March 21, 2012 Saft’s advanced Li-ion energy storage system will support the technology development phase of the U.S. Army’s Ground Combat Vehicle (GCV) program. As a member of the BAE Systems GCV team which has been awarded a contract for the initial phase of the program, Saft has entered into an agreement to design and build ultra high-power batteries for the vehicle’s hybrid electric drive system. Read more

March 9, 2012 Europe's leading supplier of lithium ion batteries for electric vehicles, power tool and e-bike applications, Axeon, has raised £3.5 million to support the next development phase of the business. Read more

March 1, 2012 Lattice Semiconductor Corporation has adopted the MIPI Battery Interface (BIF) standard within the iCE40 mobileFPGA family of products. As an industry-created and adopted standard, the MIPI BIF single-wire specification accelerates the design and use of smart batteries in mobile devices. Read more

February 24, 2012 Accutronics plans to launch a range of ‘Intellion’ credit card sized batteries for portable applications at the Embedded World exhibition. The new smart batteries claim to be ideal for high-tech portable applications including tele-healthcare devices, test and measurement equipment and wearable computers. Embedded World is taking place at the NürnbergMesse GmbH, Messezentrum in Nuremberg Germany between February 28 and March 1, Hall 2, Stand 2-502. Read more

February 23, 2012 Europe's leading organic and large-area electronics (OLAE) organizations have joined forces in the Framework 7 project COLAE, which aims to speed up the commercialization and adoption of organic and large area electronics by promoting collaboration between industry clusters throughout Europe. COLAE will utilize the resources and know-how of the project partners to provide tools and services for the existing organic electronics industry, as well as supporting the entry of new players. Read more

February 21, 2012 Powersolve has unveiled the GMB Cylindrical Series of rechargeable Lithium Ion batteries that combine high operating voltage with high energy density and a low self-discharge rate. Read more

February 20, 2012 Accutronics has announced a range of 'Intellion' credit card sized batteries for portable applications, to be designed as smart batteries for high-tech portable applications including tele-healthcare devices, test and measurement equipment and wearable computers. Read more

February 15, 2012 Powersolve has introduced two new series of lithium batteries designed to replace 9 V PP3 batteries in applications that require long life, a stable operating voltage and a very low self-discharge rate. The G600 Series are rechargeable lithium polymer batteries while the CP9V Series are lithium manganese dioxide primary batteries. Read more

February 9, 2012 Siemens Desiro RUS trains serving the Sochi Winter Olympics are being fitted with Saft's specialized SMRX nickel-based rail batteries capable of providing reliable emergency backup and starting power at temperatures as low as -40°C. Read more

February 3, 2012 Nexeon received two major accolades at this year’s Rushlight Awards, including the overall Clean Energy Award. The award recognizes the progress made by Nexeon in developing silicon-based anodes for next generation lithium ion (Li-ion) batteries. Read more

January 26, 2012 Axeon has been selected by the Spanish urban mobility consortium, Hiriko to supply batteries for the company’s prototype electric vehicles. Read more

January 24, 2012 Powersolve has unveiled the GMB Series of rechargeable lithium polymer batteries which are ideal for applications such as hand held computers or PDA devices, mobile communication equipment such as cellular phones or radios and hand held bar code readers. Read more

January 19, 2012 VR Group is looking to boost passenger confidence in Finland's high speed Pendolino services by switching to Saft’s MRX specialized rail batteries to resolve reliability and maintenance issues encountered with the Pendolino service’s former onboard batteries. Read more

January 17, 2012 Linear Technology Corporation has introduced an overvoltage protection controller that provides overvoltage and overcurrent protection to high-availability electronic systems. Supply voltages surge whenever currents flowing through long inductive power buses change abruptly. Read more

January 11, 2012 At the Detroit Motor Show, Korean energy R&D group SK Innovation and German automotive tier one Continental AG have announced the launch of a joint venture aiming at developing and manufacturing lithium Ion batteries for electric vehicles. In a head agreement, both companies said they intend to serve the global market for such batteries. Read more

January 10, 2012 Texas Instruments Incorporated has introduced a battery charger integrated circuit to support higher cell capacity batteries and increasing battery charge currents of tablets, e-readers and smartphones. The highly integrated single-cell Li-Ion battery charger has dual inputs, which allow operation from either a USB port or higher power input supply (AC adapter or wireless power input). Read more

