VFD drives that may have their chassis ground potential jacked up in the air due to long AC power wiring runs. Also protects source device when destination circuitry gets a lightning hit voltage gradient.
CH340 is a very common USB-to-Serial asynchronous (UART) communications converter.
On the USB side, together with its Windows device driver, it emulates a COM port on a Windows computer.
On the UART side, it works with both 3.3V and 5V TTL voltage levels for the RX / TX signals. Then they used another chip (e.g. MAX485) to convert from TTL levels to RS485 voltage levels. It can also be paired with a MAX232 to generate RS232 voltage levels.
Exactly correct. I frequently use the MAX3485 or MAX3232 with ESP32s, 8266s or other 3.3V TTL level processors.
I tried 2 adapters with the CH340 chip and no matter what I did driver wise, neither worked for me, first time I tried FT232 chipped adapter it worked straight away
Thanks for the detailed explanation, Daniel!
Hi Andy (and others) 18:00 . In the documentation you're showing from the Victron manual, you're showing cable type A, with GND on Pin 6; However when I look at the JK BMS, it describes GND on number 15, which corresponds to pin number 2 for GND.
This means it would be a Type B cable in de Victron documentation/world.
This leads to confusion in the forums. Is my conclusion correct, it should be a type B cable instead of type A?
Noooo, it's always Type A cable. JK shows the numbering from the wrong side! This is a bug in their manual for... for... I don't know why they don't fix this.
You actually don't need GND at all CANL and CANH will work without.
I should probably do a video about it and we build our own Type AB cable for the JK-BMS.
For a reliable communication (e.g. monitoring with dbus-serialbattery) you should connect GND. The cheap RS485 implementation inside the BMSs are not isolated and therefore are limited by their common mode (voltage) range. Because the BMSs are not isolated, the adapter used in the Victron system (or in the computer) must be an isolated type to prevent large ground currents.
So far, I never had any issues without GND, so I kept it disconnected.
Great Stuff Andy, answering a lot of questions people have...
One Thing you haven't Tested / Commented on :
Have you tried these BMS with Diffirent Sized Packs linked together into a bank ?
IE a 100AH with a 200AH & 300AH in parallel (or similar) to see how the BMS' interact & operate through the ranges and how will the BMS cope with that. There may be an "eye opener" lurking there.
Thanks for the feedback. I think i made quite a few videos about that already. A good one is this here: ruclips.net/video/bhCSccNsQOw/видео.html
Hey Andy was watching an old video of you building the battery shelf, where did you get those cool red bus bar stand offs from ? their so much simplers than the stand offs we had to use in PMG/ TELSTRA telephone exchanges!!
Hey, got them on my website. There is always a link under the video😉
off-grid-garage.com/electric-installation/
nice job Andy.
anyone on here got the new BMS working with SMA equipment?
is SMA even currently supported?
What would happen if you were to connect both 1&8 plus 2&7 together at the USB adapter?
You try it out and let us know😄
You are a cheerful, great guy. Greetings from Poland.
Thanks for your feedback my friend from Poland!
Hello Andy do you have any idea how I can make a communication between jk bms and voltronic inverter ?
You have to have a look in the Voltronic manual what communication standard they are using (RS485 or CAN) and what the pin-out is for this inverter. They are all different unfortunately.
Heya, just yesterday I ordered the jk BMS will be here in 7 - 14 days. still not ready testing all the cell's will keep you informed and want to upload it to YT
Oh, great, you will be happy with the JK.
Hi Andy, can tell me the connection between the Peter Board and the Victron Cerbo, witch can port ? the BMS-CAN or the VE-CAN, thx !!! love your comments
Only the BMS CAN will work. Also plug in that terminator in the second port.
Ve.CAN is only for Victron internal communication.
Hello, Andy. Do you advise interfacing the Raspberry Pi (with isolated CAN adapter) with the new JKBMS via CAN port? Thanks for your advice and the for the awesome work with the OGG!
Thank you.
Yes, that should work as well. I've connected the Pi and CAN hat with the Peter boards but it should also work with the JK Inverter-Boards directly.
