Should Batteries Be Integrated into Your Machine?

The effort to minimize the need for diesel fuel and reduce the carbon footprint of heavy equipment will realistically require OEMs to target specific machine functions to be powered using other energy sources, rather than one big jump toward a fully electric machine. The power density of hydraulics is still a critical component of most machines, but there are some proven opportunities to utilize green energy, in particular lithium-ion batteries.

OEMs must put themselves into the shoes of the end user to truly understand machine and function usage in order to determine whether or not lithium-ion batteries are a sufficient power source for their machine. How are they using the machine? How long does it need to run for? How many hours per day will it be used?

Here are some key things to consider when deciding if lithium-ion batteries are a good fit for your machine:

1. Amount of Energy Needed for a Function – Several factors will be affected by how much power you need from a battery. If you are attempting to run the majority of functions in a cab off a LI battery, for example, you would need a much higher horsepower system. At this level, anyone performing maintenance or working on that battery will need additional certifications. Conversely, if you’re looking to just perform a specific function, such as the small crane pictured, may require less than 50V. Furthermore, the lower the voltage required, the smaller the battery you’ll need to find space for on your machine.
2. Battery Management Systems are a Necessity – Because lithium-ion cells have the potential to be overcharged or overly discharged, these batteries require protection circuity to ensure they are kept within their factory-approved safe operating limits. The majority of lithium-ion batteries have built in battery management systems (BMS) that monitor each of the cells within a battery that regulate their charge and discharge to maintain an equilibrium. Some of these systems can also communicate via CAN to further optimize machine communication and get real time battery life and usage information in front of operators.
3. Efficiency of Your Hydraulic Foundation – Incorporating batteries forces OEMs to take a closer look at the rest of the machine. As opposed to the simplicity of adding more fuel for a diesel-powered machine function, every electron is valued in a battery-operated system. The high degree of visibility of energy usage forces OEMs to investigate any inefficiencies in a hydraulic system in order to get the most out of the available power provided by its battery system. So the more efficient your hydraulic system is, the more working hours you will get out of a battery.