WS500 - CerboGX - DVCC integration

DIY
, , , , ,
1

I’m trying to work through setup to get DVCC to work with the WS500 Pro regulator.

Here’s my setup:

SOK 314 Ah batteries (2x, wired in parallel), connected to Cerbo GX via CAN-BMS. BMS provides max charge volts and current.
DVCC enabled (works with MPTT and Inverter/charger).
WS500 connected to CerboGX via VE.CAN.
Ws500 shows up on the Cerbo Gx as an alternator, but it only works in standalone mode.
DVCC enabled on the WS500, CANBUS set to 250 kbps, Alternator shunt enabled…

Anyone have gone through a similar setup and were able to get the WS500 to work as a slave and respect the DVCC limits?

if so, what settings were used on the WS500 ?

Thanks…

2

As per the Wakespeed manual, have these dependencies been met?

With Wakespeed Firmware 2.5.2 and higher, the WS500 offers support to follow Victron Energy’s DVCC
(Distributed Voltage and Current Control) method. By default, the WS500 will follow the DVCC direction
issued to it via the Cerbo. Users are able to disable this function by toggling ‘Support Victron DVCC’ in the
Wakespeed App with Expert Mode enabled.
Dependencies for allowing DVCC to be utilized include:
• Cerbo firmware must be v3.30.
• Wakespeed firmware must be v2.5.2 or higher.
• Current Shunt must be located at the alternator.
• WS500 must be configured with “Shunt at Alternator” toggled on (Wakespeed application: System tab on the Configuration screen.)
• Define the Alternator Capacity in Amps on the Alternator Tab.
• NMEA2000 Support (System > Expert Mode) must be enabled.
The defined Alternator Capacity will be transmitted to the Cerbo as the capability to use for its calculations. If
no value is set, 200A is used by default.

https://www.wakespeed.com/wp-content/uploads/Wakespeed-Victron-Cerbo-GX-Guide_4.29.24-1.pdf

3

There were WS500 Pro errors in Wakespeed firmware V2.6.0, you need 2.6.1.

However, I have a feeling that if you have batteries on BMS-CAN and the WS500 on VE-CAN you may not get full functionality as the 2 CAN systems are independent. I am not 100% definitely sure on this. Can you get your batteries to work at 250kbps so you can connect everything daisy chained on the VE CAN. There have been other posts like this, search for WS500 and DVCC.

4

I have venus os 3.72 (cerbo gx)
Wakespeed firmware is the latest 2.6.1 ??
Current shunt on the alternator
WS500 config with shunt at alternator toggled ON
Alternator capacity set as 175 A
N2K is enabled

5

Yes, The SOK batteries interface with the Cerbo GX via BMS CAN… they work at 500 kbps

Can I connect them to the VE.CAN port instead and set that to 500 kpbs? If so, what happens to the line terminator ?

I currently have:

SOK batt BMS — (CAN BMS 500 kbps) – Cerbo GX

Terminator - Cerbo gx - (VE.CAN 250 kbps) - WS500 - Terminator

The SOK batteries send all the usual commands (voltage limit CVL, charge current limit, CCL discharge current limit DCL), temps, the high/low cell voltages, and all the warnings/errors expected…
The connection does say can-bus

image
image2498×1522 180 KB

image
image2428×756 59.6 KB

I find it strange that DVCC picks all this up and sends it to other systems (MPPT, Inverter/Charger, etc…) but can’t send it to the integrated alternator? This is a huge disapointment thus far, as both the Victron and WS 500 side said they were Victron / DVCC compatible (but nowhere did it say you have to use Victron batteries with Victron Lynx…).

The batteries alternatively can be configured for NMEA 2000 output … since all the N2K data passes through the WS500 and ends up on the CerboGX via VE.CAN, I’m curious if I connect the SOK battery to the N2K network if the CerboGX will recognize it as the controlling BMS if connected that way instead of CAN-BMS?

6

As far as I know, 500kbps is not an option for CAN.

