When deciding on a lithium battery in today’s market, it can be a daunting task for even the most knowledgable consumer. A question that regularly gets asked is why Invicta lithium is more expensive than some others? The answer to this is that many of the cheaper lithiums use inferior components that simply don’t perform nor have the features that premium batteries enjoy.
In Invicta lithium, we have included premium features like IEC certification, aluminium prismatic cells, robust internal connections and a high-quality BMS with Bluetooth options. For this feature, we will be focusing on the BMS and its Bluetooth capabilities.
The BMS is a critical component that manages the performance and protects the battery and other electronics from damage. In the Invicta range, we have gone one step further and added a Bluetooth feature that connects to the BMS via a free mobile app and allows users to monitor their battery’s performance live, as it happens on either your Apple or Android phone.
Through the Invicta monitoring application, users can easily view the state of charge, discharge, capacity, temperature, voltage and the BMS safety features which include over-discharge/charge, oven/under voltage, over/under temperature and short circuit events. An especially useful tool if the battery is placed in a location where accessing or testing the battery is challenging.
But how do you use this data to its full potential? Sure, it is excellent to know that the battery is getting low and it needs charging or that the BMS disconnected the battery. But being able to use all the information available to solve broader problems, now that is knowledge worth having.
Troubleshooting System Issues
Troubleshooting and finding faults in a system can be a tricky exercise, even for the most experienced Auto Electrician. It is usually a process of elimination, and when you have multiple connections and electronics this can take time, so having the right information can correctly resolve the issue.
In one instance, a user suggested their battery failed because it was discharging quicker than what was indicated on the external management device. Subsequently, the battery was going flat in the night. What had happened was the fridge had been incorrectly installed directly to the battery and not through the management device resulting in a leeching effect. This unknowingly activated the battery’s BMS over-discharge disconnect, putting the battery into sleep mode.
If the battery had Bluetooth monitoring, the user would have noticed the over-discharge disconnect and once charged could have compared the output of the battery compared to the management device, which would have been different. This would have suggested that there was a draw that was not accounted for by the management device.
Considering they were in a remote location when this happened meant having access to this information would have been critical to the user. It would have allowed them to fix the issue quickly and potentially without the need for an Auto Electrician. Alternatively, they could have continued as they did before but rely on the mobile application for an accurate capacity reading until they had a chance to see an Auto Electrician.
Appliance Management
Appliance management can be an essential task if you are adding/upgrading electrical devices in your caravan and pushing your battery to the limits. The system might fail at certain times and not knowing what has happened can leave the user only guessing to what has happened and making the wrong decisions.
Here is the scenario, you have bought a new coffee machine which runs through your inverter, in addition to the AC unit, fridge and a couple of other 12V appliances. Every time you make a coffee during the night when everything is off it seems to work but during the day when everything is on it trips the whole system. What is happening? Is it the appliance, is it the battery?
Quite simply, it comes down to understanding the draw of each of your appliances, the maximum discharge rate of the battery and monitoring them through the Bluetooth. The Invicta Bluetooth interface accurately displays your current draw, if your battery is running on the limits and you want to make a coffee try turning something off or upgrade your system to handle the new appliance.
If you do decide to upgrade your system to a bigger capacity, you can now rely on accurate information on your draw the sales representative. Giving them the confidence to recommend the right Invicta lithium battery to suit your needs.
Manual Testing Of Lithium Can De Difficult
In AGM batteries, you can easily calculate the remaining capacity using a voltmeter. However, lithium batteries can be much more challenging to measure because of the flat discharge curve. Where AGM batteries begin to lose voltage at around 50% capacity lithium does not fall below 12V until approximately 10% remaining capacity.
So unless you have installed external management equipment or your rate of discharge is constant, and you know what that draw is, it is highly likely you would be guessing as to when you need the batteries charged and for how long you can go without a charge for.
This where the Invicta Bluetooth application becomes handy, it quickly and accurately displays the remaining capacity to your mobile device directly from the battery. It also allows the users to place the battery in a less accessible space, making conventional voltmeter testing even more difficult.
Commercial Applications
The Invicta monitoring application also has benefits beyond those in the consumer space and can extend to those in large factories, medical facilities and beyond as it provides critical data live to a mobile device.
In industrial and commercial environments which have multiple or critical batteries at work, it can allow floor managers to monitor the status of numerous batteries within Bluetooth range and enable them to take actions such as recharging. This ensures that operations continue to run smoothly, and issues can be dealt with and understood.
Is Invicta Bluetooth For Me?
The only disadvantage to a Bluetooth model is it can’t connect batteries in series. However, the Invicta range overcomes this by having 12V, 24V and 36V batties available and all with Bluetooth options. Invicta Bluetooth models have far-reaching benefits that can solve broader problems and should always be considered, especially for those wishing to run a modern and efficient system with ease.