December 26, 2011 As we are hurtle inexorably into 2012 now is time to unveil EE Times Europe Power Management's Top 10 most popular news stories of 2011. The results are based on the news stories that were accessed by EE Times Europe Power Management's readership since January 1, 2011. Read more

December 22, 2011 ZMDI AG has introduced the company’s first step-up converter with integrated 35 V power switch for high brightness LEDs. It is optimal for driving multiple white LEDs connected in series from a low voltage supply. The ZLED7015 can also drive devices that require a constant voltage and the wide input voltage range of 6 V to 30 V supports applications with input voltage from multi-cell batteries or regulated 12 V and 24 V power rails. Read more

December 1, 2011 Renesas Electronics has introduced a charging control integrated circuit, the R2A20055NS, that achieves further miniaturization and safe charging control for single-cell lithium-ion batteries used in portable devices. Read more

November 24, 2011 Powersolve has unveiled Lithium Polymer thin cells that can be manufactured down to 0.4 mm thick. The CP Series consists of Lithium Polymer thin cells which are primary laminated aluminium thin foil batteries with a nominal 3 VDC output. Read more

November 18, 2011 A team of Northwestern University researchers has created an anode electrode for lithium-ion batteries that allows the batteries to hold a charge up to 10 times greater than using current technology. Read more

November 3, 2011 Messe München International plans to expand the organization’s portfolio of events focusing on new technology with the launch of a new trade show. Energy Storage will start as an annual event in Fall 2012. The new event will run concurrently with the world´s leading trade fairs electronica or productronica. Read more

October 25, 2011 Texas Instruments Incorporated has unveiled the company's next generation of power management integrated circuits (ICs) for energy harvesting. The highly efficient boost charger for nano (ultra low) power energy harvesting manages the microwatts to milliwatts of power generated from a number of sources, such as solar, thermoelectric, electromagnetic and vibration, and stores the extracted energy in various storage elements, including Li-ion batteries and super capacitors. Read more

October 18, 2011 The latest development by engineers of KIT is inspired by nature. To fill the porous electrodes of lithium-ion batteries more rapidly with liquid electrolyte, they use a physico-chemical effect that also provides for transport in trees. Read more

October 10, 2011 Research scientists at the Fraunhofer Institute for Microelectronic Circuits and Systems IMS in Duisburg have now developed wireless window contacts which indicate when a house's windows are open or closed.  The fail-safe system uses sensors that harvest the energy they need to run from ambient radio signals. Read more

September 26, 2011 austriamicrosystems has released two new battery charger ICs for Li-Ion batteries in mobile devices. The AS3610/11 step-down DC-DCs offer fast and highly efficient charging of Li-Ion batteries in mobile devices with up to 1.25 A output current. The ICs include numerous safety and protection features, internal current measurement, and USB Host/OTG (on the go) boost mode operation. The AS3610 DC-DC provides an I²C interface for external control and the AS3611 operates independently. Read more

September 16, 2011 Saft has inaugurated the world's most advanced automated lithium-ion battery factory, in Jacksonville, Florida, USA following the injection of US DOE stimulus money to help fund energy storage systems creating 300 high-tech jobs. Read more

September 5, 2011 Johnson Controls, Inc., and Saft are to end their joint venture, Johnson Controls-Saft, which was formed in 2006 to develop and manufacture Li-ion vehicle batteries. Under the terms of the agreement, Johnson Controls will acquire Saft’s share of the company for $145 million in cash. Read more

August 26, 2011 Saft has won a multi-million dollar contract from Boeing Space & Intelligence Systems to supply lithium-ion (Li-ion) satellite batteries for MEXSAT-1 and MEXSAT-2. The satellites are part of the new MEXSAT communications system, which will provide government and civilian broadband communications to Mexico – supporting humanitarian needs and enhanced coverage for domestic communications in Mexico. Read more

August 26, 2011 Saft has received a multi-year, multi-million dollar long-term agreement from Orbital Sciences Corporation to provide lithium ion (Li-ion) batteries for Orbital’s STAR-2 geosynchronous orbit (GEO) satellite platform. Read more

August 3, 2011 Nexeon, the Oxfordshire company pioneering the use of silicon anodes in place of carbon, has received new investment worth £40 million to boost the company’s rechargeable lithium-ion battery technology developments. Read more

