Lithium battery solutions for electric bicycles
I. Background of Electric Bicycles
The process of urbanization promotes the development of electric bicycles
▲ With the rapid development of urbanization, the scale of cities is constantly expanding, people's travel distances are increasing, and the demand for convenient and flexible transportation means is rising. Electric bicycles can not only meet the needs of short-distance travel, but also are not as severely affected by traffic congestion as cars, making them an ideal choice for short-distance travel among urban residents.
▲ The population density in cities is high, and public transportation has a shortcoming in the "last mile" travel. Electric bicycles precisely fill this gap, making it convenient for people to make short-distance connections from bus stops, subway stations to their homes or workplaces.
The influence of economic factors
▲ The price of electric bicycles is relatively low. The purchase cost is much lower, and the usage cost is not high either. The electricity cost is much cheaper than the fuel cost, and the maintenance is simple, which is within the economic affordability of most ordinary consumers.
▲ In some areas where the economic development level is limited but the demand for transportation is relatively strong, electric bicycles have become an important choice for people's transportation due to their high cost performance, which helps to improve the travel efficiency and quality of life of residents.
Technological development contributes
▲ The continuous advancement of battery technology is a key factor in the development of electric bicycles. Lead-acid battery technology is constantly being optimized, and lithium-ion batteries are gradually becoming popular, which has increased the energy density and service life of batteries, thus continuously extending the driving range of electric bicycles.
▲ Improvements in motor technology, such as the wide application of brushless DC motors, have enhanced the power performance and electrical energy conversion efficiency of electric bicycles, making the vehicles run more smoothly and quietly. In addition, controller technology, charging technology and other aspects have been continuously upgraded, enhancing the overall performance and ease of use of electric bicycles.
Enhanced environmental awareness
▲ With the global emphasis on environmental protection, people are increasingly inclined to choose low-carbon and environmentally friendly travel methods. Electric bicycles are driven by electricity, have no exhaust emissions, are environmentally friendly and in line with the concept of sustainable development. Under the promotion of environmental protection policies, they have gained more favor from consumers.
▲ The publicity and guidance of environmentally friendly travel by the government and society have also deeply rooted the concept of green travel in people's hearts. As a typical green means of transportation, the market demand for electric bicycles is constantly expanding.
▲ New energy lithium batteries, with their advantages of high energy density, long cycle life and environmental friendliness, have gradually become the preferred solution for electric bicycles. This solution is designed to meet the application requirements of lithium batteries for electric bicycles, ensuring that lithium batteries can provide safe, efficient and customized power solutions in special fields
II. Analysis of Equipment Demand Characteristics
1. Equipment application characteristics
▲ Equipment types: simple type, luxury type electric bicycles, folding type electric bicycles, etc.
▲ Working environment: Temperature range, -20℃ to +70℃, high temperature, high humidity environment, high vibration, etc.
▲ Power demand: Large continuous/peak power, long battery life. The voltage platform generally adopts 36V or 48V and other voltage platforms.
2. Core requirements for lithium batteries
▲ High safety: Meeting the vehicle's requirements for shock resistance, water resistance, etc. under harsh working conditions.
▲ Long cycle life: ≥500 times (80% capacity retention rate).
▲ Fast charging: Supports fast charging and is suitable for high-intensity work.
▲ High-power discharge: The battery supports continuous high-current discharge, meeting the high-current requirements of high-power devices and ensuring their continuous and stable operation.
▲ Intelligent management: The BMS (Battery Management System) is equipped with functions such as overcharge protection, overdischarge protection, overcurrent protection, short-circuit protection, temperature protection, and fault diagnosis, making the battery more intelligent.
▲ Discharge temperature range: -20℃ to +70℃. In a low-temperature environment of -20℃, the battery's discharge efficiency is over 80%. A wider range of ambient temperature adaptability.
▲ Charging temperature: -20 ℃ to +50℃ range, with a wider adaptability to environmental temperatures.
III. Scheme Design
1. Battery selection
▲ Cell types: Ternary lithium batteries (ultra-low temperature, high energy density, high safety), lithium iron phosphate batteries (ultra-low temperature, high safety, long life), sodium-ion batteries (high safety, long life, good low-temperature performance). Different system cells are selected and matched according to different application scenarios.
