Megohmmeter - Loss of Isolation Diagnostics
Watch as I create high voltage short circuits to the vehicle chassis and cause "Loss of Isolation" trouble codes to set. Learn how the vehicle detects these short circuits and how you can diagnose their source with a Megohmmeter. A 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV is the test vehicle.
TIMELINE:
0:00 Introduction
0:25 Safety Warning
0:40 High Voltage (HV) Insulation/Isolation example
2:50 On-Car high voltage power distribution
4:55 Live HV measurements (Car Powered Off)
6:15 Live HV measurements (Car Powered On)
7:36 MUST-SEE: Shorting the 381V battery positive cable to vehicle chassis
9:57 Which Diagnostic Trouble Codes (DTC)s were set
11:18 MUST-SEE: Shorting the 381V battery negative cable to vehicle chassis
13:25 What can happen in an automobile accident
13:50 MUST-SEE: How loss of isolation can occur through conductive liquids
14:41 How the car performs active isolation testing and passive isolation testing
16:10 Normal passive scan tool data values for loss of isolation detection
18:30 See the results of an 11 Mega-ohm connection to vehicle chassis
20:50 See the results of a 4.65 Mega-ohm connection to vehicle chassis
22:20 See the results of a 1.16 Mega-ohm connection to vehicle chassis
23:00 See the results of a 551 kilo-ohm connection to vehicle chassis
23:35 See the results of a 222 kilo-ohm connection to vehicle chassis
23:40 MUST-SEE: The 318-265 kilo-ohm threshold to trigger a loss of isolation DTC
24:50 MUST-SEE: GM On-Star notification of battery problem
25:15 See the results of a 110 thousand ohm connection to vehicle chassis
25:51 MUST-SEE: See the results of a 0 (zero) ohm connection to vehicle chassis
26:54 See my voltage drop measurement table
27:35 MUST-SEE: See the results of a conductive liquid connection to vehicle chassis
30:00 How to determine the location of a loss of isolation problem
32:08 Clearing Secured High Voltage DTCs with a GM GDS2 scan tool
33:00 Hybrid/EV battery pack active isolation test
34:35 Hybrid/EV battery pack heater passive isolation test
37:28 The Megohmmeter and the factory specifications for isolation resistance
40:30 Example of using the Fluke 1587 Insulation Tester (Megohmmeter)
44:05 Video summary
ABOUT US:
Weber State University (WSU) - Department of Automotive Technology - Ardell Brown Technology Wing - Transmission Lab. This episode covers what happens with the high voltage system that loses isolation (High Voltage Leak) with the vehicle chassis of an electric vehicle (EV), plug-in electric vehicle (PHEV), or hybrid electric vehicle (HEV). A 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV is used as an example vehicle in this video.
WSU is a leader in Hybrid and Electric Vehicle education. This topic is taught as part of our 4-year bachelor's degree program. For information on joining the Weber Automotive program, visit: www.weber.edu/automotive
This video was created and edited by Professor John D. Kelly at WSU. For a full biography, see www.weber.edu/automotive/J_Kel...
ADDITIONAL TRAINING FOR YOU
Join us for hybrid and electric vehicle training with two online courses and in a 5-day on-campus boot camp with Professor John D. Kelly. See www.weber.edu/evtraining
DONATE TO OUR DEPARTMENT
Please consider a donation to the Department of Automotive Technology at Weber State University here: advancement.weber.edu/Automotive
Пікірлер: 436
Great video John. The P0AA6 is Ford's loss of isolation DTC, and it's a code lots of techs struggle with. As your video shows, it's a super simple concept and easy to diagnose if you understand what the code is monitoring for. Unplugging connectors one at a time is a great test, but on the Focus BEV, the ACCM, DC/DC, and PTC heater all have interlock circuits monitoring the connectors. We have dummy connectors that plug in to close the interlock, then we check the PID values for leakage on positive, negative, or internal battery. Another point worth mentioning about how safe these vehicles are to work on; Ford no longer uses the fiberglass "Shepard's hook" as a technician removal tool. And, the upcoming Mach-e will not require insulated tools or gloves. Respect the potential of the systems, follow the procedure, and understand the theory and you'll be safe.