July 28, 2011 Saft is to act as a first-rank partner for the energy storage component of the NICE GRID project for design of the power grid of the future. The project, which provides for energy storage as an integral part of the distribution network, is coordinated by ERDF. Read more

June 13, 2011 Nexeon has won the Green Technology category award in the Martin & Audrey Wood Awards which celebrate entrepreneurs and innovative companies. The award is given to the company that best demonstrates an innovative technology with a positive impact on the environment. In addition, the company must have demonstrable commercial potential. Read more

June 7, 2011 Trojan Battery Company is expanding its product offering with the launch of its Industrial flooded line of batteries for renewable energy (RE) and backup power applications. Designed to support large daily loads where the batteries are cycled regularly, Trojan's deep-cycle Industrial batteries are ideal solutions for a wide range of photovoltaic (PV) systems. Read more

April 19, 2011 Europe's largest independent lithium-ion automotive battery systems supplier, Axeon, has been awarded research funding from the EU to reduce the weight, volume and cost of batteries in electric and hybrid vehicles as part of the SmartBatt consortium programme. Read more

April 15, 2011 Saft emergency lighting batteries are leading the way in the UK as the only batteries able to carry the ICEL 1010 label that provides independent proof of their capability to deliver performance and reliability in even the most demanding installations. Read more

April 12, 2011 Microchip Technology Inc., has expanded its stand-alone real-time clock/calendars (RTCCs). Building upon the MCP794XX family of products, Microchip is introducing the MCP7940N, which offers battery switchover and timestamp for accurate timekeeping, digital trimming for time-of-day calibration and 64 bytes of SRAM. Read more

April 11, 2011 Saft has developed state-of-the-art lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries to provide a boost to five of the twelve Formula 1 teams competing in the Formula 1 grand prix series this season. The teams being supported by Saft include Ferrari and Lotus Renault GP. Read more

April 6, 2011 Fuel cells on-a-chip could replace small batteries, according to Harvard University researchers who showed a wafer containing 145 solid-oxide fuel cells. Read more

March 23, 2011 Norwegian power design specialist, Mascot AS has introduced a high-quality, high-performing charger for lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries, which features 3-stage charging for maximum battery performance. 13 standard variants are currently available for charging batteries from one (8.5 A/4.2 V) to 14 cells (1.7 A/58.8 V). Read more

March 11, 2011 The world's leading manufacturer of deep cycle batteries, Trojan Battery Company, has inked a distribution agreement with UK Batteries which will expand Trojan’s presence and strengthen the company’s leadership in the region. As Trojan’s authorized master distributor, UK Batteries will be responsible for overseeing the distribution and servicing of Trojan products in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Read more

March 7, 2011 In recent weeks one of Europe's leading power management distributors, Avnet Abacus, has unveiled a series of initiatives to offer its 13,000 customers sustained support for 'green' power design applications. EE Times Europe talks with the distributor's senior management to discover what it means for design engineers. Read more

February 16, 2011 Avnet Abacus, one of Europe’s leading power management distributors, has revealed a series of enhancements to the company’s power products strategy to offer sustained, multi-faceted support for ‘green’ power design applications. The new strategy is being introduced at a time of growth for the company with sales up year on year by 33.5% and sales in the second half of 2010 rising even faster at a rate of almost 40%. Read more

February 14, 2011 Attendees at the 4th Entwicklerforum Akkutechnologien (Developer Forum Battery Technologies), hosted by the batteryuniversity.eu, will see more than 30 presentations by leading experts on battery technology topics. The event will take place on March 23 and 24, 2011 in the "Stadthalle Aschaffenburg", Germany. Read more

February 8, 2011 Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands is leading a new project sponsored by the European Commission in which a consortium of research institutes, universities and the battery and automotive industry from eight European countries will join forces to develop cheaper and safer rechargeable batteries with higher energy density. Read more

January 12, 2011 Saft is preparing to fill its next order for lithium-ion (Li-ion) space batteries as part of a five-year Long Term Agreement signed with Boeing Space and Intelligence Systems in 2009. Under the multi-million dollar contract, Saft will deliver 12 battery packs of highenergy Li-ion batteries for Boeing’s 702HP satellites being built for the Inmarsat-5 series. Read more

