ZigBee Plug-in Installation Guide

Revision History

Version 1.2 - April 2019

• Removal of Monitoring support

Version 1.1 - February 2019

• Addition of Smart Energy Management support

Version 1.0 - January 2019

• First version of this guide.

Disclaimers

Important Notice

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No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photographic, magnetic or otherwise, without the prior written permission of SolarEdge Inc.

The material furnished in this document is believed to be accurate and reliable. However, SolarEdge assumes no responsibility for the use of this material. SolarEdge reserves the right to make changes to the material at any time and without notice. You may refer to the SolarEdge web site (www.solaredge.com) for the most updated version.

All company and brand products and service names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. Patent marking notice: see http://www.solaredge.com/patent

The general terms and conditions of delivery of SolarEdge shall apply.

The content of these documents is continually reviewed and amended, where necessary. However, discrepancies cannot be excluded. No guarantee is made for the completeness of these documents.

Emission Compliance

The images contained in this document are for illustrative purposes only and may vary depending on product models.

This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits applied by the local regulations.

These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This equipment generates, uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. However, there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, you are encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures:

• Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
• Increase the separation between the equipment and the receiver.
• Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the receiver is connected.
• Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.

Support and Contact Information

If you have technical problems concerning SolarEdge products, please contact us:

Support Center: https://www.solaredge.com/service/support

Before contact, make sure to have the following information at hand:

• Model and serial number of the product in question.
• The error indicated on the inverter SetApp mobile application or on the monitoring platform or by the LEDs, if there is such an indication.
• System configuration information, including the type and number of modules connected and the number and length of strings.
• The communication method to the SolarEdge server, if the site is connected.
• The software version as appears in the status screen.

About This Guide

This guide explains how to install and configure the ZigBee Plug-in to manage your Smart Energy devices.

This guide is intended for Photovoltaic (PV) system owners, installers, technicians, maintainers, and integrators who use the SolarEdge power harvesting system.

This guide assumes that the SolarEdge power harvesting system is already installed and commissioned. For additional information about how to install and commission the SolarEdge power harvesting system, refer to the relevant installation guide.

For further information, datasheets and the most up-to-date certifications for various products in different countries, please visit the SolarEdge website: www.solaredge.com.

Overview

ZigBee is a technology that enables wireless connection between several SolarEdge devices.

Smart Energy uses the ZigBee Home Automation protocol with up to 10 devices connected to a SolarEdge inverter that serves as a Smart Energy manager.

Smart Energy devices include:

• Smart Energy Hot Water
• Smart Energy Socket
• Smart Energy Switch
• Smart Energy Relay

For more information on how to add a device to your Smart Energy network, see the installation manual that comes with the device or go to: https://www.solaredge.com/products/device-control#/

Package Contents

The package contains the following items. Other items may be included, if necessary.

• ZigBee Plug-in
• Antenna
• This installation guide

When installing the ZigBee Plug-in, follow the safety instructions of the inverter.

Installing the Antenna

There are two ways to install an antenna for ZigBee communication:

• Clipping the antenna to the inverter
• Installing the antenna on a vertical surface using a bracket (not provided by SolarEdge).

Clipping the Antenna to the Inverter

1. Power off the inverter:
   • Switch the inverter ON/OFF/P switch to OFF. Wait 5 minutes for the capacitors to discharge.
   • Turn the Safety Switch (if applicable) to OFF.
   • Disconnect the AC to the inverter by turning off the circuit breakers on the distribution panel.
2. Clip the antenna vertically to the heatsink fins or the inverter side.

Figure 1: Diagram showing an antenna mounted vertically on the heatsink fins of an inverter.

3. Pass the antenna cable between the mounting bracket and the rear side of the inverter or along the heatsink fins.

4. Open the communication gland at the bottom of the inverter.

5. Remove the rubber seal from the gland and insert the cable through the gland.

6. Insert the rubber seal with the cable into the gland body and reconnect the gland to the inverter. Tighten the sealing gland.

Connecting the Antenna to a Vertical Surface using a Bracket

For connecting the antenna to a vertical surface, use a bracket with the following recommended dimensions (not supplied by SolarEdge):

Figure 2: Diagram illustrating an L-shaped mounting bracket with dimensions approximately 2.5 inches (60 mm) wide, 1.5 inches (40 mm) high, and 0.15 inches (4 mm) thick, with two mounting holes.

1. Drill two holes in the surface and attach the bracket to it with two screws.
2. Clip the antenna onto the bracket. Make sure the antenna is positioned vertically.

Installing the ZigBee Plug-in

1. Make sure the inverter is powered off.
2. Remove the inverter cover as explained in the inverter installation manual.
3. Install the ZigBee Plug-in on the communication board as shown below.

Diagram showing the ZigBee Plug-in being inserted into a communication board slot within an inverter.

4. Connect the antenna cable to the ZigBee Plug-in and tighten the connector.

Close-up diagram showing the antenna cable connector being attached to the ZigBee Plug-in.

5. Close the inverter cover as explained in the inverter installation manual.

Configuring Communication

1. Access SetApp and select Commissioning → Communication.

Diagram showing the SolarEdge SetApp interface with 'Communication' selected. Options include Server (LAN), LAN (DHCP), RS485-1 (SolarEdge Slave), RS485-2 (Multi-Device/Modbus), ZigBee (None), Wi-Fi (None), Cellular (PCL), Modbus TCP port (Disable).

2. From the Communication screen, select the following: ZigBee → Protocol → Home Automation.

Appendix A: Technical Specifications

* Approximate values, may differ depending on specific installation conditions