The alternator control was super fast and the battery seemed to soak up anything that we'd consider remotely dangerous.
Let's remember the whole point of the standards is demonstrating immunity to a difficult case.
The alternator control was super fast and the battery seemed to soak up anything that we'd consider remotely dangerous.
Let's remember the whole point of the standards is demonstrating immunity to a difficult case.
Taking Dan's advice, we did some additional testing today with the battery disconnected, just running on the alternator with about 10-20 amps constant load and adding about 40-50 more with our load tester which allows very quick application of load .
We saw spikes up to 27 volts and much longer duration now- to about 100ms.
Wait a minute. You mean to tell me after I?ve waited all this time your not going to offer the CPI2 in ?green?.
I appreciate the extra testing and transparency Ross.
We saw spikes up to 27 volts and much longer duration now- to about 100ms.
During his flight, his regulator failed and his voltages climbed up and remained at +29V and 40+ amps for many minutes. A couple of times the voltage spiked above 60V per the data from the EFIS.
Well, ok. As noted previously, the current test standard for ordinary automotive applications is >75V. Recent unfortunate events have shown it is possible for some aircraft installations to reach spike and sustained voltages at that level. For example, consider the note below. EarthX thought a 60V max was adequate when designing the BMS. As it turned out, it wasn't enough out in the real world, where customers make random alternator choices. That led to the recent requirement for an overvoltage system when combining an EarthX with a alternator of more than 20A capacity.
I'm entirely in support of the EarthX OV system requirement. That said, some customers will ignore it...theirs and yours.
http://www.vansairforce.com/community/showthread.php?t=154137
We were loading the circuit to around 60 amps (max alternator output in this case) with no battery connected at all- an unlikely but possible scenario. The contactor release spike was almost 56V sometimes but that spike was microseconds, which won't damage anything.
The alternator manufacturer did a nice job with the regulator design. Whose is it?
Hello Ross,
I am impressed with your progress and game plan for the CPI2 and have pretty much made my mind up to purchase one this winter. I have a question regarding a backup battery. I will be adding a Skyview flat panel at the same time and it also needs a backup battery. I am thinking about using a single lithium iron phosphate (10-12 Ah) backup battery to power the CPI2 and the avionics bus in case a voltage problem occurs. This should give me plenty of time to sort out the problem and get to an airport. Will the CPI2 keep this larger backup battery charged and be able to switch over and have the capacity to also supply current to the Avionics bus, or will I need to manually charge and switch on the backup battery? What are your concerns with this idea?
Hello Ross,
I know that it is late in the CPI2 introduction process, but I have a request. Is there anywhere in the new CPI2 module to add a p-lead to momentarily ground out a component that powers the coil pack to enable a mag check? This will make the conversion to the CPI2 more conventional, easier to install and, in my reasoning, more reliable. And we can keep our fully functioning key switch.
Thanks for your time,
Mike
Great to see some progress. Any info you are willing to share about price points & buttonology?
How’s the aux battery tray coming along? How soon will it be ready for the market place?
Missed you at Reno.
Thanks Ross
Sorry for overstating the obvious, but...
Wow! Even the box is machined from billet rather than folded aluminum. This is why SDS products are on my airplane upgrade wish list!
I read the whole thread... whoooa. Ross you are a patient man. Take all the armchair designers input with grain of salt, and don't rush nothing. Take all the time you need or want.I know many of you will be sorry to see the green go... We are about to run another batch of original CPIs, green and all, if you MUST have green.
I read the whole thread... whoooa. Ross you are a patient man. Take all the armchair designers input with grain of salt, and don't rush nothing. Take all the time you need or want.
On a serious note, I LOVE GREEN Glad the original CPI is still available since that meets my needs. I'm standing by on the CPI2 price, which is a cool design and might change my mind, but at this time my plan is provide my own OV protection with dual original CPI's:
Ignition A) powered from main bus battery (which is crowbar protected from alternator going crazy OV).
Ignition B) powered from E-bus battery charged from main bus through isolation diode, with independent over-volt protection relay (automatic).
* Under-voltage (alternator off line) will trigger alarms and pilot action (land).
Hi Ross
I am trying to follow the thread from the beginning but getting a bit confused on the marketing\branding of the various components. Can you help clarify a bit. At times, part of this thread seems to show CPI2 as the programmer type device that would go into the panel and other times CPI2 seems to be the replacement for the previous gold colored EM-5 box?
Is the CPI2 systems composed of the programmer + a EM-5 type box? I may be the only one, but a picture\block diagram of the main components and naming would help me greatly.
Thx
Steve