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Antony Male edited this page Jul 22, 2023 · 3 revisions

NOTE: This page is linked to from the setup wizard. Do not remove or rename!

Summary

The USR-TCP232-304 is an RS485 to TCP converter. It appears to be capable, and doens't suffer the same problems as its USR-W610 sibling (although it only supports Ethernet and not WiFi).

However, since it it only a TCP to Serial adapter (and does not support ModbusTCP), you will probably see problems if you try and have multiple computers/integrations using it at once.

Connections

Connect the device to your inverter, see this guide.

Connect the "485A" connection in the inverter's connector to the "A(+)" terminal on the 304 RS485 connector, and the "485B" connection to the "B(-)" terminal.

Setup

By default from the factory, the 304 has a static IP address of 192.168.0.7.

It can either take an IP address from a DHCP server or you can provide it with static IP address details.

You'll need to connect to the 304 with an ethernet cable from a PC or laptop

Set the computer you're using to a static IP in the same subnet (say, 192.168.0.8) and you should be able to access the setup webpage by going to http://192.168.0.7/.

You'll be prompted to login, the default username and password are both admin.

You'll first see the status screen (in this screenshot with a new IP already): status_screen

You want to click on the IP Config button on the left to get to this screen: local_ip

I have gone for a static IP setup, you will want to enter details appropriate to your own network, or you can use the DHCP option If you do that, you will want to tell your router to reserve an IP for the 304, so that it will always have the same one Once you save the IP setup, you'll be prompted to reboot the module. This is a good time to connect it up in its final location (ie to the inverter and the ethernet connection to your home network).

When you've made all the connections and powered the 304 back on, it will take a few seconds to boot At this point you'll need to access the web interface via the new IP, either the static one you gave it or the one your DHCP server gave it - you may need to check on your router to see this Make a note of this IP address, as you'll need it when setting up the integration Don't forget to set the IP config for the PC you used back to what it was before! Once you are logged back into the web interface at the new IP address, you want to click the Serial Port button on the left, which will bring you to this screen: serial_port

Set the parameters to match the screenshot.

Once you've set all the parameters correctly, click on the Reboot button on the left, then on Restart Module. This only takes a few seconds, at which point you should have a working setup.

Optionally, you can go to the Misc Config screen to change the login details to something other than the default, which is recommended if you have anyone else using the network who might go poking around and change things!

The manual is here if you need more detail of any of the configuration options, including the optional software.

Troubleshooting

  • You can use an IP scanner to locate your 304 on the network, if you are unsure of the IP it's been assigned
  • Download annd install modpoll to confirm your device and slave is working by running: c:\path-to-modpoll\modpoll.exe -m enc -p 502 -a 247 -t 3 -0 -1 -c 16 -r 11000 x.x.x.x where x.x.x.x is the IP address you noted earlier. You should get results something like this:
modpoll 3.10 - FieldTalk(tm) Modbus(R) Master Simulator
Copyright (c) 2002-2021 proconX Pty Ltd
Visit https://www.modbusdriver.com for Modbus libraries and tools.

Protocol configuration: MODBUS/TCP, FC4
Slave configuration...: address = 247, start reference = 11000 (PDU), count = 10
Communication.........: 192.168.0.41, port 502, t/o 1.00 s, poll rate 1000 ms
Data type.............: 16-bit register, input register table

-- Polling slave...
[11000]: 1945
[11001]: 54
[11002]: 1062
[11003]: 2406
[11004]: 80
[11005]: 1944
[11006]: 3262
[11007]: -77
[11008]: -2516
[11009]: 2400

(This is from Linux but the results will look very similar if you're using the Windows command line)