Hello i tried with Can raspi hat but nothing works with jkbms directly Can port. I change bitrates to 250k With seplos it was ok. Did you have any advice ?
They most likely use a max485 chip with the ch340 chip as the serial to usb interface Andy.
Great, thank you.
The middle connector is called RJ11
I have the older JK B1A20S15P, which I think you had at one point (or one similar to it).
Did you ever do a video on RS-485 communications with it, and/or upgrading it's firmware?
I will have a couple banks of 304Ah EVE batteries soon, and have ordered the JK inverter BMS for those banks. I saw your video on the communications with the inverter BMS, thank you.
The older JK BMS runs fine, but there is no comm with the inverter. My inverter supports Pylontech as one of the options...I have the Waveshare RS-485 adapter.
Hi Andy
Can I connect my old JK bms with new? In my garage 3 battery with old bms b1a20s15p, I want to buy new jk bms with new battery, but dont know can it work together? Or do I need to sell all my old boards and buy new ones
They will work together, no problem, just not from a communication side of things.
We will have a solution for the communication in the near future.
@@OffGridGarageAustralia Thanks
12:21 in video. What if i used USB-RS485 Peacefair and i see all parameters from my JK bms 200a 16s, but i do not have options to click like "settings, control, logging,detail log, about"? These tabs are grey on my pc. What should i do? I would like to update a firmware.
Thanks for the adaptor solution and cabling chaos transparency. Good job. I am missing the Andy assi in front of the beer fridge. 😉😆😆😆
Thanks Carsten. Andy2 is on holiday atm. Thank goodness😆
Thank you Andy. I am using the DTK DRF2659C RS485 to Zigbee (wireless) converters to overcome issues with long RS485 cabling. Believe that the DRF2659C and DRF2658C (USB version) can be combined to convert from RS485 to USB over Zigbee.
Thanks Alfred. I wasn't aware that RS485 has long cable issues. I thought it was specifically designed for long distances...?
I would not recommend using Bluetooth or even Zigbee for such time sensitive data transmission. Zigbee is not made for that and is very very slow.
Thanks Andy. You are absolutely right, RS485 supports transmission over very long cable distances (up to 1200m). The reason why I am using Zigbee was the difficulty of installing a cable from the front of the house to the garage (separate building) around 30m away. Because of signal strength issues and WIFI interference, I am using a DRF2659C in a router mode in between the two end-points. The connection is slow but very reliable.
Not the cheapest but I really like the Waveshare stuff. They have lots of interface converters in very good quality. Just recently add a RS232/485 to ethernet converter to my system and it works perfect to sit in my office and have running the BMS Computer Software running on my Desktop PC. I although added a 7“ Touch Display from them to my Victron Cerbo and it works perfect out of the box without any need to configure in the Venus OS. Just plug and play… A very good alternative display for the original Victron one and only around 50€ + some usb and hdmi cables 👍🙂
Thanks for the info. That is a very interesting project. Do you have a part list of what is needed? Happy to make a video if you send me an email with all the details.
does display timeout feature work on the waveshare?
CAn you psot the exact model you ordered!!
Thank you so much Andy, that is exacly what I was looking for! 😀
I bought an RS485 adapter but it never came with USB adapter just 3 bare wires. Then I bought the USB adapter with FT232RL chip and it still did not work. JK-BMS monitor V2.8 on Win 10 PC showed it was connected but there was no data showing. After 2 days messing around it turned out I had to change an Advanced Setting on the BMS first (using smart phone with BT) namely change to UART 1 Protocol No - 001 JK BMS RS485 Modbus v1.0 Then the adapter works perfectly.
ESP32 (with some software) connected to JK BMS over Bluetooth sending data to Home Assistant over WiFi is what I use.
Exactly the same as me, I do it also with my Inverter (PowMr) via RS-232 (ESP32, MAX3232, and AMS1117) powered from the inverter's 12V async port. I do Grid AC Monitoring via a PZEM-016 connected via RS485 (ESP32, MAX3485, and AMS1117) powered from the PZEM's 5V output. Everything goes to Home Assistant (MQTT) via WiFi. Doesn't require any vendor specific websites to store (or lose) the data.
Is there a tutorial for this?
