NEP BDG?256 Operating instructions

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USA

Add：1781RiverviewAve.,Tracy,CA95377

China

Add:No.1AnheRdTsingtaoExportProcessingZone,Tsingtao,China266113

TEL:+8653280934197

FAX:+8653281100917

Email:[email protected]n

Web:www.northernep.cn

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NEPGatewayBDG‐256

InstallationandOperationManual

N136

SAA

130307

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COMPANYPROFILE

1.INTRODUCTION

1.1Prefix

1.2HowtoUseThisManual

SAFETYINSTRUCTION

2.FCCCOMPLIANCE

3.INSTALLTION

4.USERINTERFACE

4.1MainInterface

4.2InterfaceOverview 

4.3Energyfunctions

4.4Setting

4.5Backup/ClearData

4.6StatusBar

5.WEBINTERFACE

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 5.1LocalwebPageinsideBDG‐256

5.2NEPWebServer

6.SPECIFICATION

7.WARRYANDPRODUCTIONINFORMATION

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COMPANYPROFILE

NORTHERN ELECTRIC & POWER CO., LTD (NEP) is a Sino-foreign joint venture and

high-tech development enterprise, with registered capital 20Million USD and

investment of 50 Million USD. It covers an area of 7,000 around square meters in

the Tsingtao Export Processing Zone, NEP Company is committed to develop solar

inverter on international advanced level, and provide high quality, low cost, high

reliability grid-connected inverter system to China and world solar energy market.

NEP Company has a number of top international experts in new energy electronic

technology and control, there are more than 30 people joined in this R&D team, and

two core technical engineers with American PH.D. Degree worked in leading U.S.

companies for more than 10 years, separately in GE Global R & D center, and

Motorola R & D center, and achieved more than 60 American patents.

NEP Company has a complete photovoltaic products series. The photovoltaic

inverter series of products including 180W~500W micro inverters, 1.5kW~5kW

single phase solar inverters, and 10kW~500kW three-phase solar inverters,

junction box, environment monitor, large power station monitoring system. The

products have already achieved CQC and CGC, the United States UL, ETL, European

TUV, Australia SAA certifications. And field deployment results demonstrated

7%-20% higher system efficiency of NEP solar inverters than comparable products

in the market, thanks to the unique Power Optimal System (POS) technique.

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1.INTRODUCTION

1.1Prefix

Dear customer, thank you for choosing the BDG‐256 communication gateway for BDM

microinverters.Wehopeyouwillfindourproductsmeetyourneedforrenewableenergy.

Meantime,weappreciateyourfeedbackregardingourproducts.

1.2HowtoUseThisManual

This manual provides detailed product information and installation instructions for the

BDG‐256 micro solar inverter. Please read through this manual  before installation and

operation.

WARNING: This indicates a situation where failure to follow instructions may be a

safety hazard or cause equipment malfunction. Use extreme caution and follow

instructionscarefully.



SAFETYINSTRUCTION

WARNING:

PLEASEREADTHIS MANUAL BEFORE INSTALLATION. ANY DAMAGE TO THE PRODUCT DUE

TONOTFOLLOWINGTHISMANUAL ISNOTCOVEREDBYTHEWARRANTEE.

BESIDESTHECABLECONNECTORS,NOTHINGINSIDETHEGATEW AYSHOULDBEMODIFIED.

ALLINSTALLATIONSHOULDFOLLOWTHELOCALELECTRICCODES.

BDG‐256DOESNOTINCLUDECOMPONENTSTHATCANBESE

RVEDBY

CUSTOMERS.

PLEASECONTACTAUTHORIZEDSERVICEAGENTSFORANYSERVICEWORK.

2.FCCCOMPLIANCE

This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital

device, pursuant to part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide

reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This

equipmentgenerates,usesandcanradiateradiofrequencyenergyand,ifno

tins

talledand

used in accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio

communications. However, there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a

particular installation. If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or

television reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the

user is encou

aged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following

measures:

● Reorientorrelocatethereceivingantenna.

● Increasetheseparationbetweentheequipmentandthereceiver.

● Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from tha

t to which the

receiverisconnected.

● Consultthedealeroranexperiencedradio/TVtechnicianforhelp.

Changes or modifications not expressly approvedby the party responsible for compliance

mayvoidtheuser’sauthoritytooperatetheequipment.

