This ESP8266 firmware enables you to read information from a GoodWe solar inverter through it's RS485 bus.
Sending information to a MQTT broker is supported, as well as uploading information to PVOutput.
- GoodWe inverter with a RS485 connector (this software has been tested with GW3000-NS, GW3600D-NS, GW10KN-DT, but other inverters might also work)
- ESP8266 module (like NodeMCU or WeMos D1 mini)
- RS485 converter (can be found on sites like AliExpress, search for
SCM TTL to RS485 Adapter 485 to UART Serial Port 3.3V 5V Level Converter Module). For example the XY-017 board is suitable - Computer with Arduino IDE installed to flash the firmware
- To flash this firmware, you will need to install the Arduino IDE and configure it for the board you are using (NodeMCU / WeMos)
- You will also need the following libraries, placed into the
librariesfolder belonging to Arduino on your system: - Clone/download this repository
- Rename the
Settings.example.htoSettings.hand configure it to match your preferred settings - Compile and upload the firmware to your ESP8266 using the Arduino IDE
Diagnostics information is sent over serial at 115200 baud (wifi status, MQTT status, inverter connection status)
The RS485 connector on the inverter is located at the bottom of the inverter, visible when you remove the original GoodWe wifi-module. It could also be hidden behind a small metal plate (for inverters without WiFi). It is a 6 pin green terminal (male), the female counterpart is probably part number CTB92HE/6 (3.81mm pitch) but this hasn't been confirmed yet. You can order the female counterpart on eBay/AliExpress/Farnell or similar sites. Using female-female jumper wires that you insert directly into the connector and ESP8266 also works.
Above information applies to the GWxxxxD-NS range of inverters. Other models might use a different method of connecting. Consult your inverter manual.
The green 6 pin connector inside the inverter looks like this:
+------------+ +---+---+---+---+---+---+
|------------| | . | . | . | . | . | . |
+------------+ +---+---+---+---+---+---+
USB 1 2 3 4 5 6
| Inverter | RS485 converter |
|---|---|
| pin 1 (485_TX-) | A+ |
| pin 2 (485_TX+) | B- |
Pay attention, RS485 will only work if you disconnect the WiFi module and restart the inverter. They cannot work simultaneously.
| RS485 converter | ESP8266 |
|---|---|
| GND | G / GND |
| RXD | D1 |
| TXD | D2 |
| VCC | 5V / 3V3 |
(D1 (receive) and D2 (transmit) can be configured to different pins in Settings.h). It might look weird to connect RXD of the module to the receive pin of the ESP8266, but this is how the XY-017 RS485 converter is labeled.
Instead of supplying power to the ESP8266 with a separate USB power adapter, it is also possible to 'steal' power from the GoodWe inverter. This can be done by tapping in to the white cable with 5 pin connector (JST-XH) that is normally connected to the original GoodWe wifi-module. Do not use this method if you want to use MQTT! For MQTT to show the correct values, the counters are reset to zero at midnight, which obviously won't work if the ESP8266 doesn't have power (inverter turns off when the sun is down). If you only use PVOutput you can use this method.
Use this method at your own risk, and measure/check first before attempting this method! See here for more information. Confirmed to be working with at least GW3000-NS.
Subscribe to the goodwe/ topic in your MQTT client. Information will be posted there and will look like this:
goodwe/93600DVA295R148/vpv1 242.6
goodwe/93600DVA295R148/vpv2 235.7
goodwe/93600DVA295R148/ipv1 4.9
goodwe/93600DVA295R148/ipv2 5.5
goodwe/93600DVA295R148/vac1 240.6
goodwe/93600DVA295R148/iac1 10.7
goodwe/93600DVA295R148/fac1 49.99
goodwe/93600DVA295R148/pac 2582
goodwe/93600DVA295R148/temp 38.6
goodwe/93600DVA295R148/eday 6.40
goodwe/93600DVA295R148/workmode 1
goodwe/93600DVA295R148/online 1
| Field | Description | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| vpv1 | Voltage of first string of solarpanels | V |
| vpv2 | Voltage of second string of solarpanels | V |
| ipv1 | Current of first string of solarpanels | A |
| ipv2 | Current of second string of solarpanels | A |
| vac1 | Voltage mains side inverter | V |
| iac1 | Current mains side inverter | A |
| fac1 | Frequency mains side inverter | Hz |
| pac | Current power production in Watt | W |
| temp | Internal temperature of inverter | °C |
| eday | Energy produced today | kWh |
| workmode | Undocumented parameter. Default=1 | binary |
| online | Inverter status (1=on, 0=off) | binary |
When you have your PVOutput API key and System ID configured correctly in Settings.h, production data from the inverter will be uploaded to PVOutput every 5 minutes (interval is configurable in Settings.h, but don't go lower than the minimal interval of every 5 minutes as specified by PVOutput).
When multiple inverters are connected, by daisy-chaining the RS485 cable, be aware that only the production data of the first inverter will be uploaded!
For the PVOutput upload function to work, it is important that the ESP8266 has access to the internet.
Apart from connections being made to PVOutput, you will also see that the ESP8266 talks with pool.ntp.org every hour. This is done to retrieve the current time, which is needed to post data to PVOutput.
If you plan to use only MQTT, internet access for the ESP8266 is not needed.
- Webpage to configure parameters that are now hardcoded in
Settings.h - Extract other parameters from inverter(s)
- Detect if inverter is single phase or three phase model