Some problems for new laptop battery in use

Posted on March 15th, 2010 in battery maintain, battery review | No Comments »

  1. A new battery is usually discharged with very low capacity. for the new battery packs, It is strongly recommended that you can refer to the user guide of your electronic device for charging instructions.
  2. The new thinkpad x60s battery must (circled achieve fully discharged and recharged) achieve three to five times for their optimal performance.
  3. Rechargeable battery are unused for a long period undergoing their self-perception. Thus, it should always be kept in a fully charged condition and in a cool, dry and clean place.
  4. To the best performance of thinkpad x60 battery ; pack, it is very advisable to circle (fully discharging and recharging) it at least once a month.
  5. It is normal is warm for new vgp-bps2c battery, if not be collected or used. However,if the battery is excessively hot,then you must pay special attention to it . This may indicate there is a problem with the charging circuit of the electronic device. Please contact a qualified technician if necessary.
  6. New laptop batteries are too heavy. Sometimes, your electronic device may indicate a fully charged condition is about 10 to 15 minutes, when the new battery will be charged from the first time. If this is the case, remove the battery and let it cool down for about 10 to 15 minutes then repeat the charging procedure. Sometimes, a new battery will suddenly refuse to be calculated. If this is the case, a suggested solution tries to keep the thinkpad t60 battery from the device and insert it again.

Lenovo laptop batteries be repaired

Posted on November 24th, 2009 in battery tip | No Comments »

Laptop batteries differ from other types of batteries in that they provide a relatively short service life and are expensive to replace. In this article we look at the reasons why these batteries do not last and examine the high replacement cost. We also look into the possibilities of repairing them.

Most of today’s laptop computers are powered with Lithium-ion batteries.(thinkpad t61 battery,thinkpad t40 battery)

Under good conditions, Lithium?ion provides 300 to 500 discharge/charge cycles or 2 to 3 years of service from the time the thinkpad t40 battery leaves the production line. The capacity loss occurs through increased internal resistance caused by cell oxidation. Eventually the resistance reaches a point where the battery can no longer deliver the needed energy although the energy may still be present in the battery. There are no remedies to restore the capacity when worn out. Heating the battery will momentarily improve the performance.

Figure 1: illustrates the recoverable capacity at various storage temperatures and charge levels over one year. Nickel-based chemistries, a chemistry that is also used in laptops, is illustrated on the right column. The capacity loss progresses on a quasi linear scale for the second and third year.

During use, the battery compartment in many laptops rises to about 45°C (113°F). The combination of high charge level and elevated ambient temperature presents an unfavorable condition for the battery. This explains the rather short lifespan of lenovo batteries.

The thinkpad T42 battery is ’smart’, meaning that some form of communications occurs between the battery and user. The definition of ’smart’ varies among manufacturers and regulatory authorities. Some manufacturers call their batteries ’smart’ by simply adding a chip that sets the charger to the correct charge algorithm. The Smart Battery System (SBS) forum states that a ’smart’ battery must provide state-of-charge (SoC) indications.

There are two common architectures of ’smart’ batteries. They consist of the single wire system found on high-end radio communications devices and video camera equipment, and the two-wire system, typically used on laptops. The two-wire system is usually configured as System Management Bus. Because of its common use in laptops, we will focus on the system. Figure 2 shows the layout.

Figure 2: Two-wire system.

The is based on a two-wire system using a standardized communications protocol. This system lends itself to standardized state-of-charge and state-of-health measurements.

The battery has five or more thinkpad t61 battery connections consisting of the positive and negative battery terminals, thermistor, clock and data. The connections are commonly not marked and attempting to test this type of battery appears complicated. Figure 3 describes the functions of a battery with 6 connections.

Figure 3: Connections of a typical laptop battery. The positive and negative terminals are usually placed on the outside; no norm exists on the arrangements of the contacts.

The positive and negative battery terminals are commonly located at the outer edges of the connector. The inner contacts accommodate the clock and data. (On a one-wire system, clock and date is combined.) For safety reasons, a separate thermistor wire is brought to the outside. This allows temperature protection if the digital communication is disabled.

Some batteries are equipped with a solid-state switch that is normally in the off position. In such as case, no voltage is present. Connecting the switch control terminal to ground will turn the thinkpad X60 battery on. If this does not work, a proprietary code may be needed to activate the battery.

