Products / Services

Battery Management

Fundamentally, our Battery Management and Monitoring systems are responsible for monitoring battery voltage, temperature and current. In designs involving Lithium-ion batteries, these parameters are monitored to the individual cell. In lead-acid applications, our designs support monitoring of cell groups in 6V to 12V increments.

As shown in the figure below, a typical system is comprised of a BMS control box that contains a processor, signal conditioning and discrete signal interfaces to the user.

System Block Diagram

The control box can open or close an optional mechanical or solid-state protection relay to protect the cells from overcharge or overdischarge. The string current is also fed back to the BMS control box. The control box communicates via RS-422 to a communication distribution box known as the Remote Interface Box (RIX).

The RIX (Below) then distributes the communication to the Monitor/Equalizer Boards (MEQs). Each output channel on the RIX can access 20 MEQs or a total of between 60 and 240 cells depending on the MEQ model. The entire network is electrically isolated, supporting pack voltages to 1.6kV.

RIX110 Remote Interface Box

There are several models of Monitor/Equalizer boards depending on battery chemistry and cell count. The MEQ410, below, is primarily intended for Lead-acid applications where each MEQ monitors a group of 3 to 6 cells.

MEQ410 Monitor/Equalizer Box

The MEQ210, below, is targeted for Lithium-ion packs with cell capacities of 5 to 60Ah.

MEQ200 Monitor/Equalizer Board

The MEQ210 is targeted for Lithium-ion packs with cell capacities of 60 to 300Ah.

MEQ210 Monitor/Equalizer Board

The below picture shows the MEQ410 (circled in yellow) mounted on a high voltage VRLA battery string. This battery system contains a total 720 MEQs and 12 Charger units.

Monitor/Equalizer Box (circled in yellow)