The GTE Government System report concluded that a battery analyzer featuring exercise and recondition functions costing $2,500US would return its investment in less than one month on battery savings alone. The report did not address the benefits of increased system reliability, an issue that is of equal if not greater importance, especially when the safety of human lives is at stake.

Battery analyzers are also used to quick-test battery performance. Cadex Electronics has introduced a technique to measure the state-of-health of a battery in three minutes. Based on inference technology, the Cadex Quicktest™ uses battery specific matrices that are derived through a "trend learning" process using artificial intelligence. The ability to self-learn enables the system to adapt to new battery chemistries without changing hardware.

Figure 5: Cadex 7400 battery analyzer The four-station Cadex 7400 services NiCd, NiMH, lead acid and Li?ion/polymer batteries side-by-side. A quick test program measures battery state-of-health in three minutes, independent of charge. NiCd- batteries are automatically restored if the capacity falls below the user-defined target capacity.

Quicktest™ is available on the Cadex 7200 two-station and the 7400 four-station battery analyzer/ reconditioners. The system accommodates Li-ion, NiMH, NiCd and lead acid batteries; the required charge level is 20 to 90 percent. If outside this range, the analyzer automatically applies a brief charge or discharge. The matrix is stored in the battery adapters that also hold the battery parameters to configure the analyzer. Testing a battery with a properly learned matrix achieves an accuracy of +/-5 percent on most batteries. Popular battery adapters include the matrix at time of purchase. For other batteries, the matrix can be obtained by running the analyzer's Learn program.

Summary

Primary batteries will always be around, if only to run wristwatches, portable entertainment devices and flashlights. While the primaries were once the only practical power source for portable applications, there is a shift towards rechargeables. Ever since Neumann successfully sealed the NiCd battery in 1947, the era of rechargeable batteries had begun. The 1990s brought many improvements in terms of higher energy densities and lower costs. But the portable world is not yet satisfied - we need smaller batteries that last longer.

Will the chemical battery retains its status or does the future lie in fuel cell or atomic fusion? Hype put aside, we are still years away from any practical alternative solution.

This article contains excerpts from the second edition book entitled Batteries in a Portable World - A Handbook on Rechargeable Batteries for Non-Engineers. In the book, Mr. Buchmann evaluates the batteries in everyday use and explains their strengths and weaknesses in laymen's terms. The 300-page book is available from Cadex Electronics Inc. through book@cadex.com, tel. 604-231-7777 or most bookstores. For additional information on battery technology visit www.buchmann.ca.


About the Author

Isidor Buchmann is the founder and CEO of Cadex Electronics Inc., in Richmond (Vancouver) British Columbia, Canada. Mr. Buchmann has a background in radio communications and has studied the behavior of rechargeable batteries in practical, everyday applications for two decades. The author of many articles and books on battery maintenance technology, Mr. Buchmann is a well-known speaker who has delivered technical papers and presentations at seminars and conferences around the world.

About the Company

Cadex Electronics Inc. designs and manufactures advanced battery chargers, analyzers and battery management software. The award-winning products are built with one goal in mind - to make batteries run longer. They are used in wireless communications, emergency services, mobile computing, avionics, biomedical, broadcasting and defense. Cadex is ISO 9001 certified and the products are sold in over 100 countries.