Battery Load Testing Presents New Opportunities for InterfaceBattery Load Testing Presents New Opportunities for Interface

The Arizona force management specialist is finding new opportunities for its load cells testing batteries.

Dan Carney, Senior Editor

September 21, 2022

3 Min Read
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The Interface Battery Powered High-Speed Data Logging Indicator.Image courtesy of Interface, Inc.

Lithium-ion battery fires are hazardous, high-profile product failures and carmakers try to prevent these problems in part by protecting battery cells from outside intrusion. It is important to test the integrity of the case containing the cells, especially as OEMs increasingly build the battery’s case as a stressed part of the chassis rather than as a bolt-on component.

In addition to measuring the strength of the battery case, it is also important for automakers to measure the pressure of the cells inside the case.

In both situations, force management solutions from Interface, Inc. (Scottsdale, Ariz.) are beneficial. “FEA and computerized modeling get the customer most of the way there,” observed Interface vice president of global sales Brian Peters in a phone interview with Design News. “Automotive OEMs are spending more time on various structural development testing,” he said. “They are push-pull, multi-axis similar to what we see with aerospace fuselage testing.”

This is important because, in addition to the torsional loads normally applied to the battery box in the course of normal driving, there is also the need to model for worst-case crash scenarios. “You have basic (noise, vibration, and harshness) torsional rigidity requirements, but then you have the crash requirements,” Peters noted. “How do you model, test, and have successful test results? When you run the full system into the barrier, sometimes the outcome is hard to model.”

Related:Building a Battery Factory Is No Easy Task

As a result, car makers are understandably erring on the side of excess strength. “We’re seeing overengineering from a structural standpoint,” said Peters. But increased familiarity over time and improved testing will let OEMs optimize the design of these parts to reduce weight. “Probably efficiency optimization from there will reduce mass and bring greater efficiency for the vehicle,” he said.

The ability to capture a wider set of data points using force sensors from Interface helps paint a more complete picture of how the structure performs under load. “Instead of just setting up a test for basic push-pull, we are capturing potential side load or bending forces,” Peters explained. “Even if you think it is not being introduced to the test article, it often is.”

In addition to testing the structure, Interfaces load sensors can also monitor cell pressure levels inside the housing rather than relying on voltage and current measurements as proxies for this data. Connecting the pressure sensors to Interface’s 9330 Battery Powered High-Speed Data Logging Indicator, means that the force results can be displayed, recorded, and logged with the supplied BlueDAQ software.

Related:Munro Live Teardown Reveals Rivian Battery Design and Construction

The necessary components for this include:

  • LBM Compression Load Button Load Cell

  • 9330 Battery Powered High-Speed Data Logging Indicator with BlueDAQ software

  • Lithium-Ion Battery

  • Garolite Plates

  • Customer PC or Laptop

The reduced barrier to entry to the automotive market for electric vehicles compared to combustion models has encouraged startups to rush into the market. But these lean new companies typically lack the robust in-house testing capabilities of legacy automakers, Peters points out.

As a result, “there is a heavy burden on third-party test houses,” he said. This sounds like good news for Interface, as the company gears up to supply components to meet the needs of both the third-party testing specialists and the OEMs that decide to build in-house testing facilities to avoid backups at the third parties.

About the Author

Dan Carney

Senior Editor, Design News

Dan’s coverage of the auto industry over three decades has taken him to the racetracks, automotive engineering centers, vehicle simulators, wind tunnels, and crash-test labs of the world.

A member of the North American Car, Truck, and Utility of the Year jury, Dan also contributes car reviews to Popular Science magazine, serves on the International Engine of the Year jury, and has judged the collegiate Formula SAE competition.

Dan is a winner of the International Motor Press Association's Ken Purdy Award for automotive writing, as well as the National Motorsports Press Association's award for magazine writing and the Washington Automotive Press Association's Golden Quill award.

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He has held a Sports Car Club of America racing license since 1991, is an SCCA National race winner, two-time SCCA Runoffs competitor in Formula F, and an Old Dominion Region Driver of the Year award winner. Co-drove a Ford Focus 1.0-liter EcoBoost to 16 Federation Internationale de l’Automobile-accredited world speed records over distances from just under 1km to over 4,104km at the CERAM test circuit in Mortefontaine, France.

He was also a longtime contributor to the Society of Automotive Engineers' Automotive Engineering International magazine.

He specializes in analyzing technical developments, particularly in the areas of motorsports, efficiency, and safety.

He has been published in The New York Times, NBC News, Motor Trend, Popular Mechanics, The Washington Post, Hagerty, AutoTrader.com, Maxim, RaceCar Engineering, AutoWeek, Virginia Living, and others.

Dan has authored books on the Honda S2000 and Dodge Viper sports cars and contributed automotive content to the consumer finance book, Fight For Your Money.

He is a member and past president of the Washington Automotive Press Association and is a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers

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