FAQ – Imeon Energy

What is the Smart-Meter for?

IMEON ENERGY — Thu, 29 Nov 2018 10:04:37 +0000

The Smart-Meter is an energy metering device installed at the site’s AC grid entry point. The role of the meter is to monitor and report real time energy consumption of the site. This measurement is sent to the IMEON inverter via a wired connection.
When the IMEON inverter receives information from the Smart-Meter, it responds by injecting power to AC Grid, corresponding to the real time energy consumption measured by the meter. The injected power would come from your solar installation and / or the battery, the renewable sources would therefore be used to offset the consumption from AC Grid as close to 0W as possible (within the power rating of the IMEON), without exporting power to the grid.
For example, if the installed IMEON is a 3kW single phase unit and that:
• the consumption measured by the Smart-Meter is 4kW,
• the solar installation produces 2kW,
• the battery can supply 1kW,

The IMEON will inject 3kW (solar + battery production, limited by power rating of the inverter) to AC Grid. The additional power of 1kW will be withdrawn from the electricity network.

When the inverter boots up for the first time, is it normal that it injects power from the batteries to the grid?

IMEON ENERGY — Thu, 29 Nov 2018 08:52:05 +0000

It’s normal operation. During initialisation Imeon performs phase verification procedure to check if its phase No. 1 of the AC Grid Connector input corresponds to phase No. 1 connected to the Smart Meter. In order to do this, during 30s Imeon injects 2kW to one phase after another, and cross-checks it with the response detected by the SmartMeter. This is done to make sure that all phases are correctly identified, at the SmartMeter and Imeon inputs.

Is it normal to see periods during which my inverter feeds into and consumes from the public network at the same time, on my monitoring interface?

IMEON ENERGY — Fri, 09 Mar 2018 12:42:48 +0000

It’s perfectly normal. The IMEON web portal samples inverter’s performance data with an interval of 15 minutes. During these 15 minutes, it is likely that the solar inverter has successively fed power to the grid and consumed power from it, it is therefore not unusual that information concerning both, consumption from and injection to electricity grid are displayed together.

Is it normal that the public grid charges the batteries all the time?

IMEON ENERGY — Mon, 26 Feb 2018 16:20:25 +0000

If the batteries are permanently charged by the public electricity distribution network it is because the IMEON has been programmed to work in this way.

To change this parameter, connect to the IMEON OS. ONE. In the “battery” tab menu you can disable or enable battery charging by the network. If you allow it, you must program a time slot during which the batteries will be charged by the network. Please note, if you program the time slot from 00:00 to 00:00, the batteries will be permanently charged by the network.

Is it normal that the IMEON inverter does not inject the surplus of power to the grid?

IMEON ENERGY — Mon, 26 Feb 2018 16:11:17 +0000

If the IMEON inverter does not inject the surplus power into the grid, it is likely that the IMEON has been programmed to operate in this way.

To change this parameter, connect to the IMEON OS. ONE, go to the “settings” tab and then “flow management”. In this menu, you can enable or disable injection to the grid.

Ho to verify if the Smart Meter communicates with IMEON?

IMEON ENERGY — Mon, 26 Feb 2018 16:00:21 +0000

To ensure that communication is established between IMEON inverter and the Smart-Meter, check the following:

The RS4585A port LEDs flash.
A phone icon is displayed on the Smart-Meter screen.
An icon representing a counter is displayed in the upper right corner of the IMEON OS. ONE.

Which solar panels can be used with Imeon?

IMEON ENERGY — Mon, 26 Feb 2018 15:51:52 +0000

Because Imeon inverter is compatible with mono and poly crystalline solar panels. Do not connect any solar panels that may introduce leakage current to the inverter (such as non-grounded PV modules).

NOTE : The PV DC voltage and current must be within the range of the MPPT Input specified in the datasheets and technical documentation of IMEON products.

Which size of solar batteries should I choose?

IMEON ENERGY — Mon, 26 Feb 2018 15:45:33 +0000

It is mandatory that the sizing of the battery bank is done by an experienced professional since it must be calculated on a case by case basis, depending on the objectives of the user (duration of autonomy, savings to be made, etc.) and the configuration of the site to be equipped (site isolated or connected to the public electricity distribution network). It is essential to take into account the specifications of the batteries (such as the charging and discharging currents that they can withstand). This information is provided by the battery manufacturer. The solar electricity generated by the installation must be sufficient to supply the loads and to recharge the battery bank completely and regularly (an undercharged battery bank can deteriorate rapidly).

For lead-acid batteries, it is generally recommended by the manufacturers that the charging current is between 10% and 20% of the capacity of the battery bank and that the discharge current does not exceed 20% of the capacity. Note that, extreme currents can damage the battery bank.

The lithium batteries compatible with IMEON, communicate with the inverter over a CAN protocol. The communication allows the battery to send instructions concerning the charging and discharging currents the inverter must comply with.

Which solar batteries can be used with Imeon?

IMEON ENERGY — Mon, 26 Feb 2018 15:38:27 +0000

It is possible to use lead or lithium batteries.

If you’d like to use lead acid batteries, make sure that the technical specification provided by the battery manufacturer is suits the specification of the IMEON inverter and set the appropriate voltage thresholds in the OS. ONE interface.

If you’d like to use lithium batteries, it is mandatory to select batteries that are compatible with the IMEON. A list of compatible manufacturers and models is available in the download section of our website. When commissioning the system, make sure to select the correct battery in the OS. ONE interface.

Can I install Imeon hybrid inverters in parallel?

IMEON ENERGY — Mon, 26 Feb 2018 15:33:10 +0000

It is possible, but requires a dedicated parallel-ready version of IMEON inverter.