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Sakor Rolls out Tester for Hybrid Vehicle Batteries
Designed for the high voltages and variable loads of hybrid cars
Charles J. Murray, Senior Technical Editor -- Design News, January 21, 2009
Manufacturers of hybrid vehicles now have a dedicated battery tester designed for the high voltages, currents and variable drive cycles of their vehicles.
Sakor Technologies, Inc., a maker of dynamometers for hybrids, recently rolled out the Hybrid Vehicle Battery Test System, a product specifically designed for voltages as high as 1,000V and for the real road loads and unsymmetrical driving cycles that are common to everyday driving.
The system could be significant for automakers, which must assess hybrid battery packs that weigh hundreds of pounds and operate at voltages ranging from 200-600V.
The new system's key advantage, however, is that it combines its high voltage capability with a control system that can be programmed for various types of driving cycles, much like the dynamometers used in torque testing of engines and electric motors.
"A battery may have one level of performance if you just do simple, long-cycle, long-wave types of testing," says Randal Beattie, president of Sakor Technologies. "But that doesn't necessarily translate well to the mileage you get out of a battery when you put it in a real vehicle and subject it to real-world loads. When you do second-to-second types of unsymmetrical changes, you get much less performance out of a battery."
Sakor's system is driven by the company's DynoLab EM controller and works with its HybriDriveline Dynamometer, both of which had already been in use for testing of hybrid motors and inverters. Because the company already had experience with hybrid powertrain technology, it extended its product line to include a hybrid battery tester, Beattie says.
"Hybrid vehicle manufacturers need to simulate the second-by-second changes in load that occur when a car runs up and down a hill, or comes to a stop light," Beattie says. "The most important thing is for them to know what kind of performance they can really expect out of their battery."
