6. The neoVI Explorer Configuration Utility

Note

No firmware changes will modify the settings parameters of the device radios

The neoVI Explorer utility allows you to connect, manage and configure all of your Intrepid Control Systems hardware.This section will describe general features and the basics of using neoVI Explorer, so you will understand the utility when we get into settings specific to your device.

6.1. Starting and Using neoVI Explorer

The neoVI Explorer utility is available as an integrated feature of Vehicle Spy, and as a standalone program.

6.1.1. Starting neoVI Explorer from within Vehicle Spy

There are several ways to open neoVI Explorer from within Vehicle Spy 3. These are the most common ways since they are accessible at all times:

• Menu Item: At the top menu bar, under Setup, select Hardware
• Setup Hardware Button: Click the button located in the main Vehicle Spy toolbar just under its menu (Figure below).

Note

neoVI Explorer cannot be launched when Vehicle Spy is online (even in simulation mode). If you attempt to do so, VSpy will prompt you to either go offline and launch neoVI Explorer, or remain online and return to Vehicle Spy.

6.1.2. Starting NeoVI Explorer as a Standalone Program

If you want to work with your device without opening Vehicle Spy, you can launch neoVI Explorer directly. neoVI Explorer is installed when you download Vehicle Spy 3 and is located at

C:\Program Files (x86)\Vehicle Spy 3\neoVI3GExplorer.exe

6.2. Using neoVI Explorer

6.2.1. Connecting to Your Device

When neoVI Explorer loads, it will start up with the first hardware device it can find selected in the menu pane on the left. You should see your device listed here, along with its serial number. If you don’t see the device you wish to connect to, but see other Intrepid devices, be sure to scroll down to look for it. If it is still not visible, this means its drivers have not been installed correctly, it is not powered properly, or there is a problem with the USB connection. After double checking your setup, click Search For Devices located at the bottom of the device selection panel. Sometimes it may take a few seconds for your device(s) to register.

To manage your device, click on its entry in the navigation pane (if it is not already highlighted) and then select Connect. After successfully connecting to the device, you will see a “thumbs up” icon next to the device’s name, and check marks will appear next to currently-enabled networks in the explorer area on the left. You should also see a message in the message box on the right saying “<Your Device and Serial Number> settings have been read”. This tells you that neoVI Explorer has loaded the current settings from the unit.

The screen as a whole should appear similar to the screen shown below (but note that the device and version number shown below may be different).

6.2.2. Device Configuration

Writing and Reloading Settings

To avoid potential problems, neoVI Explorer will not save any changes to device parameters unless you instruct it to do so. This is done by clicking Write Settings which will update the parameters within the firmware in your device. If you make changes you do not want to keep, click Read Settings to reload the settings stored in the device which will undo any modifications made in neoVI Explorer that had not yet been written.

Reloading Device Default Settings

To return all settings to factory defaults, click Load Default Settings. This is convenient if many changes have been made, and you want to start over. Note that clicking this button loads and saves the settings, so you do not need to click Write Settings. You will see messages in the message area telling you that defaults have been sent to the device and then read from it.

Disconnecting from the device

Click Disconnect to tell neoVI Explorer that you are done working with the device. This step is optional, because neoVI Explorer will disconnect from any connected devices when you exit the program.

Exiting neoVI Explorer

You can close neoVI Explorer by clicking the “X” in the top right corner, or by pressing Alt+F4 on Windows.

6.3. System Settings and Firmware Updates

The top two entries on the left panel of neoVI Explorer contain system-wide settings that apply to all hardware devices and information related to firmware updates.

6.3.1. System Settings

In the top branch of the tree in the left pane of neoVI Explorer you will see several settings that you can enable or disable.

Enable Server

Turns on the neoVI Server feature, a background program that allows your hardware to be used by multiple applications at the same time.

Enable Low Latency

This is an advanced setting for applications where fast response is needed after transmission.

Enable Auto Update

When enabled, both neoVI Explorer and Vehicle Spy will automatically update each device’s firmware. If this box is not checked, firmware must be updated manually.

Network Adapter Server

This is a feature that is used with Intrepid products having Ethernet ports. With this feature enabled, the Ethernet ports on your RAD-wBMS will enumerate as network interfaces in the operating system of your host computer. This server can be started and stopped in this window. There is also a checkbox to configure the server to start after booting your computer.

6.3.2. Available Firmware

This is an informational page that shows which firmware versions are available in this version of neoVI Explorer for various Intrepid products. Note that some devices have multiple firmware programs that control different aspects of their operation; You normally won’t need to look in this area, because as we’ll see in the next section, neoVI Explorer shows you the current and available firmware versions for your device when you connect to it.

