Electrical connection🔗
This page covers electrical connection, LED signals, wiring, shielding, and serial interface for all DVLs.
Most wiring is common across the DVL models. The serial electrical interface differs:
- DVL A50 and DVL A125 use 3.3 V UART, 5 V tolerant.
- DVL A100 and DVL A250 use RS232.
LED signals🔗
| Visualization | LED signal | Description |
|---|---|---|
| ⚫ | No green light | Power is off. |
| 🟢 | Fixed green light | The DVL is powering on. Depending on configuration it can take ~30-60 seconds to power on. |
| 🟢⚫⚫⚫ | Flashing green light (mostly off, slow) | DVL looking for bottom lock. |
| 🟢🟢🟢⚫ | Flashing green light (mostly on, slow) | DVL has bottom lock. |
| 🟢⚫🟢⚫ | Flashing green light (fast) | DVL is in thermal shutdown. |
Wiring interface🔗
Power and Ethernet wiring are common. The brown and brown/white serial pair depends on the DVL model.
Common power and Ethernet wires🔗
| Interface | Color | Visual |
|---|---|---|
| Negative/Ground | Black | ⬛ |
| Positive (10–30 Vdc) | Red | 🟥 |
| ETH RX+ | Green/White | 🟩⬜ |
| ETH RX- | Green | 🟩 |
| ETH TX- | Orange | 🟧 |
| ETH TX+ | Orange/White | 🟧⬜ |
| Shielded wire | Naked/silver | ⚪ |
Model-specific serial wires🔗
| Model | Interface | Color | Visual |
|---|---|---|---|
| DVL A50/A125 | UART TX | Brown/White | 🟫⬜ |
| DVL A50/A125 | UART RX | Brown | 🟫 |
| DVL A100/A250 | Serial (RS232) TX | Brown/White | 🟫⬜ |
| DVL A100/A250 | Serial (RS232) RX | Brown | 🟫 |
Note
Power must be applied to the power terminals before applying voltage to the serial pins.
Seacon connector option🔗
The Seacon connector option is available for:
- DVL A50.
- DVL A100 side-entry versions only.
- DVL A250 side-entry versions only.
DVL A50/A100/A250 Seacon MC8M connector🔗
The table below shows the pinout for the DVL A50/A100/A250 Seacon MC8M connector.
| Interface | Pin | Color | Visual |
|---|---|---|---|
| Negative/Ground | 1 | Black | ⬛ |
| Positive (10–30 Vdc) | 2 | Red | 🟥 |
| ETH RX+ | 3 | Green/White | 🟩⬜ |
| ETH RX- | 4 | Green | 🟩 |
| ETH TX- | 5 | Orange | 🟧 |
| ETH TX+ | 6 | Orange/White | 🟧⬜ |
| Serial TX | 7 | Brown/White | 🟫⬜ |
| Serial RX | 8 | Brown | 🟫 |
Power specifications🔗
| Specification | DVL A50 | DVL A100 | DVL A125 | DVL A250 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Input voltage | 10–30 Vdc | 10–30 Vdc | 10–30 Vdc | 10–30 Vdc |
| Power consumption, average | 4 W | 8 W | 4 W | 8 W |
| Power-on current surge | 35 W | 30 W | 35 W | 30 W |
Shielded cable information🔗
Shielded DVL cable helps protect the communication and power lines from external electromagnetic interference (EMI) and radio frequency interference (RFI). The DVL electronics are not internally connected to the shield; it is up to the user to decide whether and how to connect the shield.
Note
For DVL A50, shielded cables were introduced autumn 2024.
All DVL A125 units are delivered with shielded cable.
Connecting the shield🔗
For optimal performance, especially when mounted on an ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle) or AUV (Autonomous Underwater Vehicle), connect the shield to reduce the impact of interference on communication and power signals. The most common connection methods are:
- Chassis ground: Connect the shield to the chassis of the ROV/AUV. This gives the shield a path to ground for noise and interference, and the vehicle chassis often acts as a common grounding reference.
- Common ground: Connect the shield to the common electrical ground of the ROV/AUV. This may be used when the electrical and signal systems are designed to share a common ground.
Recommendation🔗
We recommend connecting the shield to the chassis ground of the ROV or AUV if possible. If your system design uses a common electrical ground, that option can also be considered.
Ground the shield at one end only to avoid ground loops, unless your system design requires grounding at both ends.
Terminal / serial interface🔗
DVL A50 and DVL A125 serial interface🔗
DVL A50 and DVL A125 use the same 3.3 V UART interface, 5 V tolerant.
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Interface | 3.3 V UART, 5 V tolerant |
| Baud rate | 115200 |
| Data/parity/stop | 8N1 |
| Flow control | None |
Warning
There can be a momentary (<10 us) power spike (~5 V) on the UART lines when power is applied to the DVL, which may damage equipment that is not 5 V tolerant.
See the DVL A50/A125 serial protocol.
DVL A100 and DVL A250 serial interface🔗
DVL A100 and DVL A250 use a standard RS232 serial interface.
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Interface | RS232 |
| Baud rate | 115200 |
| Data/parity/stop | 8N1 |
| Flow control | None |
See the DVL A100/A250 serial protocol.