This guy makes it easy to understand. I went to a 4 night class leaving with more questions and confusion
What a fascinating demo, I didn't realize the high voltage system is isolated on the ground side, too. Traditional safety for high voltage is to offer a low impedance grounding path from chassis back to the transformer, so a human hand that touches chassis will be reliably bypassed in favour of the lower resistance route. Dogs lost their lives by tinkling on the ground beside the wrong power pole without that.
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you very much. It was fun to experiment with. Thanks for your feedback!
Best explanation of isolation in an EV for the battery I've seen! This is great!!
You do a wonderful job of explaining everything
Great job Professor! I’m learning much from your Hybrid training courses!
Wonderful video, Clear and 100% scientifically correct.
Man, this is a GREAT channel!! Thank you, Professor J. Kelly
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you very much
These videos you have assembled remind me of the engineering level material that our Prof's at SAIT pushed us to absorb back in my Collage days. Little did i know how important the teachings that were imparted upon me 'would be' later in my career. I fall back on the fundamental lessons nearly daily, and they help me push the boundries of my career. You are a scolar and a gentalman!!! I especially enjoyed your series on the early toyota E-CVT transmissions as it pertains to my 2007 Nissan Altima Hybrid daily driver. Thank you Mr. John Kelly for your excellent videos ;)
Professor Kelly, thank you for all the videos and sharing of your knowledge, it is very much appreciated.
WOW, by far one of the intressting Videos of the Year for HV-Car Tests !! THANK YOU !!!
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
Thank You Professor ! Your depth of knowledge and attention to details is rarely found these days in academia. I can assure you that I will never be working on an electric vehicle of any kind not even a golf cart but your devotion to details and conveyance of knowledge is first class ! Thank you for your hard work and sharing it with us.
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you very much!
Thank you so much! I recently found your channel, and you are amazing. As a tinkerer, I’m thankful of you to not do things I should not do and be careful with the things I own! All your videos are very very thorough, and I never end up with questions! Again, thank you, and have a happy holiday season!
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
See this one tomorrow with anothers few ones, saturday is my Jhon Kelly marathon day. thanks for sharing, Professor !
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
DEAR MR. PROFESSOR, THANK YOU, THIS VALUABLE INFORMATION, IN THIS CASE STUDY.
First rate instruction. Your “school” is very fortunate to have you in its faculty. Thx 👍
@WeberAuto
2 жыл бұрын
Thank you very much
Thank you Professor for this straight to the point explanation. It helps me a lot in explaining how to troubleshoot a HV vehicle Isolation Faults to my students. More power and God bless you always.
Such an underrated channel. I’ve learned so much from here. Keep it up!
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
@terrellisaias4279
2 жыл бұрын
Instablaster.
Your videos are gold. Please keep it up guys. Thank you very much.
Amazing information as usual. Welcome back!
Mr. Kelly, as always, a fine and thorough video. Impedance and resistance, however, have separate meanings with respect to AC and DC circuits. Keep up the fine work. Happy holidays!
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you and thanks for your feedback. Happy holidays to you!
Thank You ! First class training !
Another excellent video! You explain everything in great, easy to follow, detail to aid understanding of how modern cars actually work...
@WeberAuto
11 ай бұрын
Thank you Kelvin
Superb! You are one of the reasons I have decided to buy a Bolt EUV.
Thanks a lot professor ur vids are very knowledgeable and interesting, appreciate the effort u put to these vids.
Thank you for another extremely informative video. My 2019 Bolt EV is running great, but it is always nice to understand more about how it works..
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
Thank You Professor Kelly for you excellent videos. Have a safe, blessed holiday season.
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you very much
Thank you, Prof. Kelly!
My all questions are answered. Thank you very much ☺️☺️
@WeberAuto
2 жыл бұрын
Thank you very much
Very helpful vídeo. Full of information, details and tips. Congratulations.
Outstanding knowledge about electric cars. Thank you.
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
Excellent stuff professor really helpful information.....always pleased when i see one of your videos pop up....nothing anywhere near as good here in the uk....infact BMW will not provide battery isolation information readily
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you very much!
Thank you again , you are a great man !
Thank you for posting these incredibly awesome videos. I have learned so much from you.
@WeberAuto
2 жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching!
