Introducing WattPlot™ for Charities and N.G.O.s!
OutBack Power Systems supplies first-rate off-grid renewable energy systems for humanitarian projects all over the world. A number of international charities are installing such systems in developing countries and disaster areas, where remotely available power can change lives, and WattPlot is right there with them, ensuring that such installations remain up and functioning at peak performance levels.
We are proud to provide the most comprehensive software available at either no-cost or at deeply discounted rates to support humanitarian efforts around the globe. Whether it is efforts to bring light to remote African villages or supplying emergency power in Haiti, WattPlot is up and running, both on-site and back in the home offices of not-for-profit organizations, monitoring systems every second, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We'd like to highlight a few organizations that are doing this incredible work. If you carry out similar programs, we'd love to add you to this list:
Engineers Without Borders - International
Engineers Without Borders - Canada
The monitor program plots performance data in real-time, as it happens!
Monitor a Mate in a remote country, over the internet! See what they see!
Get WattPlot's triple benefits: Settings, Diagnostics, and Performance Tracking!
Want to monitor several remote systems yourself? Read about monitoring Multiple Systems!
Settings
The OutBack inverters and charge controllers that control your desperately needed renewable energy systems are very sophisticated pieces of technology. There are many settings possible that alter the behavior and performance of these devices and, consequently, their entire system. As you know, each installation and situation is different for every installed system. The circumstances of the solar and/or wind exposure, combined with the individual characteristics of the battery banks, utility grid (if connected), generators (if used), all contribute to a renewable energy system that, for each of your sites, is unlike any other. Unique systems call for unique settings to get the most out of your investment. The difficulty resides in how to determine what settings are right for each system.
WattPlot™ helps solve this problem by giving you an incredibly detailed view of what is happening with your installed system. The historical plots will show you precisely what the wattages and voltages were at every second. By simply moving your mouse along a stretch of plot, you can see what modes the system went into - when and why. Each MATE vDC setting is also relative to the other settings. These relationships can change as compensation for battery temperature affects some settings and not others. WattPlot's unique VDC Setting Relationships screen allows you to see these relationships in a simple graphical format - and to see how a change in temperature will alter the way that these settings inter-relate. Seasonal adjustments to MATE settings become a lot easier, and the tool is simple enough that you can easily use it to explain system behavior to on-site personnel, demonstrating the target-voltage strategy used by their OutBack equipment.
Diagnostics
Problem at a remote site? Perhaps the batteries are not being charged the way they should be, or the inverter is not able to keep up with demand, or the generator is coming on at strange times? Perhaps the system is not selling power back to the grid efficiently or the client is getting warning or error lights. As you know, the keys to diagnosing and solving these problems are (1) being alerted to these problems in the first place, (2) knowing what the system was doing when the problem occured, (3) knowing what the current MATE settings are, (4) being able to observe the system in action, and (5) knowing the history of the system. Wattplot gives you all five keys.
WattPlot™ does a lot more than just inform you of device warnings and errors - it also checks for other alert conditions, such as firmware upgrades required, known device bugs, and communication errors. Problems are highlighted right on the main screen, turning relevant value backgrounds red or yellow, depending on problem severity. You can even program your own trigger events for WattPlot to react to. Imagine WattPlot sending you an email, alerting you of a potential problem at a project site on the other side of the world before it becomes a real problem!
No other software tracks the detail that WattPlot does. Simply open any historical plot for the device and date in question, and you can see exactly what was happening before and after the problem occured. WattPlot's MATE Settings screen is a lot more than the easiest way to look up MATE settings for your client's system - it also provides a wealth of information and descriptive advice for each value (often more than can be found in the OutBack manuals) and all at the click of a mouse. No more beep-beep-beeping through menus on the MATE to lookup settings. Want to look at what your remote site's system is doing right now? If that computer can be accessed by an internet IP address, you can piggy-back on to its MATE data stream and see the same plots that are being generated on the on-site monitoring system.
From past days plots to monthly power summaries to detailed maintenance logs, WattPlot gives you a complete performance history of your project's system. You can even program WattPlot to email these files to you on a regular basis so that you have all the information at your fingertips. And if you can't solve a particular problem yourself, you can always email that same level of detail to someone else who might be able to help.
Performance Tracking
At the end of the day, the bottom line for most installations is "How much power am I producing/buying/using? and how healthy is my system?"