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3.INSTALLTION

ChecktheEnvoyshippingboxforthefollowingitems:

● BDG‐256CommunicationsGateway

● ACpowercord

● BDG‐256CommunicationsGatewayInstallationandOperationManual

TherearethreetypesofACpowercodeforthreemajorregionsoftheworld.

Region AccessoryPartNumber

NorthAmerica BDG‐256‐PC‐NA

Europe BDG‐256‐PC‐EU

Australia BDG‐256‐PC‐AU

OtherPartsandTools

● Ethernetcable

● USBdevices,suchasUSBdisk,USBkeyboard,USBmouse,USBscanner,etc

EthernetcableisusedtoconnecttheBDG‐256toanEthernetrouterorhub.Thereisa

webserverbuiltinsideBDG‐256,whichcanbevisitedbytypeintheBDG‐256IPaddress

on

awebbrowser.IftheBDG‐256isconnectedtotheinternetdirectlyorthrougharouter,

usersmayalsovisittheBDG‐256throughawebsite.

USBdevicescanbeconnectedtotheBDG‐256throughtheUSBconnecter.Multiple

typesofUSBdevicesaresupportedbyBDG‐256,

includingUSBdisk,USBkeyboard,USB

mouse,USBscanner,etc.

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Figure3BDG‐256FrontViewFigure4BDG‐256SideView

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4.USER INTERFACE

4.1MainInterface

BDG‐256takesapproximately1‐2minutestostartupafterpowerhasbeenturnedon.After

start‐up,thesystemwillenterthemaininterfaceshowninFig.2(allthreenumberswill

read“0”atstart‐upforthefirsttime).

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Figure1 BDG‐256MainDisplay

Figure 1 sho

ws th

e BDG‐256 main interface. The main interface is arranged in three

horizontalrows,whichconsistofthetoolbarattheverytop,thedisplayareainthemiddle, 

and the status bar at the lower part of the screen. The tool bar contains 7 buttons:

Save/Clear(backup/restorefactor

ydefaults),Sum

maryDisplay(summarydisplayinterface),

Today'sEnergy(currentdaypowergeneration),7‐Day'sEnergy(powergenerationoverthe

past 7 days), Monthly Energy (power generation over each month), Yearly Energy (power

generationovereachyear),andSettings.Thesebuttonsareusedtodisplaytheirrespective

content in the middle display area. The display area shows the po

er‐time curve for the

currentdayaswellasapowergenerationbarchart.Thestatusbarshowsthedevicestatus, 

IPaddress,andcurrentdate.

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4.2InterfaceOverview

Ifthemaininterfaceisidlefor2‐3sec.,itwillswitchtoanumericsummaryinterface,which

is described below: The interface as a whole is divided into three parts. The upper part

showsTod ay'sEnergy(currentdaypowergeneration),thelowerrightcornershowsLifetime

(total power generation since device sta

ted recording), and the lower left corner shows

CO2reduction(reductionincarbondioxideemissions).Touchinganypartofthescreenwill

bringupthemaininterface.

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Figure2 BDG‐256SystemSummaryDisplay

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4.3EnergyFunctions

Amenubarlocatesonthetopofthescreen.Severaldisplaysonenergyandpowercanbe

calledbypressingonthesemenubuttons.

4.3.1Today’sEnergy

Pressing this button will  display the power‐time curve screen (see Figure 5).The x‐axis

represents the time (4:00‐20:00), and the y‐axis re

presents BDM micro inverter output

power (kW). The total output energy (kWh) is displayed on the upper left corner. The

real‐time output power (kW) and today's total energy generated (kWh) are displayed on

theupper right corner .Partof the curvecan be magnifiedby drawing a box on thecu

ve

using finger or touch pen. Pressing the Today's Energy button again cancels the enlarged

displayandrestorestheoriginaldisplay.

Figure5Today’sPower

Figure6DrawingaboxonToday’sPower

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4.3.2Last7Days’Energy

Pressing this button will  bring up a bar chart sh

owing po

wer generation over the past 7

days(seeFigure7).The x‐axis represents thedateand the last one correspondsto today.

They‐axisrepresentstheamountofenergygenerated(kWh)ontheday.

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Figure7Last7Days’Energy

4.3.3MonthlyEnergy

Pressingthisbuttonwillbringupabarchartshowingpowergenerationovereachmonthfor

the last 12 months (see Figure 8). This displayis similar to the Last 7 Days' Energydisplay.

Thex‐axisrepresentsmonthsandthecurrentmonthisonthelast.They‐axisre

presentsthe

amountofenergygenerated(kWh)inthemonth.

