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Installation & Programming Manual FX & VFX Series Inverter/Charger System Copyright 2003 OutBack Power Systems, Inc.
900-0027-1 19009 62
nd
Ave NE, Arlington WA 98223 USA
Page 12 Rev 7.2 08/26/05 Tel 360 435 6030 Fax 360 435 6019
INDICATORS & CONTROL WIRING
The AC wiring compartment also encloses the following items; a 6-port terminal block, an RJ-11 jack, an RJ-45 jack, a set of three
“Battery” LEDs and a set of three “Status” LEDs. The 6-port terminal block contains ports for Inverter & On/Off, AUX + & AUX –, and
XCT + & XCT -. The RJ-11 “Battery Temp” jack accepts only OutBack’s “RTS” battery temperature sensor. Non-OutBack sensors may
fit, but if their thermister value is not identical to the RTS’s, your battery bank could be destroyed. The RJ-45 “MATE/HUB” jack accepts
the CAT-5 cable that is included with the MATE and the HUB. The “Battery” LEDs give a quick indication of the battery voltage. The
“Status” LEDs give a quick indication of whether the FX is inverting, has AC input power, or if an Error has occurred.
The “Battery” LEDs operate at the following voltage levels:
Nominal Battery Voltage
LED Color 12 VDC 24 VDC 48 VDC
Green 12.5 or higher 25.0 or higher 50.0 or higher
Yellow 11.5 to 12.5 23.0 to 25.0 46.0 to 50.0
Red 11.5 or lower 23.0 or lower 46.0 or lower
The “Status” LEDs operate under the following conditions:
LED Color
LED Action LED Indicates
Green Solid GREEN Inverter ON
Flashing GREEN Search Mode or Slave Power Save Mode
Off Inverter OFF
Yellow Solid YELLOW AC Source is connected
Flashing YELLOW AC Input Live – Waiting to connect to the FX
Off No AC Input Present
Red Solid RED Error – An Error Message will be automatically displayed on the MATE
Flashing RED Warning – A non-critical fault happened to the FX. The MATE can access this info.
INVERTER ON/OFF
The left two terminals of the 6-port terminal block marked INVERTER and ON/OFF can be used to control the inverter’s output.
Connecting the two terminals through a switch will allow control of the inverter output if a MATE is not available. A small jumper wire is
pre-installed into these two ports of the terminal block and must be removed in order to add the external switch. If the FX’s AC output is
off, check that the jumper wire is present and well connected. An installed switch overrides the control provided by the OutBack MATE.
If the switch is set to OFF, the MATE will not be able to turn ON the inverter. The switch cannot put the FX into Search mode.
AUXILIARY OUTPUT (AUX + / AUX -)
The Auxiliary output system uses the AUX + and AUX – terminals and is able to be programmed through the MATE to do a variety of
tasks. The default use for these terminals is to drive one 12-volt fan for external cooling. The power available at these terminals is 12
VDC at 1.0 amps (12 watts) maximum. These terminals should not be connected to any type of DC load which has a high inrush
current requirement. The FX includes internal electronic overcurrent protection for this 12 VDC output circuit which auto resets if it is
short circuited. No additional fuses are required. Use the OutBack FX Turbo Kit or DC12-FAN for cooling. For automatic or advanced
generator start functions, the Auxiliary Output can drive a 12V automotive relay for the 2-wire starting circuitry of a generator. OutBack
Power Systems does not support 3-wire start generators; however, a 3-wire to 2-wire conversion kit is available from other sources.
XCT + / XCT -
These terminals are not operational at this time.
BATTERY TEMP {REMOTE TEMPERATURE SENSOR (RTS)}
The OutBack FX has a 4 conductor “phone” RJ-11 modular jack located in the AC compartment for the connection of an optional
external battery temperature sensor, the RTS (sold separately), that allows for automatic adjustment of the battery charging process
based on the temperature of the battery. Battery manufacturers provide recommended charge voltages based on temperatures of 25˚C
/ 77˚F. With the RTS attached, the FX adjusts the battery voltage 0.03 volts per degree Celsius for every 12-volts of battery present.
When a HUB is used, the RTS must be plugged into the Master FX which must be plugged into port 1 of the HUB. If this is the case,
only one RTS is required for all devices plugged into the HUB. The RTS should be stuck to the side of a battery below the electrolyte
level so it can measure the temperature of the batteries. The wire from the RTS can be folded and routed underneath the transparent
gray plastic lexan cover of the AC wiring compartment to allow connection to the battery. There is a small indentation in the aluminum
casting between the battery terminals to allow for the wire to pass without affecting the sealing of the covers. When running additional
wires under the smoked lexan cover, it may be required to snip some lexan away to allow for wire routing. The lexan will not crack
when cutting or filing. IMPORTANT: Do not connect a different brand of battery temp sensor. It may cause battery failure!!!
MATE / HUB
The 8 conductor “Ethernet” RJ-45 modular jack allows direct connection of a MATE system controller and display to the FX using
standard CAT-5 type cabling. If multiple FX’s or a FX and a MX charge controller are both in the system, an OutBack HUB
communication manager is connected to this RJ-45 jack for stacking of the FX’s and for efficient system performance. The HUB acts
similarly to a computer hub to combine the communication signals of the devices together into a networked system. OutBack offers two
different HUB products at this time. The HUB-4 accepts up to four OutBack products and one MATE. The HUB-10 connects up to ten
OutBack products and one MATE. NOTE: Although the HUB has 2 ports for MATEs, only the 1
st
port is operational.