▲ Battery combination configuration structure: Series and parallel schemes are designed based on the required voltage and capacity of the equipment to meet the requirements of different output voltage platforms.
▲ Structural design: IP65 to IP68 protection grade, shock-resistant structure, explosion-proof enclosure (suitable for extreme environments or flammable and explosive environments).
2. BMS Management System
Core functions:
▲ Real-time monitoring of the voltage, temperature, SOC (State of Charge), and SOH (State of Health) of individual battery cells.
▲ The battery charging active balancing technology enhances the consistency of usage among battery cells and extends the lifespan of the battery pack.
▲ The I2C/SMBUS/CAN/RS485 communication interface enables data interaction and communication with the main control system of the equipment.
▲ The Coulomb computing method makes the battery SOC more accurate and the battery smarter.
3. Charging solution
▲ Charging equipment: Customized smart charger/charger/charging cabinet, supporting constant current and constant voltage (CC-CV) charging.
▲ Charging strategy: Select fast charging or slow charging mode based on the working conditions to prevent battery overload.
▲ Intelligent control and management: Based on the technical performance characteristics of the battery, the battery charging process and fault diagnosis are intelligently controlled.
IV. Safety and Compliance
1. Safety protection
▲ Thermal management: By adopting a reasonable structural layout, thermal runaway can be reduced. Physical cooling/air cooling systems can be used to ensure temperature uniformity during battery use and effectively control battery thermal runaway.
▲ Fault protection: Multiple hardware protection mechanisms such as overcharge, overdischarge, short circuit, overcurrent, and over-temperature.
▲ Fault protection: Multiple hardware protection mechanisms such as short circuit, overcurrent, and over-temperature.
▲ Explosion-proof certification: The design can pass various safety regulations certifications.
2. Standard compliance
▲ Comply with national standards: GB31241-2022 (Safety Technical Specification for Lithium-ion Batteries and Battery Packs for Portable Electronic Products), GB 17761-2024 (Safety Technical Specification for Electric Bicycles), GB/T 34131 (Lithium Batteries for Power Storage), GB 38031 (Safety Requirements for Batteries Used in Electric Vehicles), GB9706 series (Safety Standards for Medical Electrical Equipment), etc.
▲ How to obtain domestic and international certifications: GB certification, UN38.3 certification, UL certification, IEC certification, CE certification and other various certification requirements.
V. Project Implementation Plan
Number |
Progress stage |
Project content |
Periodic plan |
1 |
Demand research |
Equipment parameter and working condition data collection |
Within one week |
2 |
Scheme design |
Customized battery packs and BMS development |
2~3weeks |
3 |
Sample testing | Charging and discharging, high and low temperature, safety protection, structural performance verification testing, design compliance verification testing |
3~4weeks |
4 |
Small-batch trial production | Material preparation plan, production assembly, aging, and full inspection and testing |
2~3weeks |
5 |
Medium-batch trial production | Material preparation plan, production assembly, aging, and full inspection and testing |
2~3weeks |
6 |
Mass production | Material preparation plan, production assembly, aging, and full inspection and testing |
4~6weeks |
7 |
Delivery, transportation and maintenance | Installation and commissioning, operation training | Within one week |
VI. Economic Benefit Analysis
Cost comparison
▲ Compared with other means of transportation, electric bicycles have lower energy consumption costs, maintenance costs and parking costs, etc.
2. Energy-saving benefits:
▲ Compared with fuel vehicles, it has a higher energy utilization rate and recyclable energy, reducing the total energy consumption.
3. Maintenance cost:
▲ The cost of replacing each component and the maintenance cost are much lower than those of fuel vehicles.
VII. After-sales Service
1. Warranty period: 1 to 5 years of after-sales warranty, with a lifespan of over 500 to 1,000 cycles (whichever comes first).
2. Remote monitoring: According to the actual demand status, the cloud platform provides real-time monitoring of the battery status and early warning of potential faults.
3. Emergency Response: Respond within 4 hours, provide solutions within 8 hours, and offer on-site technical support within 24 to 48 hours.
Hint:
▲ The plan needs to be refined based on specific equipment parameters (such as voltage, capacity, and size limitations).
▲ It is recommended to conduct joint debugging with the equipment manufacturer to ensure the compatibility of the battery with the entire machine system.