Twin Disc connector type?

[wkearney99]

Does anyone recognize the connectors on the back of this Twin Disc EC300 control? I think they're Deutsch connectors?

This being the 'brains' behind the Power Commander throttle/transmission controls used on my EB47. There's two of these, one for each station (flybridge and lower helm).

The top row all use the same 12 pin connector type. The J4 connector is the one I'm interested in connecting, as it seems to have N2K on it. I have no "need" to get at this data, it's more of a curiosity. But it'd need to start with making a cable to connect to it.

The sockets in the controller board have pins sticking out (don't have a better picture).

 

[twistedtree]

Yes, those are Deutsch Connectors. You can pull one to verify what size, probably a DT04. They are marked somewhere. Making one up involves a lot of parts and a special crimper for the pins, so it's worth getting a kit that includes everything. But they are not cheap. Just be certain it includes the stuff you need. There are also a bunch of knock-off kits and I have no experience with them. Might save a few bucks, or might waste a few buck.


I don't know if the output covers one of the transmissions, or if it will cover both. It might also be J1939, and not N2K. A bunch of the engine and generator PGNs are the same between the two standards, so you might be able to get it to work even if it's J1939. Otherwise a converter will be needed.


You should have two EC300 flat boxes like in the picture, and two control stations. The EC300 flat boxes are paired with each engine/transmission. So you may need separate connections for each engine/transmission.

 

[wkearney99]

Agreed. I've dealt with similar connectors in the past (Weather Pack, Metri-Pak, etc). I've found some pigtail setups online and will likely go that route vs fiddling with all the pins on my own.

I do indeed have two of these EC300 units, one for each station (flybridge and lower helm). I was assuming I'd need a connection to each of them if I'm going to extract data from them. I'll start with one and see what shows up on the bus.

I already have J1939 from the two Caterpillar C12 engines, via a connection into the Cat engine control units at the lower helm through two Yacht Devices YDEG interface (one per engine). But that only gives me engine data not transmission. At least I wasn't seeing any.

I'll of course want to avoid duplicating data on the bus. I'm expecting to have to use an N2K bridge to 'filter' what comes out of this before putting it in with anything else on the boat. I have no intention of doing any kind of control of the units through this, just monitoring.

So I'm going to start with a simple setup connecting to just the 'COMM. SIGNAL -/+ FOR NMEA 2000' pins. That into a separately powered N2K bus (and through a power isolator) should avoid frying anything (on either side). Then I'll likely use the Maretron IGP I've got to sniff out what sentences show up. That or an Actisense USB interface to collect a log. If there's useful data then I'll think about what to do next.