Sorry I can not need more help, I have Victron NG batteries and Lynx BMS.

Hopefully someone on the Facebook group can help who has no Victron Batteries.

7

This sounds almost identical to what I’m struggling with.

I have (2) 48V 100ah Epochs wired in parallel and a WS500 Pro connected to a Cerbo (newer version w/o the dedicated BMS Can port).

I was able to get the WS to go into Slave mode, but then the Cerbo GX50 could not see the WS. This with with everything at 500kbps.

The only way I was able to get the Cerbo to see the WS was by using the other CAN port at 250kbps. But then it would not go into slave mode.

8

So … might be just dum luck (or very poor documentation from Wakespeed) … but I got DVCC working on the WS500 WITHOUT having the batteries on the same CAN network.

I can adjust the target volts in Victron / DVCC and the WS500 follows. If I break the victron/ws500 connection, WS500 falls back to it’s programming.

As my other charge sources ramp up, the current limit on the WS500 goes down (currently set at 200 A on Victron DVCC,

image
image421×729 45.7 KB

Here, I have Victron DVCC set at max 200 A. I have 6 Amps of solar coming in, so DVCC passed 194A as the max limit for the WS500

image
image444×695 50.8 KB

How did I set it up?

WS500 connected to Victron Cerbo GX (v1) via 250 kbps VE.CAN port (terminator on Cerbo and terminator on WS500).

WS500 Battery:
Generic / lithium / custom settings

WS500 System tab:

image
image439×837 47.7 KB

image
image431×757 45.2 KB

image
image435×830 64.2 KB

On the GX device DVCC is enabled:

image
image1453×867 85.4 KB

On the GX Device under settings / connectivity:

VE.Can port: VE.CAN 250 kbit/s, NMEA 2000 out is off (I find NMEA taxes the Cerbo GX a lot, I use Signalk on a RPI5 to handle various data sources to/from N2k (Victron, ESP32 devices, etc…).

image
image1424×811 71.9 KB

I also programmed white space … to unload the alternator at low and high RPM.

However, in order to also have full output while charging at anchor, I have a switch connected to the white wire. With 12V applied, it follows the white space. WIthout 12V applied, I get the full output (my Alternator tab is limited to 85 deg C and 90 pct field).

I really wish Wakespeed and Victron would document this feature set a little better…

BTW, My batteries are SOK 314 Ah, connected via Victron CAN protocol on the 500 kbps BMS-CAN port. They drive the DVCC volts, max charge current, etc…

In the winter when not using the boat much, I bring the DVCC max volts to 13.6V. This is a bit easier on the batteries and keeps me at 95-98 pct SOC (no issues with cell balancing, I have 2x 314 Ah in parallel).

One thing I still can’t get from Wakespeed is can I connect it to both Victron VE.CAN and my N2K network at the same time ? I have the WakeSpeed cable for this (with the NMEA2000 connector) but then I’m not sure if I need to remove the resistors from the WS500 and CerboGX, as they would essentially be connected as a Spur on the N2K Canbus network…

Notes:

  1. When making connectivity setup on the Victron / WS500 I rebooted both devices to avoid any issues (Victron first, while ws500 shutdown, then boot up WS500).
  2. When setting up batteries on the WS500, despite selecting Brand Generic and 2x 314 Ah, when I copy the config from the WS500 back to the app It shows up as Battleborn , model: Custom and 1x 630 Ah
  3. When changing settings on the System tab, scroll back up. Sometimes changing something at the bottom changes things up top (like disabling Current shunt on Alternator and enabling Current Shut at the Battery)…
  4. All my charge sources (MPPT, Inverter/Charger, alt regulator) have a fall back charge profile that is correct for my batteries / electrical system, in case the Victron Cerbo goes offline.
  5. I disconnected the NMEA 2000 cable from the WS500. It’s only connected to the CerboGX for now.

The Wakespeed Android app appears to have some bugs or UI elements that need further refinement.