@@DavidPruei have also powmr hvm pro 6.2 kwt model and i have older bms (black one with 2a balancer), use it with Syssi integration from Github over bluetooth, its works good. But i have questions did you use this new jk bms with Powmr communication over cable, and what protocol did you chose on inverter and bms?If its not supported by Powmr, can i just connect this bms to the battery and use this new bms without connecting to Powmr?Thank you
@@JohnBercow-e1h Yes, you do not need to connect the BMS to the PowMr. I made an ESSP board with rs485 and async serial so that it can talk to both devices and update the inverter with up to date info about SOC etc.
@@DavidPrue can you please David share some more information about an Essp board? How it works, and how to achieve communication between bms and Powmr. Seems like i have very similar setup to yours and the same goal. Thank you
Hello! We are struggling in connecting JKong BMS to our Daxtromn 6.2kw inverter which has a built in BmS… the batteries we got are simple 105Ah with no input/output for communication with the inverter’s BMS. Could you please please help us with understanding what cable we should use and how to make it (or where to buy it)? Thank you!!!
Hi Andy, could you make a video with the same level of explanation for connecting the EBC-A20 to the computer? I've already connected mine, but sometimes it connects and sometimes it doesn't. In addition to losing connection in the middle of the test. I use Windows 10.
@olavolu order yourself a ADuM3160 USB isolator. I had the same issue, I'm currently testing my 10th cell without a single disconnect.
There you go...
Looking for a decent source for a battery box + accessories for to install a JK in. All the one I seem to find come with seplos BMS already.
Got the EEL DIY Battery box with JK-Inverter BMS linked on my website: off-grid-garage.com/diy-kits/
Sooooo…. I get the wiring 485 to usb to connect to PC.
But will a rj45 cable( victron) not work out of the rs485 port of the jkbms and plug right into my cerbo and I have to splice the wires because the CAN H and CAN L pin orders are different in the jkbms Vs cerbo???
Correct. You either need a Victron Type A cable or make your own by connecting the pins according to this document (www.victronenergy.com/live/battery_compatibility:can-bus_bms-cable). A standard LAN cable will NOT work.
I guess I'm behind in times lol... I only got the older style JK a few months ago but they are working great. All 3 doing like they should as far as I can tell
You're not behind. The newer JK just has some additional features and communication. To achieve the same with your models, you would need some additional hardware to upgrade (like the Peter board)
Hey Andy @OffGridGarageAustralia where it is nice and Sunny. :)
CAN is not working here, could anyone point me? :) Good video as always!!!
Though i want to mention that i was missing the JK BMS test with the CAN connection and that was the part i was looking for to see if i am missing something in my setup.
I watched multiple videos of you about the CAN topic, but i cannot find my situation and problem, and i am looking for the solution.
I hope you or anyone else can shine a light on it, or perhaps i found a bug?
I am connecting the raspberri PI Venus OS through the CAN hat with the JK BMS on pins 4 and 5 and the right RJ45 port (the CAN port) as per your explanation and it just does not work.
In comparison if i connect the same raspberri PI Venus OS through the CAN hat with the Victron MPPT on pins 7 and 8 it works fine without any issue.
Now let me give you some connectiondata background as well:
In both situations, with the MPPT and the JK BMS i see in Venus OS the settings->services->can0->network status mentioned as ACTIVE and i can see the RX and TX packets going up.
In that same screen in both situations no overruns, error packets or dropped packets.
As far as i can tell, everything from a hardware and packet perspective works fine.
However the Venos OS refuses to see the JK BMS, but it does see the MPPT when connected through CAN.
Furthermore this connection does:
The Venus OS does see the JK BMS when i connect them both through bluetooth with the driver from Louis, however bluetooth is not reliable and gives often disconnects, so i want a CAN connection between the Venus OS and the JK BMS.
My setup:
- 1x Victron Multiplus II, 5000, 230V
- 1x Victron MPPT 450/100
- 1x Victron Smartshunt
- 32x LFP 280 Ah cells (currently connected only 16cells, to make it work)
- 2x BMS of JK-PB2A16S20P (currently connected only 1, to make it work)
- 1x RS485 CAN BUS Module HAT Expansion Board for Raspberry Pi (from your website)
- 1x Raspberri PI with Venus OS large.
