We are the TAMEO team from ENSTA Paris, a student association participating in the Monaco Energy Boat Challenge. This international competition, under the patronage of H.S.H. Prince Albert II, brings together innovative projects focused on advancing sustainable yachting technologies.
Our project this year features a novel differential propulsion system, requiring advanced energy management. To achieve this, we are integrating Victron Energy batteries and BMS on board.
We aim to monitor and retrieve real-time data from the BMS (voltage, current, state of charge) using a CAN Bus connection linked to an Arduino MKR CAN board. However, we seek guidance on a few key points:
Is it technically feasible to connect Victron’s BMS to an Arduino system via CAN Bus?
Are there any known compatibility challenges or considerations?
Can anyone share best practices, technical insights, or documentation to support this integration?
We truly appreciate any help or advice from the Victron community to make this integration successful and support our mission to push the boundaries of sustainable marine propulsion.
Because the way things are working - the BMS is just broadcasting information on the CAN bus - you can “sniff” alright all the information are exchanged on the bus.
You just need the Arduino CAN module to be configured to the speed of the bus in a passive mode (listening only) and all the frames will be available.
Which frame (ID) contains which information? Just take a look at the topic below and the tables presented there. The tables and all other information are readily available on the web. Just search for Pylontech CAN protocol.
If you just use the batteries and nothing else from the Victron “universe”, maybe you could also look at other batteries manufacturers and even considering building yourself the battery bank by using readily available prismatic LiFePO4 cells, paired with one of the well known BMSes on the market.
Why?
Two reasons. One the price and second the versatility of communication protocols implemented in those BMSes.
Not to mention the tons of open source software for communicating with those BMSes and the fact that will “look good” on the competition when even the battery is made by yourself.