January 5, 2011 An entirely new type of nanomaterial developed at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute could enable the next generation of high-power rechargeable lithium (Li)-ion batteries for electric automobiles, as well as batteries for laptop computers, mobile phones, and other portable devices. The new material, dubbed a "nanoscoop" because its shape resembles a cone with a scoop of ice cream on top, can withstand extremely high rates of charge and discharge that would cause conventional electrodes used in today's Li-ion batteries to rapidly deteriorate and fail. Read more

December 21, 2010 As we are sucked inexorably into the vortex that will become 2011 perhaps it is time to declare EE Times Europe Power Management’s Top 10 most popular news stories of 2010. The results are based on the news stories that were accessed by EE Times Europe Power Management’s readership since January 1, 2010. Read more

December 16, 2010 Nexeon, a spin out of Imperial Innovations, is claiming to have produced Li-ion battery cells with the world's highest capacity for their size.  The cells, which are based on Nexeon's silicon anode technology, have a capacity of 3.2 Ah and were produced at the company's pilot plant in Oxfordshire, UK. Read more

December 15, 2010 Linear Technology is releasing a synchronous buck-boost converter that delivers 3 A of output current from a nominal 3.3V power source, Li-Ion/Polymer battery or up to 1 A from dual cell alkaline/NiCad/NiMH batteries. The LTC3113's 1.8 V to 5.5 V input range and 1.8 V to 5.5 V output range provides a regulated output from an input voltage above, below or equal to the output. Read more

November 17, 2010 Linear Technology has introduced a synchronous buck-boost converter that delivers up to 2.5 A of output current from a wide range of power sources, including single or multiple cell batteries, super capacitor stacks and wall adapters. The LTC3112 has a 2.7 V to 15 V input range and 2.5 V to 14 V output range that provides a regulated output with inputs above, below or equal to the regulated output. Read more

November 9, 2010 Saft is launching at Electronica 2010 the latest additions to the company’s range of primary lithium batteries in the form of two new D-size cells designed specifically for high drain electronic applications. Read more

November 9, 2010 BMZ Batterien-Montage-Zentrum is presenting an innovative tester for Li-Ion, Li-FePh, Li-Titanate, Ni-Cd, Ni-MH and lead acid rechargeable batteries at Electronica 2010 in Hall B2, Booth 474.   Read more

November 9, 2010 Electronica 2010 (Hall B2 Stand 456) will see the launch of the new Powerstax TVS1001 rugged up-converter designed for use in military tactical vehicle systems for operations in remote locations and non-tactical vehicle security systems. Read more

November 4, 2010 The batteryuniversity.eu is offering complete UN Transport Tests including specialist support in the event that a redesign of the battery packs is necessary with the issuance of expert reports and certificates required for the transport of lithium ion cells or batteries. Read more

October 22, 2010 Linear Technology Corporation has introduced an easy-to-use, shunt battery system for Li-Ion/Polymer batteries that integrates a charger and battery pack protection in one IC. The LTC4071, with its 550 nA operating current, charges and protects batteries from previously unusable low current, intermittent or continuous charging sources. Read more

October 18, 2010 Salisbury, UK based MIL and commercial power conversion specialist, Gresham Power Electronics has been awarded a contract to supply specialist battery charging equipment and batteries for new submarines for India. The contract will last until 2016 and is valued at GBP 540,000. Read more

October 18, 2010 Hitachi and Johnson Controls have signed a memorandum of understanding to work together on several fronts in the field of advanced energy storage. The companies will study opportunities for collaboration in the fields of motive and non-motive advanced energy storage including Lithium-ion batteries, exploring potential cooperation across a wide span of initiatives including R&D, procurement, production, marketing, sales and standardization. Read more

September 17, 2010 ON Semiconductor has introduced a new one-channel Quad-Mode LED Driver for ultra low power LED applications such as portable handheld medical equipment. The device's 92 percent efficiency extends battery life. Read more

September 16, 2010 Europe’s leading supplier of lithium ion batteries for electric vehicles, power tool and mobility applications, Axeon, has raised £5 million of new equity to support the next development phase of the company’s business. Read more

September 16, 2010 The formation of a new Battery Interface working group by the MIPI Alliance is aimed at addressing issues such as counterfeit batteries, consumer safety and power management. Comprised of companies spanning the mobile ecosystem, the working group will develop new specifications for the mobile battery interface system. Read more