Now i see in your videos you test the CAN situation with a different JK-BMS, could that be the difference?
Could it be that only the version i am having has this issue?
Thank you for reading and hope to see a video with a solution soon or a text reply from anyone. Both will work fine!
Thanks for your question. I am also interested in finding the solution for my future setup, too. As far as I remember, Andy connected the BMS with the Cerbo via CAN and it worked! No clue about Raspi, however.
Well the thing is that the CAN connection from my Raspi works with Victron equipment without issue. It is the JK BMS that gives me the issue. Hopefully there will be a reaction from Andy or someone else who has figured out howto properly connect those 2.
Have you ensured the JK-BMS has the right CAN Protocol set in the settings? CAN setting needs to be on 4 for Victron.
@@OffGridGarageAustralia yes i have tried different CAN protocol settings in the JK-BMS, including the Victron one. I will try some things out, with specifically only the Victron option selected and get back to tell the outcome and what i bump up against during the journey.
Did you get it to work? Im trying the same - without sucess. Victron Can-Type A cable, between Cerbo and the JK-CAN-Port. Victron is configured in the JK. The protocol in the JK is configured to "Victron". Is there anyone out there who got this running with a cerbo ?
Hi Andy, danke für all deine Videos 🧡. Ich habe eine Frage, die sicher auch irgendwo in deinen Infos vergraben ist, ich aber nicht gefunden habe.
Es gibt das Thema mit dem Ground trennen bei den Victron-Systemen. Wie schaut das bei der Kombi mit dem JK BMS und Victron aus. Wo / wie muss hier auf die Trennung der Masse geachtet werden. Könntest Du mir da eine Info zu geben - oder wo ich die finde?
Vielleicht wäre es auch mal wieder ein aktuelles Video wert - die Gesamtverdrahrung / Übersicht deines Systems.
Lieben Dank, Marco
Hi Andy, thanks for all your videos . I have a question that I'm sure is buried somewhere in your info, but I haven't found it. There is the issue of ground isolation with the Victron systems. What does this look like for the combination with the JK BMS and Victron? Where / how must the ground be separated? Could you give me some information on this - or where can I find it? Perhaps it would also be worth making an updated video - the overall wiring / overview of your system.
Many thanks, Marco
Hello Sir, thank you for the good guideline film. Just curiosity, is it so that RS485 to RJ45 translation wiring is not defined by the standard ? I see that on many devices RJ45 signals are on pins A(5,6) B(3,5), 5V(1,2), GND(7,8) while JK use the A(2,7), B(1,8) and GND (3,6) ? BR KP
I think you should replace the ones in the battery shelf with the older style JK.. the black one like you already have. They rock
I did!
@@OffGridGarageAustralia that's awesome Andy. The JK like in the battery shelf is the best I've ever known of.
Andy, thanks for testing. Question is the JK BMS monitor also working with the old style BMSes? Would be great if we can adjust them via RS 485 instead of Bluetooth. Thanks for sharing and keep up the good work down under!
Hi Edward, that will not work. The software on the PC will only communicate with the new style inverter BMS. For the DB series of inverters you have to use BT.
@@OffGridGarageAustralia Thanks Andy👍
And with b2a bms works?
Since I don't have a Cerbo (yet) but a Raspberry Pi with MK3 interface, is it possible to connect the BMS to the VE.Can of my Multiplus?
Hi. I bought JK inverter BMS in December and 4.3 display from different suppliers. But display came without metal circle screws to mount it. I think Andy also get displays without them. They are necessary to mount display in XR07-48V280AH Power Box LiFePO4 from AliExpress and should be in display package box.
Any advice? Where I can buy them separately?
I didn't buy any displays for my JKs (yet). Can you not use any screws to mount it. Not 100% sure what screws you're talking about though...
they are normally included. on one side is a special insert to fix in the backside of the LCD (2 flat hooks), the other side looks like a gearwheel 30mm diameter.
Where do you live?