Bravo, great video. A tip from my teaching experience: when using autoranging multimeters you can disable the autoranging and set a specific range for the display, which eliminates what happened at like 6:12 where the meter showed a few millivolts. We experienced folks know that means zero, but a novice student is sometimes distracted by having a non-zero display.
Welcome back professor ❤️
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
@talibaziz6990
3 жыл бұрын
Kuch samajh aya
Excellent teaching skills, thank you
Thank you Professor
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
Contenido técnico excelente
I Don't even have to watch your videos for class anymore but you are such a great professor I always learn something new from you or your videos! Thanks for sharing your knowledge!!!
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thanks, that is awesome!
Thank you for another great video
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
I once had a co-worker ask me, with a straight face, if I could drive my Chevy Volt in the rain, or did that put me at risk of being electrocuted. And this was somebody in a *technical* position! The level of ignorance toward EV safety can be absolutely astounding. Another outstanding video, Professor! Great job! Thanks for doing what you do!
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you. That is a common question. Education is essential.
@DjTonioRoffo
4 жыл бұрын
I always answer questions along these lines with comparisons to trains. Incredible how technically backward the general public is.
@jon9103
3 жыл бұрын
That person may be in a technical position but if they have that sort of misconception I would be very skeptical that they are qualified to do their job.
Thankyou for another great video. If I was young again I would seriously become the best at working on this new generation of electric vehicles. It would be a great living to have with little competition from other mechanics that can't afford the computer tools needed to diagnose problems. Before retiring, I worked on mainframes, micro computers, networks, microfiche printers and a vast amount of printing machines for the last 40 years. Machine repair has always been my passion.
@WeberAuto
2 жыл бұрын
Thank you very much
@bullitthead7853
Жыл бұрын
Computer tools aren't a new thing for mechanics though. Mechanics have been diagnosing and repairing computer related issues since the 1980's. The difference in computer tech is very small when comparing internal combustion vehicles to electric. It isn't uncommon to have 30+ computers networked over CAN data bus circuits in modern gas-powered vehicles. The big difference is literally learning the high voltage systems, this video is a fantastic example of this.
My neighbors keep asking me if power-washing my Bolt or getting it through an automated car wash is safe. I know now what to tell them. I also have a link to this channel to give them. Thank you Professor Kelley! :)
@rp9674
Жыл бұрын
I'm surprised more people don't freak out about that
Hi Professor John! Thank you for that.
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
Thank you for these videos. They are a great resource.
When I bought my 2017 VW e-Golf the closer stressed that there was high voltage under the hood, and that I could be killed. He insisted that I should not open the hood and only let their techs open the hood. I kept my mouth shut, knowing that he had no idea what he was talking about. Thank you for another useful video.
Excellent video, thanks so much!
@WeberAuto
10 ай бұрын
Thank you very much!
Привет из Беларуси! Очень нравятся ваши качественные и интересные уроки! Спасибо за просвещение! Greetings from Belarus! I really like your high-quality and interesting lessons! Thanks for enlightening
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
Excellent explaining sir !
Thankyou Professor Kelly for the information. I've only had training on the Prius High Voltage system, including removing the HV Battery assembly, the HV Inverter assembly, removing the safety covers on both, and the jumper straps on the individual batteries for testing. Very, Very Interesting! Oh yes, also checking the High Voltage Capacitors in the HV Inverter, for High or Low Voltage with the High Voltage Battery Assembly cables disconnected. Again, very interesting! The training paid off when I had to remove the inverter to replace coolant hoses under the inverter. The vehicle had been in an accident. With help from an iATN member named Carolyn, I was able to keep the transmission in neutral even after powering down, by removing a relay in the underhood power center on the driver's side near the firewall or bulkhead. When we brought the car to the body shop, I told the techs there to block the front wheels or the car might run away from you! HA! It ran great after body and mechanical/electrical repairs. I apologize for the long comment. Mike C.
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Awesome, thanks for your feedback
Thanks Professor and welcome back happy New Year in 2020 regards
Great Quality Video Sir, very Informative and Educational. Learning something New everyday. - Every-DAY. .Thank You!!!
That's the exact Mega meter I use at my job on navy ships and oh yes they *WILL* shock you. I can attest to that myself. We have to meg each and every cable we install *BEFORE* we hook up any equipment. This meter is extremely useful in testing the integrity of HV cables installed in electric vehicles. In addition to testing the resistance to ground, we can also test the resistance between conductors - on multi lead cables. Dang I love this stuff.