Once the connection to the battery terminals is established, charging should be possible. If the charge current stops after 30 seconds, a digital code may be required. Some battery manufacturers go as far as to add a defined end-of-life switch. If a preset age, cycle count or capacity is surpassed, the battery stops functioning. When asking why such codes are added, the manufacturers explain that enduring safety can only be guaranteed if the battery is tamper-free and well performing. This makes common sense but the leading motive may be pricing. In the absence of competition, replacement batteries can be sold at a premium price. Newer batteries(Lenovo N100 battery,lenovo N200 battery) are generally more service friendly than older ones.

It is recommended to utilize the thermistor during charge and discharge to protect the battery against over heating. The thermistor can be measured with the Ohmmeter. The most common thermistors are the 10 Kilo Ohm NTC type, which read 10kOhm at 20°C (68°F). NTC stands for negative temperature coefficient, meaning that the resister decreases with rising temperature. A positive temperature coefficient (PCT) will increase the resistance. Warming the battery with your hand may be sufficient to detect a change in resistor value.

Figure 4: The Cadex SM2+ charger This level-3 charger serves as charger, conditioner and quality control system. The charger reads the battery’s state-of-health and flags those that fall below the set target capacity. Each bay operates independently and charges Nickel-cadmium, Nickel-metal-hydride and Lithium?ion chemistries in approximately three hours. ‘Dumb’ batteries can also be charged but no SoH information is available.

For full battery service, a battery analyzer is recommended. The lenovo thinkpad t61 battery is a programmable battery analyzer capable of rapid testing, charging, priming and reconditioning a large variety of batteries. The battery packs connects by custom SnapLock battery adapters, programmable cables or the Cadex FlexArm adapter. The analyzer does not check the .

Figure 5: lenovo battery analyzer

The programmable lenovo services lithium, nickel and lead-based batteries. SnapLock battery adapters simplify the interface with different battery types. A quick test program measures battery state-of-health in 3 minutes, independent of charge. Nickel-based batteries are automatically restored if the capacity falls below the user-defined target capacity.

Summary

Laptop batteries can be repaired but such work only makes economical sense for smaller operators. The success rate varies with battery type. One must remember that the ’smart’ battery consists of two parts, the chemical cells and the digital circuit. In some cases, the chemical part can be fully restored but the fuel gauge may become inaccurate or other data may get corrupted.

Anyone attempting to repair battery must be aware of some non-compliance in the SBS forum. Unlike other tightly regulated standards, the protocol allows some variations. This may cause problems with existing chargers and the thinkpad T40 battery should be checked for compatibility before use. The need to test and approve the marriage between a specific battery and charger is unfortunate, given the fact that the battery is being promoted as being universal. Ironically, by adding more features to the charger and the battery, the higher are the likelihood of incompatibilities.

Lenovo’s ThinkPad batteries recall

Posted on September 16th, 2009 in battery review | No Comments »

Lenovo is offering to replace certain lenovo batteries sold with its ThinkPad line of laptops, warning users that they may be permanently damaged due to errors.

The company is offering free replacements for batteries that do not recharge or suffer from “irreparable damage,” according to Lenovo’s support Web site.

Users need to run a diagnostics tool to see if batteries show any of those symptoms. The tool can be downloaded from Lenovo’s support site. If it indicates the battery is either damaged, shows sudden drops in the fuel gauge or fails to recharge, then the battery may need to be replaced.

Eligibility for a free replacement also depends on the laptop model and specific battery installed. Only a limited number of ThinkPad batteries qualify for a free replacement, the company said on its support site. The replacement offer applies to worldwide customers.Thinkpad T60 battery,thinkpad t61 battery,thinkpad x60 battery and so on.

Lenovo did not respond to requests for comment on the cause of the error. However, the company wrote on its support site that this was “not a safety recall and does not pose a safety hazard.”

The U.S. Consumer Safety Protection Commission in June 2007 asked Lenovo to recall about 100,000 ThinkPad batteries that could overheat and cause a fire. Those batteries were manufactured by Sanyo Electric Co. Ltd.

The laptops affected by this issue include the ThinkPad R60, R61, T60, T61, X60, X61 models with battery part numbers 42T4546, 42T4566, 92P1141, 42T4550, 42T4567, 42T4568, 92P1169, 92P1173, 93P5028, 93P5030.