@@OffGridGarageAustralia he is talking about the "screws" of the 4.3" LCD. they should have been also attached to your JK-4.3 LCD. Come in a silvery plastic bag. on one side is a special insert (look like two flat hooks) to fix in the backside of the LCD, the other side looks like a gearwheel of 30mm in diameter.
How to cabling with DALY BMS ?
I've shown this here: ruclips.net/video/sHIlP2oJ3DU/видео.html
Hi Andy,
What are the white and black numbers of the door? 🤔
Subscribers... when I hit 75.000
@@OffGridGarageAustralia makes sense, thank you for answering. Also, Thank you for all the videos you make they are amazing. ☺️
Can i connect 10 jk inverter bms in parallel and after to one inverter? The inverter will se all 10bms? Thank you :)
Yes, you can parallel all 10 JK BMS. The inverter will only see the master BMS which aggregates all data from the 9 slave BMS.
hello , think you are the one on the planet who can answer my question .... i have a Daly 250a li-ion bms 14s , and the problem is that , i only have 12 balancing wires and the ground wire ... is it possible to wire up the balancing wires so i can use the bms ... because it will not work with only 12 wires ... and i cant change the config of the battery because it is 2 Tesla modules at 25v with 6 balance wires each .... hope it would be possible , thx ... and great videos you produce ...
It seems like a lot of people in the comments are using the JK Inverter BMS here. Does someone know if it does also support the pylontech can bus protocoll? If yes it should be able to communicate with the same inverters as the seplos bms, right? thanks for answers in advance.
thanks again Andy, great stuff!!
Thank you.
That was a handy Video Andy! Well done.🐸🐸🐸🐸🐸
Thanks for your feedback.
Hi Andy, for the test you used a battery monitor. Is this the one from SEPLOS which you can be downloaded from your Google-Drive, or does it come from JK?
The JK BMS will only work with the JK Battery Monitor software. Seplos is different.
@@OffGridGarageAustralia Can you provide the link for the JK Battery Monitor?
@@upper_deck All resources are on my website. Have a look under the JK Inverter BMS here. There are the links to firmware, documents and also mobile and PC apps: off-grid-garage.com/battery-management-systems-bms/
Hi Andy
I always follow you, I purchased the jk pb2a16s200a, obviously I have yet to receive it, it's on its way, but I wanted to ask you to manage the software needed, the RJ45 interface (there are really many types) and the USB interface or a network cable could be fine normal?
another question is; What does the term 20A current limiter mean in the JK?
you will have understood that I am a layman and besides, a retired metalworker manager we cannot have learned everything.
good day from Italy
greetings Stefano
when you purchased the pb series, some dealers offer it including the right cable (chip)...
Thanks, where do you find the drivers, I have 2 different cables but none of them load the prolific drivers in windows, making them useless…
You have to look for the specific drivers online if Windows does not recognise them itself.
When you plug in the converters with CH340 chip, its name will be shown in Windows already. You don't need to tear it down :D
I messaged JK and they said that the bms works with growatt CAN. Im really hoping it does because the seplos v2 is a nightmare for me.
Danke für die tolle Anleitung, bei mir hat es mit dem billigsten mit der blauen LED funktioniert
which cable to connect the bms to the voltronic inverter?
That depends on your inverter model and what pins it uses for RS485 or CAN. Have a look in the manual of your inverter under communication. It should be described there.
my inverter rs485 what protocol in inverter voltronic?
For some reason 6000xp to Jk inverter BMS CAN communication is not working properly, both set to Pylon. Any suggestions?
Hello Dan, Greetings from France. Thanks you for this cristal clear video. Do you have a solution to replace the Victron MK3-USB interface (VICTRON to PC USB)? It's sold here for more than 70 Euros!
I simply use the JK USB to RS485 .. all one piece. It one of the accessaries listed on their Ali Express JK Official site.
Does this connect to the new inverter board as well? I didn't have a look at this adapter...
@@OffGridGarageAustralia When you order at the minerals official store you can choose including the adapter or not (+11 $), when you order the JK-V4 battery box from EEL it is included.....