6.3.3. Automatic and Manual Firmware Updates

Essentially, firmware is the software that runs hardware and is required to enable many capabilities of your device. New versions of firmware are created regularly by Intrepid’s engineers to implement new features and correct problems that have been identified.

If you have Enable Auto Update on—which is the default and recommended—then you don’t need to worry about firmware updates. Each time you connect to your device in neoVI Explorer or go online with it in Vehicle Spy, the firmware will be checked, and if a newer version is available, the device will automatically be updated. If you do not have automatic updates enabled, you control when your firmware is updated. When new firmware is available, you will be notified on the initial connection screen. Simply click Manual Reflash to update the firmware.

Warning

While your device may appear to operate with incompatible firmware, proper and reliable operation cannot be guaranteed unless the version of firmware matches what is listed in Vehicle Spy

6.3.4. Bootloader Mode

When an Intrepid device enters bootloader mode, all firmware is removed from the device. This can occur when power is removed during a firmware update or, in future versions of Vehicle Spy 3, can be activated by simultaneously pressing and holding the wBMS and CAN ETH buttons.

To exit bootloader mode, firmware must be loaded onto your RAD-wBMS. Plug your device into your computer, select the device, and click Connect. If the device does not appear in the left panel, click Search For Devices This will refresh the devices pane and search for your device. If the device still does not connect, a fault may have been caused in the hardware. If the device connects but does not begin reflashing, check the messages box to see if any errors occurred.

If assistance is needed for this situation please contact Intrepid’s support department, you can find information regarding how to contact support at the end of this manual or on the back of your device.

6.3.5. The Firmware Update Process

During the firmware update process, the device will be placed into bootloader mode, indicated by all LEDs on the top label flashing synchronously. Normal LED flash patterns will resume when the update is complete and the device reconnects. You will see a dialog box on the screen showing you the progress of the firmware update operation. You will also see messages in the message box on the right side of neoVI Explorer as the firmware program is sent to the device. When the process is complete the dialog box will disappear and another message will appear in neoVI Explorer to confirm that the update has finished. If you receive any error messages or experience any other problems updating your device’s firmware, please contact Intrepid for assistance.

Warning

Please take heed of the warning on the firmware update dialog box: leave the device connected and powered on for the entire firmware update process to avoid possible problems with the device.

6.4. General Settings and Product Details

These two areas of the device’s parameter setup provide information about the device and allow you to perform a few basic maintenance tasks.

6.4.1. General Settings

After connecting to the device you will see basic information about it in the right-hand pane of the window:

• The device’s serial number.
• The firmware versions currently in the device, and an indication if new firmware is available.
• A message showing that the hardware license for the device was recognized.
• A current readout of the device’s real-time clock.

This information can be displayed again at any time by clicking the device’s name in the explorer navigation window.

The version(s) of the firmware for the device will be shown in black if it matches the firmware version within neoVI Explorer. If not, the current version and the newest available version will be shown in red to notify you that an update is available.

There are three buttons on this screen:

Manual Reflash

Read RTC

Display the internal clock on the RAD-wBMS

Synchronize RTC

Set the device’s clock to the same value as that of the PC

6.4.2. Product Details

This is an informational area that provides technical data on the device’s hardware and internal setup. You will generally only need this if requested by Intrepid in order to facilitate support or troubleshooting. You can click Copy To Clipboard to copy all of the information to the Windows Clipboard, so you can then paste it into an email or file.

6.5. RAD-wBMS Port Configurations

This section provides information about neoVI Explorer settings specific to the RAD-wBMS.

6.5.1. CAN

RAD-wBMS has 2 channels of CAN/CAN-FD, where two of those are dedicated to ISO 11898 Dual wire CAN physical layers (TJA1043T). ISO 11898 is considered high speed, real time control and multiplexing for use cases of road vehicles. The software is switchable between ISO CAN FD and non-ISO CAN-FD versions. You can make these changes after connecting to the device through neoVI Explorer.

This area of neoVI Explorer is used to enable, disable and configure the two standard dual wire CAN networks in the RAD-wBMS. Each channel has an entry under the CAN group (which cannot be clicked itself). The current status of each channel is shown next to its name; a green checkmark indicates that the channel is enabled, while a red X means it is disabled.

DW CAN 01/CAN 02

Enabled

Place a checkmark in this box to enable the channel, or clear the checkmark to disable it. When disabled, all of the other parameter controls are disabled (grayed out).

