Installation Instructions: Electrician

Overview

In order for Altrac's Pump Station to control pump equipment, you will need to install the Pump Buddy and make connections between the Pump Buddy and the VFD or Contactor Setups. The goal of installing the Pump Buddy is to contain all high voltage currents inside the pump cabinet, so that a non-electrician can install the Altrac Station and troubleshoot the low voltage circuits (pressure transducers, etc.). 

 

Pump Buddy

The Pump Buddy comes with 2 M12 Connectors for use with the Altrac Station. You must install conduit between the pump cabinet(s) and the pump buddy and run appropriate cable. See below for an example: 

The pump buddy should be installed close to the pump cabinet in a location we can mount the Altrac Station (similar size to the pump buddy). The Altrac Station is normally mounted like the image below:

Equipment

You should have the following equipment on hand for installs. The equipment is also highlighted in blue on the schematics:

1. Power Supply
   1. Must output 15VDC (30W minimum)
   2. Pump Station Power Consumption: 2A peak usage
2. Step Up Relay
   1. 15VDC Coil Voltage -> Control Voltage
3. Selector Switch Contact Block
   
   1. To monitor HOA switch position, you may need to install an additional contact block (shown below)

Schematics

Contactor or 120VAC Control Voltage Setups

Anything in blue, you must provide during installation.

 

VFD

Anything in blue, you must provide during installation.

*The Pin 6, 7, 8 should be wired into the AUTO side of the HOA switch. 

 

Testing - Pump Control

You must test each contact for proper function. 

Location	Use	Test
Pin 1	15VDC Power	15 VDC power present
Pin 2	GND	Continuity Pin 2 -> GND Power Supply
Pin 3	RS485A	N/A
Pin 4	RS485B	N/A
Pin 5	RS485 GND	N/A
Pin 6 and 7	Relay A, Relay B	Test run the pump Ask grower for permission Place physical HOA switch in the Auto position Connect Relay 1A and 1B terminals together.  Pump should start. Stop pump by turning the HOA switch to OFF Turn HOA switch to MAN. The pump should not run due to Relay 1A and 1B signal. Confirm the pump runs in MAN by pressing the momentary start switch (not Altrac's start button).
Pin 8	HOA A	Pin 8 has 15VDC power when the HOA switch is in the Auto position. Pin 8 should not have power in any other position (MAN, OFF).

 

Testing - Pump Monitoring Only

You must test each contact for proper function. This setup is for installation where the grower is monitoring pressure or flow meters. This is NOT for pump control. 

Location	Use	Test
Pin 1	15VDC Power	15 VDC power present
Pin 2	GND	Continuity Pin 2 -> GND Power Supply
Pin 3	RS485A	N/A
Pin 4	RS485B	N/A
Pin 5	RS485 GND	N/A
Pin 6 and 7	Relay A, Relay B	N/A
Pin 8	HOA A	N/A

 

Pump 1: M12 Connector

Location	Use	Altrac Input	Color	Notes
Pin 1	Power	Power - VIN	White	15VDC
Pin 2	Ground	Power - GND	Brown	GND
Pin 3	RS485A	RS485/RS232 A / TX	Green
Pin 4	RS485B	RS485/RS232 B / RX	Yellow
Pin 5	RS485 GND	RS485 GND	Gray
Pin 6	Relay 1 A	Relay 1 - NO	Pink	Normally Open
Pin 7	Relay 1 B	Relay 1 - COM	Blue	15VDC
Pin 8	HOA A	Digital Input 1 DIN1	Red	15VDC

 

 

Pump 2: M12 Connector

Location	Use	Altrac Input	Color	Notes
Pin 1	Power	Power - VIN	White	15VDC
Pin 2	Ground	Power - GND	Brown	GND
Pin 3	RS485A	RS485/RS232 A / TX	Green
Pin 4	RS485B	RS485/RS232 B / RX	Yellow
Pin 5	RS485 GND	RS485 GND	Gray
Pin 6	Relay 2 A	Relay 2 - NO	Pink	Normally Open
Pin 7	Relay 2 B	Relay 2 - COM	Blue	15VDC
Pin 8	HOA A	Digital Input 2 DIN2	Red	15VDC

HOA Switch

The ST140 detects the position of the HOA switch in order to tell users when the pump is in Auto mode and the ST140 can control the pump.

WARNING: Use an empty terminal block on the HOA switch to provide the signal to the ST140. If you wire the HOA detection into an in-use terminal you will mix electrical signals and receive unpredictable results. 

1) Determine if the HOA switch has a free terminal block for Auto-detection. In an existing installation, the HOA switch will have wires connected to both its Hand and Auto terminals used to turn the pump on and off in both Hand and Auto modes.

IMPORTANT: If there are no free terminals, you will need to add a stacking contact block to the auto side of the HOA switch. Do not wire into a used contact block.

2) Follow connections diagram “HOA.1” below to wire the ST140 Digital Input to detect the Auto position

ST140 DIN1 Terminal connect to HOA Auto NO

ST140 GND Terminal connect to HOA Auto COM

Controlling the VFD - No HOA Switch

Fuji Frenic Eco

The ST140 sends a control signal via its mechanical relays, Relay 1 and Relay 2. The contacts COM/NO/NC are “dry” and so act similarly to a Hand-Off-Auto switch.

1) The Inverter must be set to accept run and stop commands via its control circuit terminal FWD. If you have a Hand-Off-Auto switch currently in place controlling your Inverter, it’s likely the inverter is set up correctly. To double-check, go to function code F02 and ensure it is set to “1: Digital Input”. If this is not how the Inverter is set up, you will need to modify the inverter for this control method; for more detail see Frenic Eco manual pages 3-42 and 8-11.

2) Determine if the Inverter’s control circuit is set to SINK mode (default) or SOURCE mode.  See diagram “Frenic.1” below.

3) Follow connections diagram “Frenic.2” below to wire the ST140 relay to control the Inverter

  ST140 Relay X Terminal - COM:

SINK mode: connect to Inverter CM terminal

SOURCE mode: connect to Inverter PLC terminal

  ST140 Relay X Terminal - NO:

BOTH modes: connect to Inverter FWD terminal

Allen Bradley PowerFlex

The ST140 sends a control signal via its mechanical relays, Relay 1 and Relay 2. The contacts COM/NO/NC are “dry” and so act similarly to a Hand-Off-Auto switch.

1) The Inverter must be wired for “2-Wire” control, the default for this Inverter. If you have a Hand-Off-Auto switch currently in place controlling your Inverter, it’s likely the inverter is set up correctly. If this is not the case, refer to the Installation manual for a proper 2-Wire control setup. 

2) Follow the connections diagram “PowerFlex.1” below to wire the ST140 relay to control the Inverter. Depending on your Inverter setup, you may use different terminals from PowerFlex +24V and PowerFlex Di 1