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Forum Index : Electronics : Inverter building using Wiseguys Power board and the Nano drive board
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KeepIS Guru  Joined: 13/10/2014 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2123 |
I had 3 empty din slots left in the Main Fuse box  now only one slot left, but everything had been upgraded to full individual RCBO when I had the Main Fuse box updated.NANO:Inverter V 8.2ks - Linux AvrDude GUI script V4.1 |
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| KeepIS Guru Joined: 13/10/2014 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2123 |
FYI: Opened the time switch Din unit, quality sealed 240vac 30A relay, easily replaceable thick coin size rechargeable battery in a battery holder, and a small easy to un-plug & remove LCD/clock controller. . Edited 2026-04-20 14:24 by KeepIS NANO:Inverter V 8.2ks - Linux AvrDude GUI script V4.1 |
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| jakesea Newbie  Joined: 30/09/2023 Location: United KingdomPosts: 19 |
Hi All, My name is Jake and I live in South Wales (the old one  ). I have been lurking in this forum for a long while now. I am a proper rookie when it comes to power electrics but I have tried to learn as much I could from your post and discussions. I am very grateful to all of you for sharing your knowledge, effort and time. Obviously, special thanks to Wiseguy and Poida who started developing nano-verter and to many others contributing as well. And I would also like to mention KeepIs who has not only contributed to this project a lot but who also sent me the pcb boards and made it possible for me to try to build this inverter - thank you very much once again, Mike. I have already tried to build Ozinverter. I bought pcb's and manual from clockmanfr but I had some problems making it work: a few blow ups... Eventually, I got it working but my happiness only lasted a few days, unfortunately. It just blew up again… I replaced all fets and drivers and it was working on the bench but I couldn’t start it up again when connected to batteries – the chip simply hung up every time. I swopped a few of them and the same problem occurred. So, I pressed the reset button and it blew up again… and I had enough. Then I came across this nano design and decided to give it another go. I have my new control board soldered and I have already started to solder the power board. I hope I didn’t bore you too much and you wouldn’t mind me asking some basic, newbie questions sometimes… |
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| KeepIS Guru Joined: 13/10/2014 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2123 |
Great to hear from you Jake, the Ozinverter is a great inverter, and there are many working and still running, however, like most previous designs, they can be unforgiving if there is a build or component error, more components usually get destroyed along the way when something goes wrong. No inverter is immune from that completely, but the WG Power board design with easily removable FET dynamite sticks (CAP Boards) in conjunction with the Nano SPWM module using the WG balanced SPWM drive system and the robust isolated WG controller design, all go a long way towards mitigating most of these problems. Feel free to ask any questions here, or you might prefer to start another thread with the build progress, either way, problems you might encounter would still be of great help to others still considering their own build.  EDIT: No questions are considered basic here, everyone one of us had a learning curve, and most builders have initially blown a FET or 50 in their inverter, we sometimes forget that we are building a very powerful DIY device, so if anyone has the slightest doubt about something in the build, no matter how basic it may seem, please absolutely ask. The Backshed is one of the few Forums that has remained friendly, welcoming and genuinely willing to help. . Edited 2026-04-21 08:25 by KeepIS NANO:Inverter V 8.2ks - Linux AvrDude GUI script V4.1 |
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| jakesea Newbie Joined: 30/09/2023 Location: United KingdomPosts: 19 |
Thank you very much for your friendly welcome, Mike - I'll keep lurking then  I didn't want to sound as I was criticising Ozinverter. I was not. I understand that it is robust design and I know that for many people it is working flowlessly. On a positive note, I learned quite a lot while building and troubleshooting Ozinverter and I actually had it working but, regretfully, only for a few days. Nevermind. I am hopeful that shortly I will finally have a proper, diy built, working inverter anyway Thanks once again  |
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| GleamBright Newbie Joined: 21/04/2025 Location: AustraliaPosts: 16 |
Jake, feel free to join the Australian Wiseguy build group on facebook and follow our thread on this forum. We're actively following a similar path and would welcome your input, perhaps also able to assist with procurement and advice. |
