BATTMAN · Battery Management with Solar Powered Devices

The BattMan project on Battery Management for Solar-Powered Devices is planning to:Design and develop battery-pack systems which manage photovoltaic power feed efficiently and deliver optimized, reliable, low-cost and predictable performance.Batteries and battery management systems are the essential storage elements in any solar-powered application. These systems can be employed in a variety of different markets and applications, as will be described below, yet reliable long-term service of the battery and system is the common challenge for all of the applications. The BattMan project therefore focuses on these essential elements and targets solar-powered, off-grid street lighting poles as a challenging demonstrator. It will be simulated, specified, designed, prototyped, demonstrated and validated in the project.The objectives of the BattMan project are therefore to develop:Obj1 –Improved battery chemistry and battery packs for predictable, reliable, safe, and long life operationObj2 –Improved battery management systems for ensuring specifications, including state-of-health (SoH) and state-of-charge (SoC) reporting, cell balancing and temperature stabilizationObj3 –Enhanced efficiency of the overall energy chain in the system, including maximization of system performance for both the application requirements and battery lifetimeObj4 –System integration of electronics with photovoltaic panels, PV optimization and applications of the systems for supporting an internet of energy for smart gridsObj5 –System and prototype designs for the demonstrator application of the Solar-powered Off-grid Street LightingThe knowledge gained within this project will be generated to be used to support a variety of applications.The consortium partners in this small, targeted project bring world-class experience, and consist of battery suppliers, battery management system developers, photovoltaic panel producers, lighting system manufacturers and universities.