Figure8MonthlyEnergy

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4.3.4Yearl yEnergy

Pressingthisbuttonbringsupabarchart showingpowergenerationovereachyear forthe

past 20 years (see Figure 9). This display is also similar to the Last 7 Da

ys'Ener

gy display.

Thex‐axisrepresentstheyearsandthecurrentyearlocatesonthelast.They‐axisrepresents

theamountofenergygenerated(kWh)intheyear.

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Figure9Yea rlyEnergy

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4.4Setting

PressingtheSettingbuttonwillbringupthesettingsdialogs.

4.4.1IPSetting

BDG‐256's IP address may be manually set in the Ethernet settings tab (Figure 10).They

may also be obtained through DHCP (requires a system restart after setting).If the IP

addressmustbechanged,doubleclickontheaddressbo

xtobringupasmallkeypadonthe

screen.



Figure10IPSetting

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4.4.2Date&TimeSetting

The Date & Time settings tab (Figure 11) is used to set the date, time, and time zone. BDG‐256

supportsallfivetimezone of North America.For otherpartsoftheworld, thetimezone“World”

maybechosen.

Figure11Date&TimeSe

tting

4.3CommunicationAddressSetting

Thecommunicationsaddresssettingstab(F igure12)is usedtosetthepowerlinecommunication

address ofthemicro‐inverters linkedtothedevice. One BDG‐256gatewaycan monitorupto255

micro inverters. Inverter‐0 on the address list corresponds to the total output of all in

verters

connectedtothegateway

Addresssettingscanbeinputusingeitherthesmallinputpanelonthetouch‐screenoranexternal

USB keyboard. The communication address of a micro inverter consists of the last 8 characters

(0~F)ontheBDMmicroinverterbarcode.

[needabarcode

example]



Figure12CommunicationAddressSetting



4.5Backup/ClearData

Whena USB flash disk is inserted,press the Save/Clearbuttontocallupthefollowingdialogbox

(seeFigure13).



Figure13Backup/ClearData

PresstheSavebutton,andpressYesintheconfirmationwindowthatappearstocompress

andbackupall collecteddatato the USB flash disk. Thedocumentwill automatically use

thebackupdateforitsname.

PresstheResetbutton,andpressYesintheconfirmationwindowthatappearstoclearall

llecteddata.Thedevicesettingswillnotbechanged.

4.6StatusBar

Thebottomfieldonalldisplaypagesconsistsofthestatusbar,whichdisplaysthedevice's

operatingstatus,thecurrentIPaddress,and the currentdateand time. “OK” means that

thedeviceisoperatingnormally.A16‐biterrorcodewillbedisplayedintheformofahex

numberifther

eh

appenstobeamalfunction.Themeaningof theerrorcodeislistedin

thefollowingtable.

Error code Error

Bit-0 DC over voltage

Bit-1 DC under voltage

Bit-2 hardware error

Bit-3 Inverter over voltage

Bit-4 Frequency over

Bit-5 Frequency under

Bit-6 AC voltage RMS over

Bit-7 AC voltage RMS under

Bit-8 Peak AC voltage over

Bit-9 AC current RMS over

Bit-10 Peak AC current over

Bit-11 Temperature over

Bit-12 ADC error

Bit-13 GFDI fault indicator

Bit-14 Relay error (for some model)

Bit-15 PLC Communication Error



0908





5.WEBINTERFACE

TheBDG‐256informationcanbeaccessedthroughtwowebpages.Thefirstoneisawebserver

inside the BDG‐256 gateway. The second one is a web server provided by NEP, which access

requiresinternetservice.

5.1LocalWebPageinsideBDG‐256

ThelocalwebpagebuiltinsideBDG‐256canbe accessedthroughhome networkwithout  internet

service. If there is internet service, however, and by a suitable internet router configuration,the

localwebpagecanbeaccessedremotelyaswell.

Toaccessthelocalwebpageinsidethehomenetwork,useronlyneedstotypeintheIPad

dressof

BDG‐256.