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| jakesea Newbie Joined: 30/09/2023 Location: United KingdomPosts: 19 |
Hi all, I am soldering the power board and in the BOM R4 is 100R but I have read in one of the posts that it should be replaced with 220R. Could someone confirm the correct value of it, please? Thank you GleamBright, thanks for your invite - I will follow your thread and try to find the group on FB as well. |
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| KeepIS Guru Joined: 13/10/2014 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2123 |
A Wiseguy forum post: I was able to get 15v 2W DC-DC modules, I retrofitted them to my spare boards that had 100 ohm, I really should change them in any case. I'm building another two spare power boards, so they can wait until I do those. EDIT: A very timely post from jakesea, when I checked my stock, I had one 12-15V module left, there are plenty at LCSC, have 8 on the way, they don't cost much $US, however most fast shipping is very expensive, I checked a slower option. . Edited 2026-04-24 11:09 by KeepIS NANO:Inverter V 8.2ks - Linux AvrDude GUI script V4.1 |
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| KeepIS Guru Joined: 13/10/2014 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2123 |
IMHO: If that is the ferrite E-Core with a few turns of 0G cable, I would only use that when testing with little load and low value Caps. Some who used these for years will still roll their eyes and say mine works. I and others have done extensive saturation tests and I'm surprised some of those Inverters survived, but there are also reasons that some did, in spite of the choke. The true peak current that FETS have to switch for a simple Laptop or LCD screen Plug Pack is eye watering, randomly exceeding 300A at power on. I have tested dozens of these AC P-packs, further, higher power AC SPWM charges and power supplies (non linear) as most are now, will randomly spike even higher. In every case these devices cause that E-CORE to saturate. Simplified and put simply, this is just one of the reasons for some of those early random inverter failures under "apparently" low power loads. . Edited 2026-04-24 13:53 by KeepIS NANO:Inverter V 8.2ks - Linux AvrDude GUI script V4.1 |
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| jakesea Newbie Joined: 30/09/2023 Location: United KingdomPosts: 19 |
Thank you for the clarification. I will use 220R for R4 then as I have 12-15V DC-DC module. Re: the choke, I have exactly the one you describe: 4 turns of 0G on an E-core. So it means I will need to buy 2 sets of 6 toroid sendust cores you recommend MS-226060-2 or equivalents as I understand it. oreo has put a post on GleamBright thread with some useful info about other manufacturers that make cores of similar specs. I will have to do some research into them - my new task for this weekend; and also bend all the FETs for the power board. All other components on power board already soldered in. |
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| KeepIS Guru Joined: 13/10/2014 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2123 |
The latest boards from WG are a different layout and the construction allows for easier building of the power board, and more flexible cable connections, and easier ferrite bead fitting, but the boards you have are the ones I'm using and are great. The choke link I posted are still reasonable priced when getting them to AU from China, but the others oreo posted might be better priced from the UK? ....Welding cable or equivalent is also perfect for the toroid primary, and it usually results in more air flow around the primary winding. EDIT: FYI the cores oreo posted are also fine. . Edited 2026-04-25 10:36 by KeepIS NANO:Inverter V 8.2ks - Linux AvrDude GUI script V4.1 |
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| KeepIS Guru Joined: 13/10/2014 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2123 |
Jake, while you are building, another value to check is R7 on the Nano controller board, it should be 120k, depending on the BOM you have, it may indicate 150k, this can cause non linearity in the AC voltage feedback setting for voltages above 230AC. NANO:Inverter V 8.2ks - Linux AvrDude GUI script V4.1 |
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| jakesea Newbie Joined: 30/09/2023 Location: United KingdomPosts: 19 |
Mike, I have 3 BOMs printed out; rev7 and 7b: R7 = 150k, rev 7a R7 = 120k. I must have read somewhere that R7 should be 120k because I have written a note on it and I have just checked and I used 120k. Nonetheless, I appreciate your reminder - really easy to miss. Re: chokes, I have just compared 0077192A7 to MS-226060-2 and specs look the same to me. I looked at size, permeability and inductance factor. I am not sure what else I should check/consider. 12 pieces with delivery to UK cost: MS-226060-2 = £94 from Ali, 0077192A7 = £78 from Digikey. Obviously, if they are the same I would order the ones from Digikey. Thanks |