Hi Andy. Do you know how to connect with JKBMS support. I've tried email them and write a request on the site but they haven't responsed. Seems they have an error in MUST CAN protocol in there current vertions 15.30, 15.33
Can anybody explain which connector to use between the jk bms CAN and the raspberry usb port? Any of shown adapters, the victron mk3 to usb or anything else?
Good day Please let me know if it is possible to connect to a PC and see the settings of this BMS JK-B2A8S20P-HC. Thank you :)
Assuming you can just use the network port on your PC to communicate with the BMS?
Nope, the BMS does not communicate via LAN. It's the same phisical port (RJ45) but totally different communication.
Thank you very much for this video. Although, I do have a question because there is a clarification that I was hoping to get but which didn't come as I had expected. Anyone who has experience with it can assist with the relevant information.
My MPPT charge controller has a communication port tagged RS485 and I noticed that it looked quite like the popular RJ45 port for ethernet cable connection. Unfortunately, my PC does not have a RJ45 port as it is one of those slim laptops. I will need to get me a converter which is what led me to this video. Before I purchase what will not work for me, I would like to know if the RJ45 cable will work with the RS485 communication port of my charge controller. If it will work, then I can look around for a RJ45 to USB cable converter thingy. So, I would also like to know if this will work because the video shows him using what looks like a RJ45 cable connection with the RS485 port on the inverter (I think) but still uses a RS485 to USB converter. If the RJ45 plug and cable can transmit from the device, wouldn't that directly work for the PC (and the BMS software) by just plugging the other RJ45 end to the RJ45 port of the PC? Why did you have to cut one side off, peel the wires and plug particular strands instead?
Pardon my noobness. I wouldn't want to make a wrong purchase of items and then commit a painful mistake.
Another question: is there a generic software for MPPT charge controller monitoring? Unfortunately, I can't reach out to the manufacturer in my own case because the seller delivered a generic looking MPPT box, although it seems to work as expected, based on all the information I have consumed around MPPT charge controllers and their battery charging work. Ordinarily, I would have reached out to the manufacturers to help with further clarification and information accordingly.
Thanks to everyone.
I have white box on ftdi chip, like you, but it does not work, recieving data is present in terminal, but no connection
Hello, I'm have strange issue with pb2a16s20p.
When I'm connecting converter RS485 to connect with inverter it's time to time lost connection. So I check with RS485 usb converter but each conection BMS restart and give buzzer noise. After switch off led light from status are little light. And I hear noise from main board. Cable is ok and ground connected in RJ45. After I check CAN converter to usb. It's working but the same phenomenon. Each time when connection done BMS restart. And after 30min BMS switch off.
I'm confused. It's new BMS. What can be wrong. In log file :Discharge short circuit protection released
Please help.
I want to use communication with Inverter.
Thank you.
Devices with a CH340 chip inside always list the chip name in the device driver name in the device Manager screen. No need to disassemble😅
Yes, correct, I realised this while editing😆
Thanks Andy. Another great video.
Thank you, Greg.
Hey andy, I have been watching your videos for a while to build my own DIY lifepo4 battery. I have ordered 8 cells to build a 24v battery.
I want to use it with 3.2kw Solar inverter, with brand name 'Inverex' a chinese brand, which i bought 4 years ago. The inverter has usual Rj45 port (on manual, which supports Rs485 and Can bus).
Now i am looking for a BMS which can communicate with my inverter. I have selected JK B2A8S20P with CAN bus port.
Do you think this BMS can communicate with my inverter? Like using rj45 cable on inverter and on other side, rs485 or Can connector on BMS? Kindly guide.
Very informative, thank you.
Thanks.
Hi the moment I connect the usb to computer is behaves weirdly , the mouse keeps moving on its own and desktop becomes unstable, I am using wave share , is this a driver issue where can I get a driver ?
the Waveshare that Andy demonstrated is not isolated. The symptoms with your computer behaving weirdly is likely a ground loop. Replace your adaptor to one which has isolation - don't replace and in the worst case the magic smoke can come out of one or more devices. Some of the WS adaptors are isolated. Unfortunately i can't link due to FB preventions. In short the ones with 'industrial' are not the type you are after, you need to look for galvanic isolation keywords.
You can try and connect the ground as well.