Figure14LoginPage



Figure15Today ’sOutputPage



5.2NEPWebServer



Figure16MonitoringInterface



6.SPECIFICATION

CommunicationsInterface 

CommunicationwithMicroInverter PowerLineCommunication

Ethernet 10/100auto‐sensing,auto‐negotiation

USB

USB2.0interface,

auto‐sensing,auto‐negotiation



Monitoringcapacity 255microinverters

HumanInterface 

Display LCDtouchscreen

PowerRequirements 

ACinlet 100‐240Vac,50/60Hz,60mA

Powerconsumption 3.5wattsmaximum

MechanicalData 

Dimensions(WxHxD)

6.69”x4.33”x1.46”

(170 mm x 110mm x 37mm)

Weight 5.29oz(150g)

Ambienttemperaturerange ‐40˚Cto+55˚C(‐40˚to131˚F)

Cooling Naturalconvection–nofans

Enclosureenvironmentalrating Indoor‐NEMA1

Features 

Standardwarrantyterm 1year

Compliance

UL60950‐1,FCCPart15ClassB

IEC61000



11

10





7.WARRANTYANDPRODUCTIONINFO RMATION

Whatdoesthiswarrantycoverandhowlongdoesitlast? 

ThisLimitedWarrantyisprovidedbyNorthernElectric&PowerCo.Ltd(NEP)andcoversdefects

inworkmanshipandmaterialsinyourBDG‐256communicationgateway.ThisWarrantyPeriod

lastsfor1yearfromthedateofpurchaseatthepointofsaletoyou,theoriginalenduser

customer,unlessoth

erwiseagr

eedinwriting.Youwillberequiredtodemonstrateproofof

purchasetomakewarrantyclaims.

ThisLimitedWarrantyistransferabletosubsequentownersbutonlyfortheunexpiredportion

oftheWarrantyPeriod.Subsequentownersalsorequireoriginalproofofpurchaseasdescribed

in"Whatproofofpurchaseisrequired?"

WhatwillNEPdo?

DuringtheWarrantyPeriod,NEPwill,atitsoption,repairtheproduct(ifeconomicallyfeasible)or

replacethedefectiveproductfreeofcharge,providedthatyounotifyNEPoftheproductdefect

withintheWarrantyPeriod,andprovidedthatNEPthroughinspectionestablishestheexistenceof

suchadefectandthatitiscover

edby

thisLimitedWarranty.

NEPwill,atitsoption,usenewand/orreconditionedpartsinperformingwarrantyrepairand

buildingreplacementproducts.NEPreservestherighttousepartsorproductsoforiginalor

improveddesignintherepairorreplacement.NEPrepairsorreplacesaproduct,itswarranty

continuesfor

theremainingportionoftheoriginalWarrantyPeriodor90daysfromthedateofthe

returnshipmenttothecustomer,whicheverisgreater.Allreplacedproductsandallpartsremoved

fromrepairedproductsbecomethepropertyofNEP.

Howdoyougetservice?

Ifyourproductrequirestroubleshootingorwarrantyservice,contactyourmerchant.Ifyouare

unabletocontactyourmerchant,orthemerchantisunabletoprovideservice,contactNEPdirectly

at:

NorthernElectric&PowerCo.Ltd

Address：NO.1AnheRdTsingtaoExportProcessingZone,Tsingtao,China266113

Phone：+865328

0934197

Fax：+86532

81100917

Whatdoesthiswarrantynotcover?

ClaimsarelimitedtorepairandreplacementorifinNEP'sdiscretionthatisnotpossible,

reimbursementuptothepurchasepricepaidfortheproduct.NEPwillbeliabletoyouonlyfor

directdamagessufferedbyyouandonlyuptoamaximumamountequaltothepurchaseprice

oftheproduct.

This

LimitedWarrantydoesnotwarrantuninterruptedorerror‐freeoperationoftheproductor

covernormalwearandtearoftheproductorcostsrelatedtotheremoval,installation,or

troubleshootingofthecustomer'selectrical systems.ThiswarrantydoesnotapplytoandNEP

willnotberespon

siblefor

anydefectinordamageto:

1)theproductifithasbeenmisused,neglected,improperlyinstalled,physicallydamagedor

altered,eitherinternallyorexternally,ordamagedfromimproperuseoruseinanunsuitable

environment;

2)theproductifithasbeensubjectedtofire,water,generalizedcorrosion,biological

infestations,orinputvoltagethatcreatesoperatingconditionsbeyondthemaximumor

minimumlimitslistedintheNEPproductspecificationsincludinghighinputvoltagefrom

generatorsandlightningstrikes;

3)theproductifrepairshavebeendonetoitotherthanby

NEPoritsauthorizedservice

centers(hereafter"ASCs");

4)theproductifitisusedasacomponentpartofaproductexpresslywarrantedbyanother

manufacturer;

5)theproductifitsoriginalidentification(trade‐mark,serialnumber)markingshavebeen

defaced,altered,orremoved;

6)theproductif

itislocatedoutsideofthecountrywhereitwaspurchased;

7)anyconsequentiallossesthatareattributabletotheproductlosingpowerwhetherby

productmalfunction,installationerrorormisuse.

