[RE-wrenches] Mate Drop and Charge Functions

[William Miller]

Todd, wrenches:

I should have known this thread would bring up the broader issue of human interface. I believe in two levels of interface: user and installer. The drop and charge functions are installer level. Gen start and EQ are user. The installer items should be password protected. The problem is exacerbated by the nearly identical appearance of the gen-start, drop and charge screens. 

Outback claims they can't make these changes because the memory is full. If true, I advocate reducing the lines of code by eliminating the drop and charge functions altogether.    These functions can be performed with circuit breakers.   Should this is accomplished I will systematically upgrade all of my customer's Mates. 

This complaint extends to the manuals. The industry writes terrible manuals. I rewrite all of the manuals and produce a highly condensed user manual with detachable, laminated instructions for common tasks. 

William



> On Jul 12, 2015, at 9:00 AM, toddcory at finestplanet.com wrote:
> 
> i have had this happen, but only with one very elderly customer who didnt know what he was doing. he is 93 now, and has wisely hired a neighbor to maintain his system.
>  
> having people "press buttons" who dont understand their function or correct settings is a recipe for problems. a ruined battery bank is an expensive lesson.
>  
> in all my years of designing and building systems (mostly all off-grid) i only had one customer who was so challenged with flying the system, that after she destroyed two sets of battery banks in 5 years, she decided living off-grid was too complicated, and she moved back to town. she rented her place and the renters actually operated the system with no problem.
>  
> the point is, some people are better at understanding and operating a battery/inverter/solar system than others. sure, the MATE could be easier, but i have never had any difficulty navigating and changing the menu settings and options. usually it is "operator/customer error".
>  
> todd
>  
>  
>  
> 
> 
> On Saturday, July 11, 2015 12:30pm, "William Miller" <william at millersolar.com> said:
> 
> > Friends:
> > 
> > How many of you have customers who have accidentally engaged the "drop" function
> > or disabled all battery charge functions whilst simply trying to stop a generator
> > or EQ cycle? I have seen customers ruin battery banks by mistaking these
> > functions.
> > 
> > I think it is a big mistake to put these similar-appearing functions together. The
> > drop and charge functions really should be behind a password or deleted
> > altogether. Either function can be accomplished by opening the correct circuit
> > breaker.
> > 
> > I am engaged in a conversation with Outback strongly encouraging them to fix this
> > problem. More voices would help.
> > 
> > William Miller
> > 
> > 
> 
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