September 9, 2010 Abertax Quality Inc of Malta and Mentzer Electronic GmbH of Germany, with research support from the University of Malta, have delivered an innovative lead and non lead acid battery system that gives users unprecedented real time information on the health and charge level of their batteries. The system, which is the result of a 30 month collaborative effort supported by EUREKA, allows for more efficient and safe charging while saving time and avoiding unnecessary maintenance costs. Read more

August 24, 2010 Nexeon, a UK-based developer of next generation of lithium-ion rechargeable batteries, has received a vote of confidence with the purchase of several million pounds sterling of its shares by Imperial Innovations Group and Invesco. Read more

August 23, 2010 One of the pioneers in current and voltage measurement of 12 V vehicle batteries, Isabellenhutte, has signed a cooperation agreement with austriamicrosystems to focus their expertise. Read more

August 13, 2010 Linear Technology Corporation has introduced a 4-A monolithic synchronous buck battery charger for 1-cell Li-Ion/Polymer batteries. The LT3651-4.2 accepts inputs up to 32 V with a 40 V absolute maximum rating for added system margin. Read more

August 6, 2010 Maxim Integrated Products has introduced a high-voltage, 12-cell, battery-monitoring IC for hybrid vehicles, electric vehicles, and any system that stacks long series strings of batteries. Read more

July 28, 2010 Linear Technology Corporation has introduced an autonomous high efficiency power manager, ideal diode controller and battery charger for 1-cell Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) batteries used in portable devices such as industrial meters, media players, digital cameras, PDAs, personal navigators, and high peak-power and safety critical equipment. Read more

July 21, 2010 Semtech Corp. , has unveiled a new boost converter platform which claims to offer the world’s smallest step-up regulators for low-voltage applications. The SC120, SC121 and SC122 boost inputs from as low as 0.7 V to a regulated output settable from 1.8 V to 5.0 V and are available in 1.5x2 mm ultra-thin (0.6 mm max.) plastic packages. Read more

July 16, 2010 Graphene electrodes used in lithium-ion batteries could reduce recharge times from two hours to about 10 minutes, according to government and Princeton University researchers. he new graphene-based electrode fabrication process, also developed by researchers at the Energy Department's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), has been licensed to Vorbeck Materials Corp. (Jessup, Md.) for commercialization. Read more

July 15, 2010 Nexeon, the UK-based developer of next generation Li-ion batteries based on silicon anodes, has relocated to purpose-built facilities in Oxfordshire, England. Read more

May 27, 2010 Boston-Power, Inc., the provider of next-generation lithium-ion batteries, is to partner Batterien-Montage-Zentrum (BMZ), Europe's leading system supplier for rechargeable battery packs, with the aim of bringing battery innovation to markets around the globe, with a focus on Europe. Read more

May 4, 2010 Maxim Integrated Products has introduced switch-mode DC-DC chargers with JEITA-compliant battery-temperature monitoring for safely charging 1-cell lithium-ion (Li+) or lithium-polymer (Li-Poly) batteries. Read more

April 14, 2010 New analysis from Frost & Sullivan on the European batteries waste management market, finds that the market earned revenues of $10.3 million in 2009, and estimates this to reach $74.0 million by 2016. Batteries waste management has been a growing market across Europe principally because legislative pressure and impending deadlines are altering the way battery waste has been dealt with so far. Read more

April 6, 2010 Batteries with up to three times the energy density of any battery that currently exists may result from work being carried out by a team of researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Read more

March 16, 2010 A high-performance anode structure based on silicon-carbon nanocomposite materials developed by the Georgia Institute of Technology is aiming to improve the performance of lithium-ion batteries used in a wide range of applications from hybrid vehicles to portable electronics. Read more

March 4, 2010 Atmel Corporation is claiming that its new ATA6870 battery management circuit is the industry's first solution that features active cell balancing with capacitors or inductors for high-cell-count Li-Ion batteries supporting supply voltages up to several hundreds volts such as used in electrical/hybrid vehicles, e-bikes or uninterruptible power supplies. Read more

March 3, 2010 A key milestone in the development of silicon-based anodes for next generation lithium ion (Li-ion) batteries has been achieved by UK-based battery materials and licensing company, Nexeon. Read more

March 2, 2010 Researchers at the University of Central Florida's (UCF) Advanced Materials Processing and Analysis Center (AMPAC)) have verified findings by Planar Energy (Orlando, Florida) , the developer of large-format, solid-state batteries, which the company claims could lead to cost and performance improvements in large format batteries required for practical electric vehicles. Read more