Charging

WARNING !

Lithium Ion Battery Safety Guidelines

WARNING: PROCEDURES WHICH IF NOT PROPERLY FOLLOWED CREATE THE PROBABILITY OF PROPERTY DAMAGE, COLLATERAL DANAGE AND SERIOUS INJURY

For the purpose of this document Li-ion, Li-Po, Li-Fe NiXX or any other Chemistry of batteries will be described as "Batteries".

Handling and Storage

Never alter, puncture or impact Batteries or related components.
Do not directly connect the terminals with metal objects. This will short-circuit Batteries, resulting in heat and electrical discharge.
Never store loose Batteries together, the Batteries' terminals may contact one another causing a short circuit.
Never expose Batteries to extreme temperatures or direct sunlight. The temperature range must be between 40-120 F (4-49 C).
Always verify voltage of Batteries that have been out of service for greater than six (6) months.
Always charge/store Batteries in a non-conductive, fireproof container or bag.
For best results, store Batteries at approximately 1/2 of the capacity listed on the Batteries' label.

*Before the First Charge

Make a visual and physical inspection of Batteries for any damaged or loose leads or connectors, damaged packaging, or other irregularities which may cause a short circuit.
Verify that the positive terminal of the Batteries is connected to the positive terminal of the charger. Confirm polarity with a voltmeter if unsure.
Check the voltage of Batteries using a voltmeter to make sure Batteries have the voltage of the capacity listed on Batteries' label.

Charging
Always refer to your charger's manual for correct procedures and safety information. In addition to your chargers manual, the warnings and guidelines listed below must be followed to avoid possible property damage and injury.

Always use a compatible balanced mode charger, specifically designed for the chemistry of battery you are using.
Always charge Batteries in an open area away from flammable materials, liquids and surfaces.
Never charge Batteries inside of the model.
Never charge Batteries that are hot to the touch (above 100 F). DO NOT handle Batteries until they are cool.
Always set the charger to proper cell count and/or voltage listed on Batteries' label.
Always set the charger to the amp charge rate as listed on Batteries'.
Never charge at a rate greater that 1C(One (1) times the capacity of Batteries in am hours)
*Always check the voltage of Batteries before each charge session in order to ensure they are at or above the minimum safe starting voltage. If starting voltage is below recommended levels then Batteries have been over discharged or have experienced a failure and should NOT be charged.
Never overcharge Batteries beyond the capacity listed on Batteries' labels.

Safety
If at any time Batteries become damaged, hot, or begin to swell discontinue charging (or discharging) immediately. Quickly and safely disconnect the charger. Then place the Batteries in a safe, open area way from flammable materials in an approved Li-Po bag to observe. After one hour, remove the Batteries from service. DO NOT continue to handle, attempt to use, or ship Batteries. Failure to follow these procedures can cause damage to Batteries, personal property or cause serious injury.

Damaged or swollen Batteries can be unstable and very hot. DO NOT touch Batteries until they have cooled. Dispose of Batteries in the manner required by your city, county, state or country. In the event of a fire, a Class D, dry chemical fire extinguisher must be used.

1. Introduction

The two main commandments of Faraday charging are:

Do not let uninstructed people touch the charger at any time!
Always be in close approximation while charging!
Do not charge while sleeping!

NOTE: Take care not to plug the wrong cable (eg. from the motor controller) into the charger

BE MINDFUL - if LiPo batteries are mistreated, they can catch fire and even explode!

Many off-the-shelf RC chargers can be used, although there are some requirements. The RC charger needs to support the battery type, which means supporting:

LiPo battery type
Recommended 4.5 Amperes
6S battery support
Balanced charging mode

2. Battery Information

The Spine battery is a LiPo battery with 6 cells, and each cell can contain 4.2V. Thus, a maximum voltage of 25.2V in total, whereas the minimum voltage should be 18V.

Keep the voltage of each cell between 3.0V and 4.2V at all times!
- Failing to do so can damage the battery, even destroy it.

Take note of the 3 different cable-units for the battery, used for charging:

Battery cable: Dual red-tipped cable, power supply to/from the battery.
Sensor unit: White-tipped w/ six small cables, detecting battery cell levels.
Extension cable: External cable, connects to the battery cable in order to convert to input type suitable for RC chargers.

3. Preparing the Charger

The settings for the charger needs to be as follows:

Charging mode: Balance
Cells: 6 Cells
4.5 Amps
25.2 Volts

NOTE: Usually it’s possible to save the charging settings, which is recommended.

4. When to recharge the battery

IMPORTANT:

Stop riding immediately when batteries start to seem weak (performance drops)
- And then go recharge the battery as soon as possible!

5. Connecting the battery pack to the charger

When charging, three cable units (separate from the charger itself) are in use: Charger-extension, battery cable and sensor-unit, as explained in section 2.1.

The steps to be followed are:

Plug the extension cable into the charger.
Connect the extension cable to the battery cable.
Plug the sensor-unit into the charger input that suits the sensor-unit.
Plug in the power supply for the charger, turn it on.

Remember:

Always connect the provided extension cable to the charger itself, before connecting the red-tipped battery-cable to the extension cable.

6. Charging Process

Before starting to charge the batteries, make sure the settings are correct as described in section 3. When all setup, start the charge and be aware of any error messages.

Expect a full charge to take around 65 minutes. Take note of any warnings from your charger and act accordingly. Most RC chargers will signal with a beep once charging has come to an end, but make sure you know the procedure for your specific RC charger.

When unplugging charged batteries from the charger, unplug the battery cable first, not the extension cable (end that goes into the charger itself)! If in doubt, see battery information in section 2 - Battery Information.

Remember:

Always be in close approximation of the charger while charging.