I was very pleased to see the comment made by @mvader when launching this MODs space about a more open Victron - this is really great news.
I think that one of the best ways to demonstrate this intent and to encourage the development of great mods, is for Victron to make more data available to people who are developing intergrations and external solutions. By data I mean real time data about what is happening internally in their equipment.
The inclusion of an MQTT broker in the Venus OS is a fantastic step in the right direction. For those who have not been exposed to MQTT, it is a very lightweight protocol that has been around for a long time and has recently been adopted as the protocol of choice for many home automation hubs and systems - and it is now built into the VenusOS devices!
Venus OS includes a Python script that creates a bridge between the Victron D-Bus and MQTT - this means that for the first time tons of real-time data points are now available to external systems. But not everything we need is made available.
The purpose of this post is to invite Moders to add to a wish list of data we would like to see published via MQTT. If the powers at Victron can see value in making this data available, they may make the necessary changes to make this happen.
To get us started, here is my wish list...
- The controller mode (BULK, Adsorb, Float, EQL etc) (I have found a work-around for this, but it would be good to have the real data published)
- The target voltage (if the controller is in constant voltage mode - what is the target voltage?)
- The target current (if the controller is in constant current mode - what is the target current?)
- Battery Temperature being used by the controller in calculating temperature compensation.
- The duty cycle used for PWM when the controller is not in MPPT mode. This would be a great starting point for external load-dump calculations for making use of excess solar energy.
- Number of days since the last equalise cycle - this could be used to trigger a reminder.
- The heat-sync temperatures - this could trigger a warning message before it gets critical.
I'm sure I'll think of other things in time and I hope others will also add their wish list.