Project
| # | Title | Team Members | TA | Documents | Sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | Intelligent Battery Controller |
Christopher Jones Jed Boyer Joseph Roche |
Dean Biskup | design_document1.pdf final_paper1.pdf other1.pdf presentation1.pdf |
|
| Partners: Jed Boyer, Christopher Jones, Joseph Roche, jedmb2, chjones2, jproche2 Title: Intelligent Battery Controller Problem: In many recreational applications, current loads are applied to batteries without an engine or generator running to keep battery storage sufficiently charged. Examples of these loads are stereos, marine VHF radios, fishfinders, and lighting which put a large burden on the electrical system. This presents a problem for when it is time to finally start an engine. Existing systems do not have the ability to preserve enough charge to crank the engine. The problem that we are trying to solve is the preservation of this starting battery. Currently, most systems that do this task do not switch batteries automatically and must be switched manually. They are a physical switch. By maintaining enough power to start the engine, we can cause less headaches due to user error and make the process as easy as possible. Solution Overview: This system can control the flow of current and monitors voltage levels of two batteries. When voltage becomes too low on one battery to run external applications (i.e. boat lights, fishfinder, RV lights, etc.) the controller will be able to disconnect the battery and connect a secondary battery. Then, the controller will allow for this secondary battery to be used for external applications until the voltage reaches a set threshold above the level that is required to start an engine. There will be three physical switches that will allow the user to override the controller. We are planning on doing a proof of concept for our project. This will save on the cost of the components. Scalability should be possible with this in mind. Solution Components: 1: Microcontroller Board 1A: Power controller: Uses DC/DC converter to provide power from the batteries to the monitoring system. 1B: Monitoring system: Keeps track of voltages, starting currents, and which battery is currently primary or secondary. Uses Voltmeter, Ammeter. 1C: Battery switching control: Switches batteries when one falls below a threshold. 1D: Bluetooth control: Disconnects the batteries when a fob moves outside a set range to preserve battery life. 2: Relays to send signals from microcontroller to switching controls. 3: Connect/disconnect hardware to manage battery usage. 4: Series of override switches 4A: Complete system override: Allows batteries to be used as if no system is connected 4B: Starting override: Main switch for physically starting the engine after the system detects the voltage threshold is met. If the engine is not started within a certain time, the controller will disconnect the batteries again to preserve them. 4C: Bluetooth override For if bluetooth device is lost or not in use. Criteria for Success: The device we are looking to create would: -Monitor the voltage of a primary battery and switch to a secondary when the primary was depleted. -After the voltage of the secondary battery dropped to a level that was still able to start an engine, the batteries would both be disconnected. -The system should still be able to start an engine (preserve enough power to do so). -With the engine running, the system would charge both batteries simultaneously -The device should be able to preserve the health of the batteries by switching which one is primary and which is secondary. Most of the batteries used in this application are Deep Cycle, meaning shallower depths of charge are better for their health. Our system would split this benefit to each battery. Contingency: In the event of a campus shutdown, we should still be able to complete this project. The three of us are able to meet up easily and complete the assignment. |
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