Channel D Corporation Introduces BATTERY - EKG:

A Breakthrough for Testing Batteries used in Telecommunications and Other Industries for Stand-By Power

A stand-by power system (SPS) is critical for maintaining operations and service to customers of the telecommunications, utility, financial and securities, and transportation industries during commercial power outages.

At the heart of most SPSs are large, rechargeable lead-acid batteries, which can store thousands of times the energy of an automotive starting battery. Stand-by batteries have a service life of between 2 and 40 years.

To insure reliability, periodic battery testing is essential. The most widely accepted test method involves discharging the battery into a load and measuring the amount of stored energy (a "load test"). However, the battery must be removed from service during the load test, for up to 16 hours. This makes load testing cumbersome, and the SPS is more vulnerable to failure during the entire procedure. Load tests are expensive ($2000 - $5000 or more) and can damage the battery, if improperly performed. Because of the high cost, risk, and inconvenience, load tests are performed infrequently. Consequently, actual SPS capacity is often unknown.

In the late 1980s, user-operated battery test units began appearing on the market. They were designed to provide a cheap alternative to load testing, without disconnecting the battery ("on-line" testing). However, at technical conferences, their accuracy has been questioned, and some test units perform adequately only after disconnecting the battery from the service load, a major disadvantage. The interpretation of the readings is tedious and potentially confusing, because the readings must be compared to "baseline" or "trend" data, unique for each battery, to estimate the battery capacity. Unfortunately, there are dozens of different models and designs of batteries commonly used in SPSs today.

Recent developments in personal computer, integrated circuit and computer software technologies have paved the way to a breakthrough in on-line battery testing:

BATTERY - EKG relies on sophisticated computational modeling, in conjunction with the latest PC technology, circumventing the limitations of user-operated test units. In field tests, BATTERY - EKG has shown accuracy comparable to traditional, widely accepted load tests. BATTERY - EKG is not hampered by needing battery "baseline" or "trend" information.

The BATTERY - EKG battery test is performed at the client's SPS site - not by the client, but by a trained Channel D technical representative. This insures that measurements are performed properly and consistently. At the conclusion of the test, which typically takes three hours for a telecommunications - type battery, the client is given a printed evaluation report. This removes the responsibility of analysis of the measurement from the client. BATTERY - EKG testing costs a fraction of the cost of a load test, and several batteries can be tested in a single working day, by using multiple test units. Multiple- battery testing, with traditional load testing, is impractical and risky, particularly at smaller SPS sites.

BATTERY - EKG testing will result in higher reliability and a lower cost for goods and services from industries that must rely on SPSs - telecommunications, utility, financial and securities, and transportation.

For further information, please contact:

Channel D Corporation

Phone (609) 393-3600

The founder of Channel D Corporation has been involved with electrochemistry research, instrument design, and computer software development in both industrial and academic settings for over 16 years. He holds three chemical technology and computer software patents and has published over twenty peer-reviewed technical journal articles.