Eagle Electric Expander User Manual

Instruction Manual for the Data Recorder Electric Expander

Document Version 3.0

Model # CDR-ECV, CDR-ECV140, CDR-ECV300

Thank you for your purchase! This instruction manual will guide you through the installation and operation of your Data Recorder Electric Expander. Please read the entire manual carefully before proceeding. If, after you read the manual (including the Troubleshooting section!!), you have further questions or problems, see the Support page on http://www.eagletreesystems.com for additional information, or email us at

support@eagletreesystems.com.

If you have purchased a Secondary or Tertiary Electric Expander, allowing up to three Electric Expanders to be used simultaneously, please refer to the Secondary Expander instructions for additional information, after reading the instructions below.

WARNING: High Voltages can cause electric shock. Be extremely careful when working with high voltage packs! Work with High Voltages at your own risk!

Packing List

Your package should include the following: Electric Expander (standard 100 amp, or larger 140 amp or 300 amp sensors), and a printed version of this manual. Please check your box for printed addenda to this manual which may be included if changes were made after printing.

How the Electric Expander Works

The Electric Expander is compatible with our Flight Data Recorder V2/Pro, all Seagull systems, Car Data Recorder, and Boat Data Recorder products. It is not compatible with our original Flight Data Recorder V1 product.

The Electric Expander works with your Data Recorder to measure motor battery pack voltage and current. The Expander measures current by means of a tiny, lightweight hall effects current sensor ring. Battery pack voltage is measured by the alligator clip attached to the expander. NOTE: a common ground between your battery pack and the Recorder is required for the voltage measurement to work correctly.

Connecting the Electric Expander to the Recorder

Note: If you have a Secondary or Tertiary Electric Expander, please refer to the Secondary Expander instructions for plugging in your Expander to the Recorder.

Connect the polarized, 5 pin Electric Expander connector to the recorder as shown in Figure 1a. NOTE: The plug is a tight fit – slightly tilting the 5 pin connector back toward the center of the Recorder can aid installation. If

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you still have problems fitting it, you might need to lightly sand the top of the connector (nearest the red wire) with sandpaper, but this should not be necessary.

EXTREMELY IMPORTANT:

The Electric Expander Connector **MUST** be connected correctly to your Recorder, or severe damage to the Recorder and other equipment could occur, which will void the warranty. The Expander connects as shown in Figure 1A, to the right of the USB connector, with the RED wire of the connector facing UP. If you are uncertain as to how to connect the expander, don’t hesitate to email us at support@eagletreesystems.com!

Connecting the Electric Expander to Your Battery

To measure current the hall effects current sensor ring can be installed around either the positive or negative wire leading from your battery to your speed controller. It works through the wire’s insulation, and hence no cutting of the wire is necessary. It can be installed facing either direction, as it is not polarized.

The alligator clip is for measuring battery pack voltage. It should be attached to an exposed part of the positive (normally red) battery wire or terminal between the battery and the speed controller. It must be in direct electrical contact with the positive battery wire. Alternatively, the alligator clip can be removed and soldered to the wire leading to the ESC for a more permanent installation.

If an easily removable installation is desired, one convenient way to do this is to have a removable wire “section” with Deans or other plugs on either end (male/female). Both the current and voltage leads of the Electric Expander can attach to this wire section (the alligator clip is normally cut off and the voltage wire soldered), and the section can be removed easily from the model when electric measurement is not desired.

ESCs with isolation between BEC/Throttle ground and Main Battery Ground

Note that there must be electrical conductivity between the ground wire of your main battery and the Recorder’s internal ground, for voltage measurement to work correctly. Normally, when the Recorder is connected to your receiver via one or more of the Recorder’s servo connections, the ground wire of the ESC’s BEC/Throttle output results in the correct grounding.

However, some ESCs isolate battery ground from the ESC/BEC throttle output ground. The easiest way to tell if there is ground isolation is, with everything disconnected from your ESC, to measure the resistance between the main battery negative input of the ESC, and the BEC/Throttle ground wire. If the resistance is greater than an ohm or two, there is isolation.

In these cases, for the Recorder to measure voltage correctly, the recorder’s ground must be connected to the ground of the battery to be measured.

There are two ways to do this:

a) RECOMMENDED: Disconnect all connections between your Receiver (including BEC/Throttle output of the ESC) and

your Recorder, and power the recorder from a separate small battery. Then, connect a small ground wire between one of the Recorder’s servo ground pins, and the negative lead of the battery being measured, as shown in Figure 2. Note that the resulting connections should not bypass the ESC’s isolation between the BEC/Throttle ground and the ground of the battery being measured, since the BEC/Throttle ground is NOT connected to the recorder. Note that servo position logging will not be possible in this scenario.

b) If you want to continue to power the Recorder from the ESC’s BEC output or the battery you are using to power the

Receiver (and to be able to log servo positions), you will need to leave the servo connections from the Receiver to the

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