SegwayUtah
05-10-2004, 06:12 PM
On nexergy.com, they have a FAQ about Lithium Ion batteries. I'm not sure if this applies to our NiMH batteries too, but there's lots of good info.
The one that really struck me was:
"Q. What is the effect of shallow discharges?
A. Perhaps the most dramatic increase in cycle life and retained capacity results from cycling at less than 100% depth of discharge. With a 10 % reduction in discharge profile, you effectively double the cycle life of the cell. Discharge profiles of 25% have extended the cycle life of cells beyond 10,000 cycles and profiles at 12% depth of discharge have extended the cycle life of cells beyond 17,000 cycles."
That's an incredible increase in the life of batteries just for not using them to depletion. If Segway LLC can provide batteries for our HTs that have Lithium-Ion technology, and that have much greater range, it would be easy to use them just 90% all the time. Then they might last years!
I remember from SegwayFesT! 2003 that Segway LLC is testing out all kinds of battery chemistries. Hopefully something like the Valence batteries (other thread) will work out well. They of course need to test them for months of continuous use, and in extremes, and all that like they do everything, but I am confident that the wait will be well worth it.
There's so much light at the end of this tunnel. Our current batteries are amazing: I'm excited for what is coming.
Chris
The one that really struck me was:
"Q. What is the effect of shallow discharges?
A. Perhaps the most dramatic increase in cycle life and retained capacity results from cycling at less than 100% depth of discharge. With a 10 % reduction in discharge profile, you effectively double the cycle life of the cell. Discharge profiles of 25% have extended the cycle life of cells beyond 10,000 cycles and profiles at 12% depth of discharge have extended the cycle life of cells beyond 17,000 cycles."
That's an incredible increase in the life of batteries just for not using them to depletion. If Segway LLC can provide batteries for our HTs that have Lithium-Ion technology, and that have much greater range, it would be easy to use them just 90% all the time. Then they might last years!
I remember from SegwayFesT! 2003 that Segway LLC is testing out all kinds of battery chemistries. Hopefully something like the Valence batteries (other thread) will work out well. They of course need to test them for months of continuous use, and in extremes, and all that like they do everything, but I am confident that the wait will be well worth it.
There's so much light at the end of this tunnel. Our current batteries are amazing: I'm excited for what is coming.
Chris