A product is only as good as the infrastructure. As a ship seeks a port to moor, a plane approaches an airport to land, and a roaming smartphone searches for a tower to communicate, so also does Spectro™ rely on a matrix to assess battery state-of-health (SoH). The technology departs from load testing by modelling a battery against a matrix to extract capacity, CCA, SoC and other qualities. Testing different batteries is made possible by downloading custom matrices from the Matrix Library.

Battery reliability and safety rely on modern EIS test methods

The Spectro CM-12 serving Consumer Auto is fitted with a generic matrix. However, this market is flooded with rival units and we pursue the underserviced Heavy Duty and Deep Cycle markets.

Test accuracies rest on the Matrix Integrity Level (MIL) that we attain by scanning good, used and weak batteries of same model. We work with battery users by lending the Data Acquisition Unit (DAU) that serves as a portable battery test lab. The more batteries in various conditions get tested, the better MIL will be. In time, each battery model will have a custom matrix stored the Matrix Library.

Testing batteries at remote locations requires downloading relevant matrices from the Matrix Library into the Spectro Modular. The same library will also store battery test results to enable predictive analysis by comparing earlier readings. Of special interest is the sharing of battery data of all sites with fleet managers; emphasis goes to Minimal Operational Reserve Energy (MORE) in assuring sufficient runtime while fully utilizing each battery with call to replace before failure.

The Spectro Plan supports lead and lithium-based batteries from 6–48V with capacities of up to 300Ah on a frequency scan from 2000 down to 0.1 Hertz. The non-invasive test takes 30 seconds, longer with large batteries. Our goal is to offer custom matrices for all major batteries by Internet.

Batteries can also be tested by evaluating the Nyquist plot optically with the Spectro Explorer. Typical applications are quality control in fabrication, identifying anomalies in battery system, doing validation check in supply chain and testing e-bike and scooter batteries.

The Spectro Plan calls for the population of the Matrix Library by lending the DAU to interested parties. This service captures capacity of aging batteries as they are being retired. Knowing the Remaining Useful Life is instrumental to maintain reliability while controlling cost of ownership. Making custom matrices available for all major batteries allows periodic capacity tests of a broad range of batteries to uphold MORE, battery performance data that can also be made available to fleet supervisors by Cloud Analytics. Marking batteries transparent will be the new normal in Diagnostic Battery Maintenance.