AERL LiFe² 5120S

This guide covers the communication link between the LiFe² 5120S and a supported inverter in Managed mode: cabling, battery and inverter settings, and how to confirm that the link works. All other inverter configuration and the system design are the integrator's responsibility.

Before you start, read the LiFe² 5120S Installation and Operation Manual and the inverter manufacturer's installation manual. For inverters without a communication link to the battery, and for the minimum number of battery modules for inverters not listed here, use the LiFe² 5120S PCE Integration Guide.

To size a complete LiFe² system (modules, cabinets and charge sources), see the AERL LiFe² 5120S System Sizing Guide, at aerl.com.au.

Settings can change with inverter firmware. They are correct at the date of publication. Use the latest firmware the inverter manufacturer offers.

Deye, Victron Energy, Selectronic, SP PRO, SP LINK, Solis and other third-party names are trademarks of their respective owners. They are used here only to identify compatible equipment.

1.1What Managed Mode Does

In Managed mode, the master battery's Battery Management System (BMS) talks to the inverter over CAN bus. The BMS sends its state of charge (SOC), its charge voltage limit, its charge and discharge current limits, and its alarms. The inverter charges and discharges within those limits and shows the battery's own SOC, so you do not program charge voltages or current limits by hand.

1.2Managed or Self-Managed

The LiFe² 5120S starts in Managed mode by default. If a battery has been switched to Self-Managed mode, it returns to Managed mode automatically when the communication cable between the inverter and the master battery is connected. To switch a battery to Self-Managed mode, double-press the ON/OFF button on the master battery with the battery on: the SOC LEDs flash 3 times to confirm, and the battery remembers the mode after a restart.

1.3Supported Inverters

The LiFe² 5120S uses CAN bus for every inverter in this guide. The battery's CAN pair is on pins 4 and 5 of its COMM port; each inverter brand has its own pins, so check the cable for your inverter.

2.1Battery Communication Chain

The battery that connects to the inverter is the master battery. The LiFe² 5120S has no address or DIP switches to set: the battery whose COMM port is connected to the inverter manages the whole bank.

1. Connect OUT on the master battery to IN on the next battery with the supplied comms cable. Continue OUT to IN down the chain.
2. Across cabinets, run the chain from the OUT port of the bottom battery in the first cabinet to the IN port of the bottom battery in the second, then top to top between the second and third cabinets, and so on (LiFe² 5120S Installation and Operation Manual, §5.12).
3. Insert the termination plug into the OUT port of the last battery in the chain.
4. Connect the inverter comms cable to the COMM port of the master battery. Connect nothing else to COMM on the other batteries.

Up to 64 LiFe² 5120S modules can run in parallel on one chain.

2.2COMM Port Pinout

Pin	Signal
1	NC
2	NC
3	NC
4	CAN_H
5	CAN_L
6	NC
7	RS485B
8	RS485A

2.3Inverter Comms Cable

• Use shielded Cat 5 cable or better, no longer than 5 m.
• Keep CAN_H and CAN_L on one twisted pair.
• Use the pin mapping for your inverter (Chapters 03–06). The battery's CAN pins are 4 and 5; inverters that use other pins need a cable that re-maps them.
• If you make up a cable yourself, check every pin for continuity before you fit it.
• Run comms cables away from DC and AC power cables.

2.4CAN Termination

The link between the master battery and the inverter needs 120 Ω at each end:

• Battery end: terminated inside the master battery's COMM port. Fit nothing.
• Inverter end: terminate as the inverter's chapter in this guide describes.

The termination plug in the last battery's OUT port terminates the battery-to-battery chain, which is a separate bus.

For AERL Cloud monitoring, fit an AERL Nexus Gateway inline between the master battery and the inverter, with no termination plug in the Nexus (LiFe² AERL Cloud Integration Guide).

2.5Start-Up Order

Follow the start-up sequence in the LiFe² 5120S Installation and Operation Manual (§6.3), with the comms cable already connected:

1. Turn on the DC breakers between the battery cabinet(s) and the inverter.
2. Turn on the battery module breakers.
3. Press the ON/OFF button on the master battery for 1 second.
4. Turn on the PV and AC isolators (if any) and start the inverter.
5. Set up the inverter as its chapter in this guide describes.