WattPlot™ supplies not only the expected monthly graphs, it also allows comparative graphing, provides full spreadsheets, and has drill-down capability from the graphs into daily plots. Both you and your clients will be able to track performance at a glance, and immediately get details on days that don't measure up.
Answers to Frequently Asked Questions
Download a free fully functional copy
Look through the User's Guide (as a pdf)
Browse WattPlot section of OutBack User Forum
Ordering, Pricing, and Dealer Discounts Also see note at bottom.
2-page WattPlot flyer (as a pdf)
Some Comments from Client Organizations
"During the run thru with the [client] we had to check open circuit voltages for all the PV modules. It was our second day onsite the barge was leaving soon, we were slightly rushed but enjoying ourselves, and as I checked voltages at each breaker at the PV combiner boxes one fellow went ahead and unlocked the other boxes, while another trailed behind and tugged on wires and flipped the breakers back on. At the end of the day while I was showing off the WattPlot software I noticed two of the 6 MX's were not charging. If it wasn't for the clear layout of the software, and the ability to compare devices all on one screen, I would have never of realized that a bunch of breakers hadn't been flipped back on. That's when I was sold."
- Jason Lerner, Waldron Power and Light Co., WA
"When I first began researching monitoring solutions (before my system was even installed), I was pleased to find that there were several options available. WattPlot seemed the best fit for what I wanted to achieve. When I contacted Andrew Welch about the system summary logging, I expected an answer along the lines of "We don't do that, but maybe someday in a future release..." However, Andrew sent an enthusiastic reply, and in short order, a beta version of the latest WattPlot software for me to try that included the new feature I had requested. Awesome!!"
- Sallye Holloway, WoofPower.us
"WattPlot is a really nice piece of software and we recommend it to customers on a regular basis."
- Matt James, Customer Service Manager, OutBack Power Systems
"I've seen a couple of other companies attempt to do this, but I really like the simplicity of the interface as Andrew showed me how it tracks and logs every second of performance of his LAKOTA-based hybrid system . . . Andrew's done a very nice job of making a good intuitive interface. He's made the necessarily complex control structures of the Outback easy to manipulate. WattPlot displays the simple performance data of any parameters you want to know about. . . how much power is the system making right now, last night? . . or last month? . . and what configuration is best for my system to get the best performance? . . . Outback has made a beautifully versatile power management and control system with lots of very useful features. All it needs is a little WattPlot to make it more user friendly for the average-techie who wants to see the power of the whole system, second by second or over the last month."
- Dave Cooke - True North Power (Outback Dealer)
Extracted from an article in Free Wind News
"Over the past year, iCeL Systems has joined forces with WattPlot, a comprehensive software tool which provides real-time reporting on renewable energy system data. WattPlot allows iCeL customers to monitor their energy storage systems remotely via desktop or smart phone. For the Anaheim Energy Field project, iCeL CTO Dr. Ryan Wartena, made some special requests of WattPlot. Wartena was extremely impressed with WattPlot’s ability to completely exceed expectations by developing a whole new product to meet iCeL’s needs for the Energy Field, which feeds into the Anaheim Public Utility grid."
"I just [...] downloaded and read your user's guide for WattPlot. Wow - that's just exactly what I wanted! It even has pictures of the hardware connectors! I also want to compliment your tech writer. Very user-friendly user guide. So many 'user guides' are still in 'tech-ese'!
I'm so excited to get data collection all the time!! It makes it so much easier to analyze what's going on.
Finally, I wanted to say that I'm so glad your programming background inspired you to write this program. I don't have a programming background, but I'm a systems analyst, so that's exactly what I was trying to do - gather enough information to analyze the effect of the various settings. The Outback manuals aren't very user-friendly (they need your tech writer, obviously), although they're getting better. Even their explanations of the settings are like reading Greek.
I'm going to get a cable to interface my computer as soon as I can, and download your WattPlot software. THANKS!!!"
- Loretta Liefveld, Three Rivers, CA
If you would like more information about WattPlot, please check out our Frequently Asked Questions, or email us.
Free or discounted licensing is subject to approval by WattPlot management, who consider each case on its own merits. Preference is given to charities and non-governmental organizations doing humanitarian work internationally. Proof of status may be required. Please contact us for details or to request license fee reductions or waivers.