Hi Andy, have you tested with JK PB2A16S20P as well? For me, it only connects with JK-BMS-Monitor 2.1.0 and not all options are functional. At the manufacturer you have no one to talk to, they only answer what they want to answer. I have another problem with this model, from time to time, without my intervention, it warns of a short circuit and restarts the multiplus ll because the voltage suddenly drops to 35V. If I look at the Lynx shunt log at that time the current is 4-5 A., This is a false alarm I think, Have you faced such errors? If you have a support contact from JK please share it with me. Thank you, George
It's Chinese new year at the moment. Most companies are closed. They will answer it after the 20. Feb hopefully.
Get the latest software from my website
off-grid-garage.com/battery-management-systems-bms/
Hello, watching an interesting video and wondering if it works with a converter from rs 485 that converts the signal to wifi to grind cable.
Is there a need for an app for a computer, if needed, where can you find it
Hoping for an answer
MVH
Larry Hey
Thanks Andy, i learn in wikipedia, (not only) rs485 standart,(chinese arduino have same chip), is standart realy old, if chip right, no problems...(Thank You).
Off grid for two years 47,000 W of PV, 250 kWh of batteries with JKBMS. none of them communicate with anything or anybody. They work just fine.
@@just_saw_dustif you want to survive winters sometimes even that amount of panels is not enough.
Fark, that's a big system! I agree though, my bms doesn't talk to my inverter and it works just fine.
@@just_saw_dust I'm south east, and only have a small system with 8.74kW of panels, 8kW Quattro and 29kWh of batteries, BMS doesn't talk to the Victron system either. We do have a 50kW system where I work and I see just how badly that performs in the winter. In December it generated 735kWh, or average 23kWh a day, worse day though was 0.4kWh!!! So it seems a house with 47kW of panels and the amount of batteries the OP has could easily get by, but depends where they are and how much they use of course.
Off grid in my haulage companies yard noting but trailers no toilet no water...but happily living 5 nights in my self built campervan...nearly 2 years.
@@TheRonskimanlol...? You surely are an American to have this kind of vision of survival.
NEED YOUR HELP.
i have bought JK BD6A20S10P BMS from Ali express few months before & asemble a 16 cell battery & now i want to communicate BMS with My invertor ( Solax X1-Hybrid-LV),please suggest me the accessaries .
Beers coming your way Andy🍺🍺 thanks so much🇦🇺👌
Thanks Alan, much appreciated! I've sent you an email.
@@OffGridGarageAustralia my pleasure
Ok, so how do I connect 8 JK bms to 3 EG4 6000xp inverters?
You follow the instructions for the JK BMS and your inverter manufacturer.
Great video!
Thanks!
I have JK BMS of "JK B2A24S20P". I am trying to decide the CAN of it. I facial issue. Can anyone will help me ?
Merci Andy mais tu parle pas du logiciel 2.7.022 qui est bad !!!
Hey I have an older JK_B2A8S20P and B2A20S20P and a trying to get data from de GPS port with PL2303 TA USB TTL RS232 Converter, but no succes , I can sent data, but nothing in return in the JKBMS app, has anyone succeeded and with wich (chipset) converter?
What about Victrons RS485 to USB (one used for energy meters). Has anyone tried it. It would save me buying additional adapter.
Thx, for cool test ...
Complimenti 🎉🎉🎉
Andi, where is the kangaroo man?😂
Great ! Thanks !
Hi JK BMS Gott
Könntest du bitte zeigen wie man beim JK BMS neue Generation
denn Anschluss rs 485 auf victron gx hergestellt so das man auch das serialbattery betreiben kann.
Das wäre super ich verneige mich hab so viel gelernt von dir, was du zeigst, funktioniert auch dann
Don't know, never used RS485 and Victron together. Why don't you use CAN which just works?
Hi Victron Mulitiplus ii 24 5000va 120amp with 600ah battery solar panel RV use Best option demo video plz
I don't have any 24V equipment.
Does anyone have this working in Linux?
now we only need one point twenty one gigawatts of power into the Flux capacitor while traveling at 88.8 mph. 💪💪💪
We are a little past Nov 5, 1955....