2.6Confirm Managed Operation

The link is working when:

• the Status LED on the master battery is on steadily (it flashes slowly in Self-Managed mode);
• the inverter shows the battery's SOC, and it matches the battery's SOC LEDs;
• the inverter shows the battery's charge and discharge limits (where it displays them);
• the system charges and discharges normally.

Charge the system to 100% SOC when you first start it, and at least every 30 days in Managed operation, to keep the SOC accurate.

2.7Troubleshooting the Battery Side

3.1Supported Equipment

• GX device: required (for example the Cerbo GX). The battery connects to the GX device, not to the inverter/charger.
• Inverter/chargers: all 48 V Multis, MultiPlus, Quattros and RS models. VE.Bus models need firmware 469 or later and connect to the GX device's VE.Bus port. Inverter RS and Multi RS models need firmware 1.16 or later and connect to a VE.Can port on a separate VE.Can (250 kbit/s) bus.
• Solar chargers: all 48 V BlueSolar and SmartSolar MPPT chargers. Connect each to the GX device (VE.Direct or VE.Can): the connection is mandatory, because it regulates charge current and voltage.
• The Color Control GX has only one CAN port, so it cannot serve both the battery and VE.Can solar chargers. Use a GX device with two CAN ports.

Install the latest firmware on the GX device and the Victron products.

3.2Minimum Battery Modules

The minimum number of LiFe² 5120S modules for each Victron inverter/charger, per inverter, single phase or three phase, on-grid or off-grid:

3.3Cable and Pinout

Use the Victron VE.Can to CAN-bus BMS Type A cable (ASS030710118). Plug the end labelled CAN-bus BMS into COMM on the master battery and the end labelled VE.Can into the GX device's BMS-Can port.

Terminate the GX device end with a VE.Can terminator (supplied with the GX device). The battery end is terminated inside the master battery. Do not put the battery on the same CAN bus as VE.Can devices.

3.4GX Device Settings

The battery's charge voltage and current limits replace the charge settings in VEConfigure and VictronConnect: the Multis, Quattros, RS models and solar chargers charge to the limits the battery sends, so charge voltages set there have no effect.

3.5Confirm It Is Working

1. The battery appears in the GX device's Device List (it shows as Pylontech, on the GX and in VRM), with its SOC, voltage and current.
2. The overview shows the battery's SOC, matching the battery's SOC LEDs.
3. On VRM, the battery appears in the installation's device list.
4. The Status LED on the master battery is on steadily.

3.6Troubleshooting

4.1Supported Equipment

Deye's approved battery list covers this battery on CAN, with Lithium Mode 00, for these low-voltage hybrid inverters:

4.2Cable and Pinout

Connect the inverter's BMS port (labelled BMS 485/CAN on single-phase models, BMS on three-phase models) to COMM on the master battery. Both ends carry CAN on pins 4 and 5, so a straight-through shielded Cat 5 cable works. Use CAN only: the RS485 pins on the two ports do not match.

4.3Inverter Settings

On the inverter display, open System Setup → Battery Setting.

Under System Setup → Advanced Function, BMS_Err_Stop sets what happens if communication with the battery is lost: when it is active, the inverter stops and reports a fault.

4.4Confirm It Is Working

1. The main screen shows no comm./FXX indication on the battery.
2. The Li-BMS page (from the battery detail page) shows the battery's Total SOC, charging voltage and the charging and discharging currents the battery allows.
3. The SOC on the inverter matches the battery's SOC LEDs.

4.5Troubleshooting

5.1Supported Equipment

• SP PRO Series 2i, 48 V models SPMC480, SPMC481 and SPMC482: ready for managed batteries.
• SP PRO Series II, 48 V: needs Selectronic's Managed Battery Upgrade Kit (order code 005295).
• SP PRO Series I is not supported.
• SP PRO firmware 16.11 or later, comms card firmware 5.31 or later and SP LINK 16.11 or later. SP LINK 16.11 includes both firmware versions.
• Multi-phase systems: connect the CAN bus to the L1 SP PRO only. The other inverters receive battery data from L1.

5.2Cable and Pinout

The SP PRO carries CAN on pins 1 and 2 of its comms card CAN socket; the battery uses pins 4 and 5. Use Selectronic's BMS to SP PRO CAN bus cable, which re-maps the pins and works either way round. A standard straight-through patch lead does not work.

