Smart NiMH Battery & Charger
Announcement: The last week of October 2005 we introduced
a new model of NiMH (Nickel Metal Hydride) smart battery belt &
smart chargers. The initial product will have a typical capacity
as high as 15 Amp/hours (15,000 aAh) or 198 Wh (Watt/hours)
& a minimum rated capacity of 14 Amp/hours (14,000 mAh),
at 13.2 Volts (nominal), which is 185 Wh (Watt/hours),
at a (20% discharge rate) using premium quality Saft brand batteries.
It will weigh only about 8.5 pounds (3.86 kilograms). This
battery can continuously power a typical 22 Watt large SD broadcast
camera for 8.4 hours, a 34 Watt HD broadcast camera for 5.4 hours,
a 100 Watt sun gun light for 1.85 hours, a 50 Watt sun gun light
for 3.7 hours, or a new 7.6 Watt pro level compact DV camcorder
(like the Sony HVR-Z1U) for 24.3 hours, with the following features:
- Smaller size & more power
compared with conventional battery belts. The hard black case
has a curved shape to fit the body for extra comfort, much like
a fanny pouch, with a comfortable support belt.
- Lower weight per
unit of energy than conventional NiMH or NiCad battery belts because
of the single hard case design using a cluster
battery pack
(pictures 2
& 3
without case), as opposed to the leather pocket design (often
around 11.5 pounds for competitors model with a much weaker battery),
also because the charger will not be mounted inside the battery
belt. Example, about 8.5 pounds (3.86 kilograms) for a
15 Amp/hour battery belt. More power at less weight than our competition.
- Use of a fast
smart (intelligent) charger for precision charging, that
is external to the battery, only 1 pound (462 grams). This means
that you can quickly top up the battery while you go for lunch,
or use two batteries for each charger (use one battery while you
are fast charging the other & never run out of power). It
also means that you don't have to wait 12 - 16 hours overnight
for a full charge like most other chargers.
- Charge an empty battery in
5.3 - 6.3 hours (with the 3
Amp, 50 Watt smart charger), no worry about being ready
for tomorrow's shoot.
- No fear of overcharging
the battery & causing premature damage. Several
programmable safety circuits are employed in the smart charger
to switch the "fast charge mode" (3,000 mA) to "top-up
mode" (420 mA) & then to "trickle charger mode"
(100 mA) at the correct time, such as -dV (negative delta Voltage
detection), dT/dt (battery temperature rise detection) & a
safety timer. Assurance that the battery gets fully charged. Automatic
prevention of fast charge mode if battery is outside safe temperature
range for charging (0° - 40°C). Automatic fault detection
& charger shut down if battery is above 60°C temperature.
Smart battery has a longer useful service life when combined with
the smart charger. Multi coloured LED tells what stage the charger
is at (6 conditions). The charger does all the thinking for you,
all you have to do is plug it in. Battery can be left on charger
indefinitely without damage because of tiny trickle charge (less
than 1%) which keeps battery fully charged until needed.
- Use the charger anywhere
in the world, since it is a switch mode type charger
that plugs into 90-264 VAC, 50-60 Hz. Also small & light weight.
- A self resetting thermostat
breaker is built in the battery to prevent catastrophic
failure should the battery be plugged into the wrong charger (cuts
circuit if battery temperature gets above 60°C & self resets
when it cools to about 50°C). A thermistor is also built in the
smart battery which communicates temperature to the smart charger.
- 15 Amp manually resetable
circuit breaker built into the battery case to
prevent too much Amperage or short circuits (no need to replace
fuses).
- Stable Voltage levels
within your application requirements. When fully charged,
depending on temperature, the battery will range 12.6 - 14.4 (average
13.5) Volts loaded with 24 Watts (typical broadcast camera), range
11.5 - 13.7 (average 13.3) Volts loaded with 100 Watts (typical
bright sun gun light) & unloaded Voltage of 15.4 - 16.5 Volts.
This nominal 13.2 Volt NiMH battery belt typically operates about
0.44 Volts higher than a 13.2 Volt NiCad battery, hence no need
for a 14.4 Volt (nominal) (12 cell) battery that might cause over
Voltage problems.
- Because of 11 cell use rather than 10 cells,
Voltage stays higher than 11 Volts nearly to the end,
allowing you to get maximum runtime from the battery, even when
temperature is -10°C (14°F) using a 9 Amp (120 Watt) load as example.
- Three
XLR 4-pin professional video power connectors.
Power your camera, sun gun light & a third device from the
same battery all at the same time & use the same connections
for charging. You can even be charging the battery while using
it (as long as the load is roughly 25 Watts or higher).
- Easy self replacement
of battery cell cluster (just 4 solder connections) once
batteries are worn out (not a major receling job with huge costs
where you have to send it in to the manufacturer).
- Best of all, lower prices
& more features than our competition at a given
energy rating.
Depending on demand, there may also be a smaller 9.5 Amp/hour
NiMH battery belt at 13.2 Volts (125 Watt/hours),
weighing only about 6.5 pounds (2.95 kilograms).
Depending on demand, if there are professional cameramen who insist
on using the older NiCad (Nickel Cadmium) battery technology,
there may be an 8.8 Amp/hour (8,800 mAh) NiCad battery belt
available, at 13.2 Volts, which is 116 Wh (Watt/hours)
& weighing about 8.2 pounds (3.7 kilograms).
Custom orders for 12 celled battery belts (nominally 14.4 Volts)
will be offered, but is generally not recommended because of potential
for an over Volt situation (too much Voltage for the application).
For example, a 14.4 Volt battery used on a light designed for 12
Volts, gives it 20% more Voltage, causing it to burn 96% brighter,
thereby burning out your light much faster. With 12 cells under
a 24 Watt load (typical broadcast camera) you can start off with
as much as 16.5 Volts which may be above your camera's acceptable
range. 12 cells (nominally 14.4 Volts) is more commonly used in
Nicad batteries than in NiMH batteries, because NiMH batteries are
actually about 0.44 Volts higher than NiCad's (for an 11 cell cluster).
Click here for prices & feature list.
For more information call (519) 657-4505 or e-mail Doug Hembruff.
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