975-0727-01-01 25Battery ChargingBattery charging is possible only when shore power is present andthe Freedom HFS unit is connected to a battery (or battery bank).The frequency of battery charging is determined by how muchenergy in the battery is used up during inverting. Whenever theFreedom HFS detects a battery voltage that falls below 12.8 volts,the unit will begin charging the battery, that is, enter into bulk andabsorption stages then settle in float stage. If battery voltage doesnot reach 5 volts after one minute or 10 volts after 15 minutes asshown in the graph, the unit will terminate the charging process andthe error code will show on the display screen.Figure 3 illustrates the three-stage charging process used tomaximize Freedom HFS’s charging efficiency.Three-stage charging also applies when Custom Voltage profile isselected.Figure 3 Three-stage Charging Process15 minAbsorption VFloat V10VAbsorptionBulk Float8 hrs5 hrsVoltageTimeChargeCurrentSettingAbsorptionto FloattransitionAbsorptionBulk FloatCurrentTimeNOTE:If an external DC load isconnected to thebattery and it drains thebattery down to 12.8Vdc, the charger willstart a new bulk stage.NOTE:During the Float stage,the charger will provideup to the maximum setcharge current tocompensate for anexternal DC load ondemand.MaximumChargeCurrentSetting5V1 minFreedom HFS IC Owners Guide.book Page 25 Friday, September 11, 2015 2:54 PM