New approaches to battery monitoring architecture, design and methodologies

The typical dilemma of a back-up battery system user is whether to rely on the guarantees of a battery supplier with regard to product performance, or to independently monitor battery status to ensure reliable back-up power when the power is needed. This dilemma has created a vague sense of mistrust between battery suppliers and end users. More and more end-user decision makers, however, are leaning toward the use of monitoring devices to "guarantee the power they need, when they need it". This trend can have positive benefits for all concerned, as end users become better educated about the values and uses of monitoring technology. Once an end user has decided that monitoring is a good decision, three questions arise: what to monitor, how to monitor it and how to get "the most for the money." These questions have become very important issues in today\´s battery user marketplace. The proposed paper will discuss a number of different monitoring criteria, their utility for the end user and their effect on the battery supplier. The presentation will use Enersafe\´s LifeLink^™ monitoring product line as a case study. The presentation will discuss today\´s new approaches in system architecture and system design, and new measurement methodologies for determining important parameters not monitored by traditional field devices. Field data will be presented as practical examples. Finally, the relation between data obtained thru the monitoring process and the battery system\´s status will be discussed, with an attempt to derive a basis for user-friendly criteria in the selection of monitoring equipment and the utilization of monitoring test results.