DisclaimerProduct

THISLIMITEDWARRANTYISTHESOLEANDEXCLUSIVEWARRANTYPROVIDEDBYNEPIN

CONNECTIONWITHYOURNEPPRODUCTANDIS,WHEREPERMITTEDBYLAW,INLIEUOF

ALLOTHERWARRANTIES,CONDITIONS,GUARANTEES,REPRESENTATIONS,OBLIGATIONS

ANDLIABILITIES,EXPRESSORIMPLIED,STATUTORYOROTHERWISEINCONNECTIONWITH

THEPRODUCT,HOWEVERARISING(WHETHERBYCO

NTRACT,TO

RT,NEGLIGENCE,

PRINCIPLESOFMANUFACTURER'SLIABILITY,OPERATIONOFLAW,CONDUCT,STATEMENT

OROTHERWISE),INCLUDINGWITHOUTRESTRICTIONANYIMPLIEDWARRANTYOR

CONDITIONOFQUALITY,MERCHANTABILITYORFITNESSFORAPARTICULARPURPOSE.ANY

IMPLIEDWARRANTYOFMERCHANTABILITYORFITNESSFORAPARTICULARPURPOSETO

THEEXTENTREQUIREDUNDERAPPLICABLELAWTOAPPLYTOTHEPROD

UCTSHALL

BE

LIMITEDINDURATIONTOTHEPERIODSTIPULATEDUNDERTHISLIMITEDWARRANTY.

INNOEVENTWILLNEPBELIABLEFOR:(a)ANYSPECIAL,INDIRECT,INCIDENTALOR

CONSEQUENTIALDAMAGES,INCLUDINGLOSTPROFITS,LOSTREVENUES,FAILURETO

REALIZEEXPECTEDSAVINGS,OROTHERCOMMERCIALORECON OMICLOSSESOFANYKIND,

EVENIFNEPHASBEEN

ADVISED,ORHADREASONTOKNOW,OFTHEPOSSIBILITYOFSUCH

DAMAGE,(b)ANYLIABILITYARISINGINTORT,WHETHERORNOTARISINGOUTOFNEP'S

NEGLIGENCE,ANDALLLOSSESORDAMAGESTOANYPROPERTYORFORANYPERSONAL

INJURYORECONOMICLOSSORDAMAGECAUSEDBYTH

ECONNECTION

OFAPRODUCTTO

ANYOTHERDEVICEORSYSTEM,AND(c)ANYDAMAG EORINJURYARISINGFROMORASA

RESULTOFMISUSEORABUSE,ORTHEINCORRECTINSTALLATION,INTEGRATIONOR

OPERATIONOFTHEPRODUCT.

IFYOUAREACONSUMER(RATHERTHANAPURCHASEROFTHEPRODUCTINTHECOURSEOFA

BUSI

NESS)

ANDPURCHASEDTHEPRODUCTINAMEMBERSTATEOFTHEEUROPEANUNION,

THISLIMITEDWARRANTYSHALLBESUBJECTTOYOURSTATUTORYRIGHTSASACONSUMER

UNDERTHEEUROPEANUNIONPRODUCTWARRANTYDIRECTIVE1999/44/ECANDASSUCH

DIRECTIVEHASBEENIMPLEMENTEDINTHEEUROPEANUNIONMEMBERSTATEWHEREYO

U

PURCHASED

THEPRODUCT.FURTHER,WHILETHISLIMITED WARRANTYGIVESYOUSPECIFIC

LEGALRIGHTS,YOUMAYHAVEOTHERRIGHTSWHICHMAYVARYFROMEUMEMBERSTATETO

EUMEMBERSTATEOR,IFYOUDIDNOTPURCHASETHEPRODUCTINANEUMEMBERSTATE,IN

THECOUNTRYYOUPURCHASEDTH

EPRODUCTWHI

CHMAYVARYFROMCOUNTRYTO

COUNTRYANDJURISDICTIONTOJURISDICTION.

13

12

NEP BDG?256, BDG-256P3 Operating instructions

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