Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Battery Charging PDF
Battery Charging PDF
Lead-Acid
Battery State of
Charge vs.
Voltage
Richard Perez
1993 Richard Perez
Why a Voltmeter?
Ten years ago, voltmeters were all we had for
information about our systems. Ampere-hour meters
that calculated battery efficiency were a pipe dream.
Even now, small systems cannot justify the additional
expense and complexity of the new sophisticated
battery state of charge (SOC) instruments. I still use a
homebrew battery voltmeter in addition to our hi-tech
instruments like the Cruising Amp-hour meter, the SPM
2000, and the Power Monitor 15. The voltmeter is
always there, consumes virtually no power, and tells me
at a glance whats happening with our system.
Reading a battery voltmeter and turning that information
into a reliable assessment of the batterys state of
charge is like tracking an animal by its footprints.
Tracking requires noticing small details and
extrapolating information from these details. A tracker
uses his knowledge of the animals habits. A tracker
considers the weather and season. A trackers
knowledge of his subject and its environment allows
him to predict the actions ofhis subject.
After watching the voltmeter for a few of the batterys
charge/discharge cycles, the user gets a idea of his
batterys voltage profiles. After watching the voltmeter
for a season or two, the user learns how to relate the
66
Batteries
C/5
C/10
16.0
C/20
15.5
C/40
15.0
14.5
14.0
13.5
13.0
Rest
12.5
12.0
11.5
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
110
120
67
Batteries
12.5
C/100
C/20
C/10
12.0
C/5
C/3
11.5
11.0
10.5
10.0
9.5
9.0
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
68
Batteries
OmniMeter
by Sun Selector
60 A to 400 A Disconnects
$700 & up, send for flyer
Offline
camera ready
3.5 inches wide by 4.5 inches tall
OmniMeter
More Meter Less Money
Introductory Offer
only $349 includes charge control.
requires 35, 60, or 100 Ampere contactor
not included
Contact:
69
16.0
B
A
T
T
E
R
Y
C/10
C
H
A
R
G
E
15.5
15.0
C/20
C/40
14.5
14.0
13.5
V
O
L
T
A
G
E
13.0
C/100
C/20
C/10
12.5
C/5
12.0
C/3
11.5
i
n
V.
D.
C.
D
I
S
C
H
A
R
G
E
11.0
10.5
10.0
9.5
9.0
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
26