Solar Power Manager (C)

Solar Power Manager (C) Solar Power Manager (C), Supports 3x 18650 Batteries, Multi-Protection Circuits

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Onboard Interfaces USB

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Introduction

The Solar Power Manager (C) is compatible with general 6V~24V solar panels. It can recharge the 18650 rechargeable Li-ion batteries (NOT included) through the solar panel or USB TYPE-C connection and provides 5V / 3A regulated output (with protocols support including PD/QC/FCP/PE/SFCP).
The module features MPPT (Maximum Power Point Tracking) function and multi-protection circuits, therefore, it is able to keep operating with high efficiency, stability, and safety. It is suitable for solar-powered, low-power IoT, and other environmental protection projects.

SAFETY CAUTION

• Li-ion and Li-po batteries are quite unstable. They may cause fire, personal injury, or property damage if they're not properly recharged or used.
• Do not reversely connect the polarities when recharging or discharging the battery. Do not use an inferior charger/charging panel to recharge the battery.
• Do not mix use old batteries with new ones, avoid using batteries of different brands.
• When buying a Lithium battery, should always make sure the battery specification is compatible with the expansion board. Choose batteries from the formal manufacturer, and ensure the batteries will work stably and safely by aging test.
• Lithium batteries have a limited cycle life, they will also deteriorate as time goes by. Should be replaced with new ones when the batteries reach their max cycle life, or work over two years, whichever comes first.
• Should be placed carefully and properly, keep it away from inflammable and explosive articles, away from children, and avoid any safety accident caused by careless storage.
• DO NOT put any non-rechargeable battery, like a dry cell, into the battery holder. Serious consequences including explosions may occur if you try to charge a non-rechargeable battery.

Features

• Supports MPPT (Maximum Power Point Tracking) function, maximizing the efficiency of the solar panel.
• Flexible battery recharging: from a solar panel or USB TYPE-C power adapter.
• Compatible with 6V~24V solar panels, DC-002 jack input, or screw terminal input.
• Onboard the MPPT SET switch, and select the level close to the input level to improve recharging efficiency.
• Onboard aluminum electrolytic capacitor and SMD ceramic capacitor, reducing the ripple, stable performance.
• Embedded battery holder, supports 3x 18650 rechargeable Li-ion batteries (not included).
• Several LED indicators, for monitoring the status of solar panels and batteries.
• Multi-protection circuits: overcharge / over-discharge / reverse-proof / overheat / over current, stable and safe to use.

Specification

PRODUCT	SOLAR POWER MANAGER	SOLAR POWER MANAGER (B)	SOLAR POWER MANAGER (C)	SOLAR POWER MANAGER (D)
(SOLAR IN)	6V ~ 24V (6V by default)	6V ~ 24V (18V by default)		6V ~ 24V
RECHARGING	Solar panel, power adapter, USB
BATTERY	3.7V 850mAh 14500 Li-ion battery (NOT included)	3.7V 10000mAh Li-po battery	3x 18650 Li-ion battery 7800mAh (NOT included)	3.7V Li-ion battery (NOT included)
USB INPUT	5V (Micro USB)	5V 5V (TYPE-C, with PD quick charge support)
5V OUTPUT	5V / 1A (USB OUT, pin header) 3.3V / 1A (pin header)	5V / 3A (USB-OUT, TYPE-C)		5V / 3A (Screw terminal, TYPE-C)
RECHARGING CUTOFF VOLTAGE	4.2V ± 1％
OVER DISCHARGING PROTECTION VOLTAGE	2.9V ± 1％	3.0V ± 1％
SOLAR PANEL RECHARGING EFFICIENCY	~ 78%
USB RECHARGING EFFICIENCY	~ 82%	~ 93%
BATTERIES BOOST OUTPUT EFFICIENCY	~ 86%	~ 90%
QUIESCENT CURRENT (MAX)	<2mA
CASE	N/A	Metal case		N/A
OPERATING TEMPERATURE	-40℃ ~ 85℃
DIMENSIONS (mm)	65.2 × 56.2 × 22.9	108.0 × 71.0 × 25.2	119.0 × 71.0 × 25.2	45.0 x 40.0 x 16.1

Onboard Respurce

Capacity indicators

Battery capacity	LED1	LED2	LED3	LED4
75~100%	ON	ON	ON	ON
50~75%	ON	ON	ON	OFF
25~50%	ON	ON	OFF	OFF
5~25%	ON	OFF	OFF	OFF
1~5%	Flashing	OFF	OFF	OFF
0%	OFF	OFF	OFF	OFF

How to use

1. Turn the switch to ON and press the BOOT button. The LEDs will turn on and indicate the capacity.
2. Connect the solar panel to DC-002 or the screw terminal with the adapter. If the connection is correct, the Solar Charger indicator turns on. If you reverse the connection, the Solar Warning indicator will turn on. The Solar Done indicator will turn on if the battery is fully charged and turns off the Solar Charge indicator.
3. If you connect the power adapter to the TYPE-C interface, the Quick LED indicates the fast charge mode. The LED is off if your charger doesn't support a fast charge. The indicators of capacity flash when charging and turn off when fully charging.
4. The Type-C interface can only be used for discharging, you can connect it to power other USB devices.
5. USB-OUT interface can be used for powering other USB devices.

Notices:

⚫BOOT button: In fast-charging mode with a Type-C interface, single-click the BOOT button and exit from fast-charging mode.
⚫If the type-C charger interface and the USB-OUT interface work at the same time, the fast-charging function is invalid.
⚫The fast charge mode can only work if the power adapter supports fast charging.

Working with Raspberry Pi

This board can be used with Solar Powering Applications for MCU and SBC like Raspberry Pi/ Jetson Nano / Arduino and so on.

If you need to change the input voltage of the solar panel, you need to take apart the case and change the setting of the DIP switch in PCBA, For example, if you want to change the voltage to 18V:

Dimensions

FAQ

Question:How long does Solar Power Manager (C) take to be fully charged?

 Answer:

Fast charge (9V): about 4 hours.
Simulating solar panel with regular power input(18V 10W): about 6 hours.
PS: As the solar panel charging is easily affected by the real environment, here we use the regular voltage to simulate the charging test.

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Question:What is the biggest current of Solar Power Manager (C) when it is charged?

 Answer:

2A.

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Question:How long will Solar Power Manager (C) outputting 3A last after it is fully charged?

 Answer:

About 1 hour.

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Question:How to read the current battery voltage? I am powering an ESP8266 and I need to know the battery level remotely over wifi.

 Answer:

You can wire the LED4 to GND and wire LED1(25%) as SDA LED2(50%) as SCLK for reading the capacity by I2C interface.

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Question:Can the charge level be monitored by software?

 Answer:

The Solar Power Manager (C) module is a device designed to manage the power input and output of a solar panel system. However, it is unable to monitor the charge level through software. So you need to manually monitor the charge level by physically checking the device.

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Support

Technical Support

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