Excellent video professor. This is a great lesson in the inherent safety of unreferenced or "Floating" DC Power Supplies. Prospective EV buyers should understand that this type of supply is very safe because neither terminal is referenced to ground or common (the vehicles chassis in this instance). Electric Vehicles are very safe.
@WeberAuto
2 жыл бұрын
Glad it was helpful!
❄⚡🔥👍snow+spark=fire. Thank you for valuable insight information Professor.
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
Thank you sir looking forward to your next video.
Happy New Year for you and family Professor. Regards from Comox Valley BC
MERCI Monsieur le Professeur ...Très bien expliquer et votre anglais est très facile à comprendre...Thankyou SIR..
@WeberAuto
3 жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching
Very informative video, Good job professor 👏👏
It's the best channel on the world we want to see even tesla repair on you nice Chanel thank you very much
Trank you for this very good lesson.
Thanks Professor. Very informative.
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
Great to see again.
Fascinating.
Saludos Master. Sigo aprendiendo gracias
Thank you so much for your technical lessons sir
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
Very good Professor
Very informative, thanks!
Looking forward to seeing your new videos
Perfect. Really appreciate the normal speed too. Hope all is well post fender bender.
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you very much
great video learned so much, thank you for your time
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
Thank you Professor, thank you very much!
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
You are outstandingly genius love you
Professor Kelly, your videos encourage me to keep going even when injury & disease has me stuck unable to do anything other than watch these videos. Thank you so much for being an encouraging example & for the cool EV content. I drive a 2016 Nissan LEAF 30kWh & our other car a 2005 Prius II // I love electric motors & batteries & energy storage capacitors & high power switching electronics contractors & SSR's & microcontrollers & compute & digital systems. Your videos are cool & they show why EV's are super interesting. Also really like your collection of Fluke meters, they are really well made. I keep a DIY modded Sperry DM-350A (added external hard on/off switch for the meter battery) so I can leave control dial turned to DC 0-20vdc mode since that's the range I measure most of the time :)) Thanks for sharing this useful information :) God Bless
@AaronSchwarz42
4 жыл бұрын
Battery Systems with multiple battery cells usually contain BMS or battery management system to balance & minitor all the cells CC or charge controller that can independently charge each cell & cells in series Fuses or breakers to open the circuit, usually on positive side of battery, to safety if shortening occurs Thermistors or temperature sensors to keep track of cell or pack thermal state during charge & discharge & storage Pack properly designed should prevent overcharging, over discharging, damage from shorting & against thermal runaway or fire & or cell expansion disconnection & other safety aspects to minimize chance of venting with flame, fire or explosion
Great info John, really enjoy.🍁🍁🍁🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦
Amazing stuff. Many thanks for that.
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
Very important information 👍 Thank you.
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
Sir you are important person for automobile section
@WeberAuto
3 жыл бұрын
Thank you
I love this stuff. A note on why its called a Meg-ohm meter, its because a company called Megger makes HV test equipment for the Electrical Power Sector, including a tool commonly called a "megger" which tests for isolation, using a high voltage, ultra low current test current. So there would be some trademark malarkey involving a Mega-ohm meter sounding like a branded Megger Ohm meter.
@allangibson8494
4 жыл бұрын
Megger make mega-ohm meters.... They also make devices that use kilovolts to measure mega-ohms.... Rather like Druck making pressure calibrators in Germany (look up the translation).
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thanks for your feedback!
Very deep knowledge.
I am not a technician, but I am a very curious person. Your videos are a joy to watch because you are clear and not too fast. I must add that in the Netherlands we had an accident with a Tesla hitting a tree where the car could not be approached by the fire department because sparks kept flying around. So, it can go very wrong. In fact, the fire department had to call up somebody from the Tesla service center on the other side of my small country to assist making the car safe. That took hours. The driver, by the way, was killed at impact, not because of electrocution or the long duration before help could be given.
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Wow, that is terrible! Thanks for your feedback.
@Gerard423653
4 жыл бұрын
in case the pack gets damaged, as can be the case in high speed accidents, individual cells can short circuit, spark and release a LOT of heat. But that still would not result in electrocution risk for the firemen, as they are still not part of a full closed HV circuit. They heat from Li-ion cells should be treated with respect and care and is dangerous for that reason.