Specify by Baud

This is a master control that determines whether the operation of the channel is controlled by a numeric baud rate, or is calculated from lower-level timing parameters. When checked, the Baud Rate and CAN FD Baud Rate drop-down boxes are enabled and the various TQ, Sync and BRP-1 entries are disabled. When unchecked, this is reversed.

Specifying by baud rate is the default, and is recommended except for advanced users with special requirements.

Baud Rate

When Specify by Baud is selected, choose a baud rate for the channel from the drop-down box below. The default value is 500000.

CAN Timing Settings

When Specify by Baud is deselected, the operation of the CAN channel is based on these five settings: TQ SEG1, TQ SEG2, TQ Prop, Sync, BRP-1. These settings are for advanced users and normally should be left at their default values

Mode

The operating mode of the channel:

• Normal: Normal operation (default)
• Listen Only: This channel only receives messages, with no transmissions, and also no error frames generated nor acknowledgments sent

Bit Rate Calculator

Click this button to launch the Intrepid Bit Timing Calculator

CAN FD

Enabled

Check this box to enable CAN FD on the RAD-wBMS. This enables the RAD-wBMS to automatically adjust message size and transmission rates. This should be enabled for CAN FD-supported ECU’s

ISO

ISO is used in CAN FD to increase robustness in the network by verifying messages that are sent and received. ISO is enabled by default and should only be disabled in special cases

Baud Rate

When Specify by Baud is selected, choose a baud rate for the data phase of CAN FD messages. The default value is 2000000

Timing Settings

When Specify by Baud is deselected, these settings will be used for the data phase of CAN FD messages (TQ SEG1, TQ SEG2, TQ Prop, Sync, BRP-1). These parameters are for advanced users and normally should be left at their default values

6.5.2. ISO 15765-2

This value is added to the received Inner Frame Spacing for USDT frames transmitted from CoreMini. This is a shift amount where each increment represents 6.4µs.

6.5.3. CAN Termination

CAN Termination is a built-in feature included with your RAD-wBMS. You can select CAN Termination for DW CAN 01 (CAN Channel 1) or DW CAN 02 (CAN Channel 2) to have the RAD-wBMS include the 120Ω resistors needed for CAN in your circuit.

6.5.4. Ethernet

The Rad-wBMS has a 100 megabit Ethernet capable of 10/100Base-TX that is used with DOIP, XCPoE and more.

Enabled

When checked, Enabled means that data can be transmitted and received on the Ethernet port

Link Speed and Duplex

Only for advanced users, Vehicle Spy automatically detects and negotiates the speed and duplex

Enable TCP/IP

Enables the communication protocol between the RAD-wBMS and the computer to transmit and receive data

IP Address

The IP Address of the RAD-wBMS on the Ethernet network

Netmask

Refers to the number of available addresses on the network. This should not be changed from 255.255.0.0 if using Ethernet to connect the RAD-wBMS to your computer

Gateway

The Gateway is the IP address for the router. Since there is no router, the Gateway can remain 0.0.0.0

6.5.5. wBMS Bridge/SPI

ECU ID

If the RAD-wBMS is wired to a physical Battery Node network, the ECU ID can be set to communicate with other Nodes

Extended ID

Is used on networks where there are a large number of ECU’s. The default setting of enabled is sufficient for most users

TCP Port

Specifies which port on the network should be used to transmit and receive wBMS network messages

Manager SPI Switch

If connecting to Wireless Nodes, the Managers must be configured on the RAD-wBMS (OnBoard should be selected). If connected to Wired Nodes, the Managers do not need to be configured by the RAD-wBMS (External (isoSPI™) should be selected). See 4.4.1. for more information on Wired versus Wireless Nodes.

6.5.6. Network Enables

Network Enables displays a list of networks available on all Intrepid devices. By default, this page only displays networks that are supported by the RAD-wBMS. These networks are listed below.

• DW CAN 01
• DW CAN 02
• Ethernet

Hide Unsupported Networks

When checked, this feature hides all networks except for the networks supported by the RAD-wBMS. This feature is enabled by default, but can be disabled if you wish to see networks that are supported on other Intrepid devices

Enable On Boot

When checked, this feature will automatically enable compatible networks with your device. This may be turned off if one of your networks needs to be turned off for a project or assignment

Send Bus Traffic to Android

This setting is not applicable to the RAD-wBMS and can be ignored

Enable All

Enables all networks listed on the screen. Clicking this button will set checkmarks for all networks; if you use it, be sure to disable networks that should be off, so the device remains in a valid configuration

Disable All

When clicked, this feature disables all networks that are listed on the screen