The NMC Lithium-Ion batteries have arrived along with the BMS system and charger. Let's unpack the batteries and other equipment and look at what we have received.
Below are some photos of the delivery from ELMOFO that, as you can see, were well packed and included the 88.2-volt 15-amp charger, the 24s 200/350 amp JK BMS, which I had preprogrammed by ELMOFO, and 21 x 58Ah 3.7-volt NMC Lithium-Ion E-CELLS.
The batteries, BMS, and charger were all securely packaged. This video shows the unboxing and provides a brief overview of the delivery.
Now that everything is unpacked I will be firstly laying out the batteries in the order that they will be connected. As the batteries will be connected in series, they will be place Negative to Positive on the bench ready for the links to be bolted in place.
First, a little bit of safety advice.
Remove any jewelry, rings, watches, or necklaces that could come in contact with the battery terminals. These batteries have a high current output, which will instantly melt your jewelry into your skin.
Tape up any tools to reduce the chance of shorting out between the batteries.
Work on a non-conductive surface or place rubber under the batteries and BMS.
Remember the batteries have a charge, so you are working live.
The first thing I will be doing is laying the batteries out ready to link up. It is best to install one link at a time to reduce the chance of shorting out any section of the pack while bolting the links into place.
Next, I will connect the BMS to the battery pack as per the wiring diagram below.
The video below demonstrates the steps I took to set up the batteries, connect them to the BMS, and test both the system and BMS functionality.
Being new to managing NMC Lithium-Ion batteries and the necessary settings for the safe operation of the Battery Pack, I chose to have ELMOFO program the BMS. Below are the specifications for the batteries I bought for the pack.
Displayed below are screenshots of the tablet linked to the BMS through Bluetooth. These images depict the status page, which includes the battery pack voltage, pack details, charging or discharging rates, and the balance of each battery cell. The cell status section reveals the balancing system actively transferring power between cells to maintain balance among the individual batteries within the pack.
Within the settings feature of the BMS, the Basic Settings display the number of batteries, their capacity, total voltage, and the charge level.
Within the Advanced Settings, the parameters are configured for the minimum and maximum levels of individual cells to regulate the pack's charging and discharging, ensuring that the batteries in the pack do not surpass their upper or lower voltage or amperage thresholds.
If any battery in the pack meets any of the specified settings, the pack will respond accordingly.
To adjust the settings, click on Modify PWD and input the password, though changes shouldn't be necessary after the initial setup. Ensuring all parameters are accurate is crucial, as incorrect settings in the BMS can harm the pack or lead to battery combustion.
Next, we will examine the modifications to the engineering of the frame structure for the motor and battery storage.
