Plug-In Supply DIY

Asked PIS, and he said I was the first to request them, so "No". He suggested I check the scangauge site which has nadda (didn't think that was likely). Not sure who kiettyyyy is but I will try to hunt them down and ask.

 

Kiettyyy has several threads in PC which get no response........ as does PIS .... the non answer .....

 

Eventually he will..... at his own pace.

 

Don't hold your breath.

 

Sorry folks!

Just haven't been on this website for a long while. It helps to send me a PM

I can provide some CAN frames that I send across the bus from the front board.. It all depends on what version of the front board software you're running as my changes weren't introduced until version 3.4. My last release that I've provided to Plug-In Supply is version 4.1.

 

The ECM board that I designed has TWO CAN channels. One going to the engine ECU and one to the vehicle bus. I am "intercepting" the frame, modifying it, and sending it across the other isolated bus.

I have no idea what Plug-In Supply has done with my work or if they're even distributing it.. I haven't gotten paid in a while


Kiet

 

Ouch! Well my front board just went back for reprogramming. Not sure what version I will get but I will let you know. Fairly sure the version was 3.2 when I sent it back. That was the number on the sticker on the chip anyway.

And PM did work btw

 

Need a little help from you all. One of my BMS boards has shorted out. The result has caused my rear controller cell loop circuitry to stop working. Before I noticed the short, the loop was showing a voltage of 92. Upon disconnection of the loop, the rear controller was only supplying a mere 2.5v. I also noticed a resister-like component on the rear controller to have burn residue around it. This leads me to believe that the bad component needs to be replaced.

My question is, can anyone identify the bad component on this board. It reads as 'R51' on the board itself. I would ask Plug In Supply myself, but I'm afraid we are no longer on good terms. The other functions of the rear controller are still in perfect working order.

Thanks.

Pictures of the faulty component...
http://oi50.tinypic.com/30v13s0.jpg

Picture of the culprit BMS...
http://oi46.tinypic.com/243rhw4.jpg

 

The MiniBMS control loop is a simple Normally Closed "continuity" circuit. If a cell gets too low or too high voltage the loop should open, and the controller will shut off charger/load respectively.

I don't think the control loop should ever have 92 volts on it, but I'm not familiar with that Plug in Supply controller. Do you have photos of the model/version of the controller? Maybe someone with the same system can measure the value of the R51 (which is a resistor).

BTW, Robb from PIS won't support us and our customers either. Not only did he take money from us for his 4kwh product and never send us product or a refund, he refused to honor his warranty or provide software updates on other systems we purchased. He then started bashing us on his website and saying things about our company and offerings that are untrue.

Bottom line, buyer beware when dealing with PIS....

 

You should be able to order a new bms board from Robb. I had some issues with my installation and needed to replace a couple of my bms boards. I don't know what the cost is for your board since it looks a bit different than my 10KW bms board.

 

The cell boards shown are available from MiniBMS in Florida. MiniBMS Cell Module - CleanPowerAuto LLC
The controller board (if from PIS) might be tougher to get it fixed.

 

The mini-BMS cell board uses a optocoupled relay(CPC1014N) to give electrical isolation between the loop and the cell voltage it is monitoring. You could try getting a new front and rear controller board from Autobeyours.
Autobeyours claim to be dealer for PIS.

DISCOUNTED INSURANCE SALVAGE

I think that the two black wires on the cell board are the loop wires. It appears that the loop circuit had shorted to the IC that is damaged which is a voltage reference LM385M-1.2. It appears that the isolation between the loop wires and the cell voltage has been breached which has put a large battery voltage (depending on which cell board it could be as high as 240volts DC) across your rear controller board causing R51 to blow up. You could try asking Autobeyours what the value of R51 is.

You need to replace the miniBMS cell board. Chances are that the voltage comparator IC (LM239D) is probably also damaged. You need to find out whether it has a HVC of 3.6v or 3.8v. You can determine this by looking at the resistor values on the cell board. Looking at your photo and comparing it to the photo on the Cleanpowerauto website it does not look the same. Maybe it is an older version. If you post a close up photo showing the resistor values of the cell board I can tell you which HVC value it uses. It is important that you get the HVC value correct as the cell boards keeps your battery pack balanced and protected from overcharge and over-discharge.

 

R51 is 1K
To test if the rear controller is still working, You could try and bypass the BMS loop by removing jumpers J14 and J15.
This is from Pis Rear controller description:
"J14 and J15 Cell Loop Bypass Jumper
When jumpers are installed on J14 and J15 the bms cell loop is
bypassed, discharge is enabled and cell loop LED D6 is illuminated.
Normally J14 is installed and J15 is not installed. When CELL LOOP
OK LED D6 is not illuminated when it is supposed to be, use jumpers
to determine if fault is in cell loop or on rear board."

 

Wow 3prong, I had no idea you too had problems with PIS. Your problems sound more serious than mine. Can you provide us with the details of your problems (specifics). I personally believe all should know and be forewarned of PIS's poor business practices. I wish you would have chimed in sooner but, I'm glad you finally did. I was starting to feel like I was on an island by myself.

PIS poor track record needs to be exposed for everyone to see. I strongly believe there are other victims of PIS out there. I'm hoping your post and mine will give them the courage to come forward.

 

Thank you all very much for the quick responses! I have purchased some replacement BMS boards and currently looking for a resistor. Still doing some troubleshooting right now to further isolate the fault. Hopefully I can get this back up and running again.

Thanks again!

UPDATE: You all are brilliant. I cannibalized the bad BMS for a 1.1k resistor to use in place of the destroyed one. The loop LED lit up and is back in working order. I will still replace it with the 1k that's on order, but for now this should work. Thanks!

 

Hi Kiettyyy,

I have asked Robb of PIS if the ECM board was available and he replied that they are not available because the PHEV kit needs to be able to supply 135 amps continuous. Is this true?

 

I'm not the kind of person who normally airs their dirty laundry in public, but after repeatedly (ignored) requests for Robb to remove untrue comments about our company from his website I felt I should give everyone a heads up to "do their homework." That's about all I care to say publicly.

Hopefully others will share their experiences.

 

Much appreciate everyone airing out their concerns on PIS. I was about ready to contact them to put an order in but now that I have read 3 accounts of the problems in customer service I am probably going to keep my Enginer system running until I am ready to purchase a factory plugin vehicle.

 

That will be your best choice.

 

I would save up for a Nissan Leaf.