Remote Monitoring | Marine Electronics

Remote monitoring is key to fine tuning the system. The heart of the unit is the Victron Venus GX. This will gather data form the batteries and environment and send it to the VRM Portal where we can analyse how the system is performing.

Keeping out the Elements

On this build keeping out water is vital. The shape of the space means that we need two enclosures after the access holes is cut a moisture curing sealant is applied to build up a watertight and flexible seal.

Fitting it all in

Trying to fit all the components into a small space is always challenging. Laying out the components on a base plate and marking the positions always helps but can take a lot of time to get it right.

The Brain

The Venus GX is the brain of the system. It will send data from the two battery monitors to the VRM portal. This will allow us to analyse data on power generation and consumption. It will also monitor battery temperature and ambient temperature. Data from the MPPT controllers, will also be available. Communication will be via the GX LTE 4G module. While out of range of 4G data will be logged onto a Micro SD card for uploading when Puffin is back in range.

Built in Whitehaven

Like all the systems on board the systems are built in our workshop at Whitehaven using Victron Energy products.

Ready to Fit

Like all the electrical systems on Puffin the components are mounted in a watertight box so if a wave should come and join Ian in the cabin at least the electrics will stay dry. The unit will be fitted with a high-performance antenna to boost performance.

Circuit

The initial circuit is shown here, as the project progresses this will be updated.

Live on line

The data from the monitoring unit will be sent to the VRM portal. More details will follow including a link so that you can see the live data.
• Primary battery voltage & current
• Secondary battery voltage & current
• Engine battery voltage
• Critical systems battery voltage
• Battery temperature
• Cabin / ambient temperature
• Solar / hydro yield

When Puffin departs from Les Sables d’Olonne, France, in September 2022 we want her electrical system to be as good as it can possibly be. Whilst the emphasis in the design is ruggedness and reliability, ensuring that there is enough power is equally as important. Of course, we have done a power audit and on paper this always looks good, however the reality can be quite different. For example, we do not know how much power will come from solar, and hydro. There are no guarantees that the power consumed will equal that estimated. What effect will temperatures have on the system and hundreds of other variables.

We have just under two years before the start of the race and in that time Ian & Puffin will have to sail thousands of miles. This will of course test the design and reliability of the systems, but it will also give us hundreds of hours of data. So how does this work?

1565255891_upload_documents_775_500-Venu

At the heart of the monitoring system is the Victron Venus GX. The Venus is part of the Victron GX devices, comprising a range of units including the Color Control and the amazing Cerbo GX. Whilst amazing the Cerbo has a touch screen which will display among other information GPS position. This sadly will not be allowed during the race, so we have chosen the Venus. Data from the battery monitors, temperature sensors, GPS, and MPPT controllers will be stored on an SD card within the unit. When ever the vessel is within reach of a 4G signal that data will be uploaded to the VRM Portal. We can then remotely access that data, allowing us to monitor the performance of the system. Armed with that information we can adjust the system.

The monitoring unit was built and installed in December 2020 and was used to monitor the performance of the system in the months leading up to the start of the race. This part of the system was removed just prior to the start of the race.