The SP PRO is one end of the CAN bus: set the CAN termination DIP switch on its comms card to ON. The master battery terminates the other end internally.

5.3SP PRO Set-Up

1. Leave the SP PRO battery temperature sensor connected and coiled up inside the SP PRO. With a managed battery, the SP PRO reads the battery temperature from the BMS.
2. Connect the CAN cable from the SP PRO comms card CAN socket (L1 SP PRO in a multi-phase system) to COMM on the master battery.
3. Start the battery, then the SP PRO, and wait until the SP PRO front panel LEDs are stable.
4. In SP LINK, run the Site Configuration Wizard. Select the battery AERL LiFe2-5120S. SP LINK then applies the battery settings; there are no charge settings to enter by hand.
5. Save the site (File → Site Information → Save), connect to the SP PRO and click Configure SP PRO on the Configuration Settings tab.
6. Turn the battery DC supply to the SP PRO off, wait 20 seconds, and turn it back on.

5.4Confirm It Is Working

1. On the SP PRO comms card, the right LED is on steadily and the left LED flashes about once a second. The left LED can take up to 60 seconds to start flashing after power-on.
2. The CAN bus Comms LED flashes. If it stays on, there is a CAN communication problem.
3. In SP LINK, Data View → Battery Management shows valid values read from the battery: SOC, charge voltage limit, charge current limit and discharge current limit.
4. Data View → Technical Data → Battery Temperature shows the temperature reported by the battery.

5.5Troubleshooting

6.1Supported Equipment

This chapter covers the Solis low-voltage (48 V) hybrid and off-grid inverters with a CAN BMS port:

• S6-EH1P(3–8)K-L-PRO, S6-EH1P(3–6)K-L-EU and -AU (set up with the SolisCloud app);
• S6-EO1P(4–5)K-48 (front-panel display);
• S5-EH1P(3–6)K-L (front-panel display).

6.2Cable and Pinout

The Solis BMS port carries CAN on pins 4 (CAN-H, blue) and 5 (CAN-L, blue/white), as the battery does, so a straight-through shielded Cat 5 cable works. Check the pin sequence of any made-up cable before you connect it.

6.3Inverter Settings

S6-EH1P-L models (SolisCloud app): open More Tools → Local Operation → Connect with Bluetooth, log in as Installer, then go to Setting → Battery Setting.

S6-EO1P(4–5)K-48: Advanced Settings (password 0010) → 3. Battery Settings → Battery Select: Lithium battery (the communicating option; the "without comm" options are for Self-Managed batteries). Set Overdischar SOC to 20% and Force SOC Set to 10% (defaults; adjust to suit the site).

S5-EH1P-L: Advanced Settings (password 0010) → Storage Energy Set → Battery Select: Lithium Battery LV. Set OverDischg SOC to 20% and ForceCharge SOC to 10% (defaults; adjust to suit the site).

6.4Confirm It Is Working

After setup, check that the inverter's battery status shows the battery communicating:

1. S5 and S6-EO1P models: the display shows CAN OK (not CAN Fail).
2. S6-EH1P-L models: in the SolisCloud app, Other Parameters (From BMS) shows BMS Status: Normal, with the BMS charge and discharge current limits.
3. The inverter shows the battery's SOC, matching the battery's SOC LEDs.

6.5Troubleshooting

7.1Register the Warranty

The LiFe² 5120S warranty is 5 years. Register the battery within 60 days of installation to extend it to 10 years: register at aerl.com.au/warranty-registration. Conditions apply: see the LiFe² Warranty Statement, at aerl.com.au.

7.2Safety

• Installation, commissioning and maintenance must be carried out by a suitably qualified person, following the LiFe² 5120S Installation and Operation Manual and local regulations.
• Isolate the battery and the inverter before you connect or disconnect any cable. Do not unplug a cable while the battery is operating.
• Install a 2-pole DC breaker or MCCB between the battery and the inverter, on both conductors (AS/NZS 5139).

7.3Support

Before you contact AERL, note the inverter model and firmware, the number of LiFe² 5120S modules, and what the inverter and the battery LEDs show. Contact AERL support on 1800 950 865 or [email protected].

7.4Change Log