@ouch1011
4 жыл бұрын
Of course it can go wrong if the battery pack is physically damaged. Just the same as it can go wrong if a fuel line or tank ruptures near a hot engine or exhaust. Driving any vehicle is inherently unsafe, but I don't think it is reasonable to say that an electric vehicle is less safe than a gas/petrol or diesel vehicle. Much is done to make the lithium battery packs in cars as safe as possible, which is why there are not many problems seen with them. Most of the problems we see with lithium batteries in general are as a result of companies and/or nations with no safety standards building and selling garbage. That isn't going to be the case on any mainstream EV.
Thank you very much Sir.
Great video. Your videos are wonderfully helpful to those of us outside of the formal education setting. I have seen a fair number of KZread videos with people mishandling high voltage batteries and doing very dangerous things. Your careful instruction has almost certainly prevented injuries or even deaths in the hobbyist community.
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you very much!
Absolutely top notch!!!
@WeberAuto
3 жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching
Thank you, Sir🙏
The best professor I have listen to. Very knowledgeable an explains well. I worked for a dealership an services Leafs an he taught me more than the one week training they sent me to. Thanks so much. Enjoyed all the videos.
@WeberAuto
2 жыл бұрын
Wow, thanks!
grazie professore
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
thank you, great video
Professor Kelly, can you recommend a thorough book on theory and operation of hybrid vehicles? Perhaps the textbook(s) you use at WSU. You're the best hybrid vehicle instructor in America, possibly the world. Thanks for sharing your immense storehouse of knowledge of hybrid and electric vehicles!
Thank you so much
Very good video. Thank you for doing this.
@WeberAuto
3 жыл бұрын
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for watching
Thank you sir
Excellent as always. I have hunted to find if battery was isolated from chassis to no avail
Sr. Thanks for share this and Merry Christmas.
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you, Merry Christmas to you
Great information Thank you Professor
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you
Thank you
I find it interesting that they go through great lengths to isolate the battery from the chassis but they don't really do much when the isolation is lost. In the power distribution world this is referred to as a "ground fault" and hence the name Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter for the type of breaker that protects against this. I would expect the car to return to a safe state in the event of lost isolation by opening the contactor on the battery. In high power DC systems this is done to prevent fires. A single fault is not a problem but if you get a 2nd fault you may be passing current through items that shouldn't be conducting that much current (signal wires, chassis connections, etc). For this reason, most high power DC systems will trip off in the event of a single "ground" fault or loss of isolation. Anyway, great videos!! I always enjoy watching the stuff you do on electric automobiles.
@WeberAuto
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you and thanks for your feedback. As you may have seen in the video, a single direct short to chassis only causes 222 micro amps of current.
@kufman01
4 жыл бұрын
@@WeberAuto Yes, the first loss of isolation is not a big deal. The 2nd point of lost isolation can cause a shock or a fire. That is why most industrial machines that use ground isolation trip off on the first loss of isolation. You don't want main battery level power flowing through some small wire somewhere or part of the frame.
Awesome workshop! :D I don't know how many hours of boring courses I have taken, and most of them have been summarized here. It would have been nice two more things. One, difference between CAT III 1000V vs CAT IV 600V. And second, with the Meger, to mention that the button in the lead is doing two things: when you press, it energizes and takes the measurement, but in case that you are measuring something with capacitance, that capacitance will get charged, so if you remove the lead after the measurement, you will most probably get a 500 V or 1000 V shock... (if the capacitance is big, you might have some kJ of energy there... not enough to kill... but it's not a nice experience) So the way to go is, once you have finish the measurement, keep the lead connected and then release the button. That will force an "active discharge" through the Meger (you will see the voltage going down in the display). Then you will know that the capacitance is discharged and it is "safe" to touch the component. Enjoy! :D
@JSR-Consulting
Жыл бұрын
Thanks David. CAT III 1000 V vs CAT IV 600 V is in relation with the maxim transient voltage that the lead and the meter can receive. The value is taken from power systems in AC (CEI 31010-1), how much is the meter close to the substation, but in EV (DC) is different, despite of the standard is saying for EVs you have to use CAT III.
Thanks a lot for yours job.