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| KeepIS Guru Joined: 13/10/2014 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2123 |
Those chokes are good, enough room for 5 turns of 2G, or you could use smaller 4G cable if running lower constant power levels . Edited 2026-04-26 13:53 by KeepIS NANO:Inverter V 8.2ks - Linux AvrDude GUI script V4.1 |
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| jakesea Newbie Joined: 30/09/2023 Location: United KingdomPosts: 19 |
Thank you, the chokes are coming from digikey this week and I am slowly moving forward. I have been checking what else I need to source. I am still not sure what specs contactor/high current solenoid should I use? It is pin 3 of J1 on controller board. Also, there is TLS76L AC I sense current transformer that I can't find anywhere. Is there any ready available alternative that can be used instead, please? I would be very grateful for your advice |
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| KeepIS Guru Joined: 13/10/2014 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2123 |
The Solenoid is getting expensive in some cases, there are lower cost 24Vdc units with Economiser attached, if building a 48v system then idealy you want a 48-72Vdc unit. I initially had a 24V unit and powered it with 48V to 24V converter. Yes, Pin 3 of J1 on controller board is connected to the Negative coil lead and a FET on the controller switches to ground to enable the Solenoid. The Economiser allows the Solenoid to run at very low power once it is switched, initial pull-in current is around 1.5A and the economiser drops it to around 30mA once the Solenoid is switched. These are hard to find @ 48-72V, however I have found a few, here is the link: 48-72vdc Solenoid I have data on the TLS76L current transformer, when I get a chance later today, I'll look for an alternative. If someone on the forum has already sourced one, they might answer before I start looking? . Edited 2026-05-01 08:40 by KeepIS NANO:Inverter V 8.2ks - Linux AvrDude GUI script V4.1 |
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Revlac Guru Joined: 31/12/2016 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1241 |
Jake, The TLS76L current transformer specs? I think are 2500/1 and 51R The Ozinverter had used 2000/1 and will probably still work, haven't tried it but if you have one you can check. Cheers Aaron Off The Grid |
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phil99 Guru Joined: 11/02/2018 Location: AustraliaPosts: 3179 |
Perhaps a few tens of dollars can be saved with a software solution. Use a plain 24Vdc unit (no economizer) And give it a brief 48V pulse, say 50mS, to pull-in followed by PWM of a few kHz with a short duty cycle, 2% to 10% perhaps. Experiment. A flywheel diode across the coil inductance will then maintain a steady hold-in current. |
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wiseguy Guru Joined: 21/06/2018 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1278 |
No need to experiment much really it's kind of re-inventing the wheel. Note the Kilovac below refers to a straight coil not an economiser type! "The first obstacle to overcome was that I ordered a 24V coil solenoid as they were ~$100+ cheaper than the 48V or 12V units - why I have no idea - maybe the 24V units have high sales volumes. I always intended to find a simple drive mechanism to operate the 24V unit from 48V. �The next feature I liked is that the hold in current is much lower so my circuit had to hit the unit with 24V and then transfer to hold at ~ 8V. I developed a circuit that can produce two separate PWM periods the first has a duty cycle of ~ 50% the second has a duty cycle of ~ 17% the frequency is ~ 2kHz. The operation is, when enabled, first apply the 50% duty cycle, the solenoid pulls in with ~ 22.5V on a 45V supply, after a ~0.5 second delay the PWM lowers to 17% the coil voltage is ~ 8V, a FET buffers the pwm to drive the solenoid which has a catch diode across it which acts as a flywheel diode to keep the current flowing during the off time. I used a whole 2 schmitt trigger inverters and a FET to do all of this. The supply current (from 45V) is ~ 220mA during the 22.5V phase this then drops to ~ 30mA whilst maintaining the holding 8V." The text came from this post. The schematic I used can be found there, the nano latch can be ignored and the anode node of D1/R1 if driven high will open or turn off the Kilovac. Driving the node low will PWM at 2KHz ~ 50% and after the delay through U1B then ~ 17% for hold in at ~ 8V. If at first you dont succeed, I suggest you avoid sky diving.... Cheers Mike |
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| phil99 Guru Joined: 11/02/2018 Location: AustraliaPosts: 3179 |
As the coil current takes time to rise the 50% PWM period isn't needed. The short duration of the initial pulse keeps the coil current within safe limits. Have used 5V relays on 24V this way. |
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