Search Results (3)

A compact electronic circuit capable of performing Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) on either single Lithium-ion cells or modules formed by the series of two cells is presented. The proposed device, named Double Cell Management Unit (DCMU), constitutes an important improvement to a recently proposed cell management unit, which combined EIS acquisition functions with a multichannel sensor interface compatible with thermistors, strain-gauges and moisture detectors. The proposed circuit maintains the versatility of the previous version and significantly extends the EIS frequency range, allowing vector impedance measurements from 0.1 Hz to about 15 kHz. The capability of handling both single Lithium-ion cells or series of two cells is obtained by adding a few external components to the previous version. This also allowed increasing the stimulation current to a maximum amplitude of 200 mA, resulting in improved resolution. Experiments consisting in EIS acquisition performed on batteries of different capacity at different temperatures and states of charge are described. Estimated impedance resolution (standard deviation) is 20 μΩ obtained at 1 kHz with a stimulation current of 100 mA amplitude. Full article

Civil infrastructure worldwide is subject to factors such as aging and deterioration. Structural health monitoring (SHM) can be used to assess the impact of these processes on structural performance. SHM demands have evolved from routine monitoring to real-time and autonomous assessment. One of the frontiers in achieving effective SHM systems has been the use of wireless smart sensors (WSSs), which are attractive compared to wired sensors, due to their flexibility of use, lower costs, and ease of long-term deployment. Most WSSs use accelerometers to collect global dynamic vibration data. However, obtaining local behaviors in a structure using measurands such as strain may also be desirable. While wireless strain sensors have previously been developed by some researchers, there is still a need for a high sensitivity wireless strain sensor that fully meets the general demands for monitoring large-scale civil infrastructure. In this paper, a framework for synchronized wireless high-fidelity acceleration and strain sensing, which is commonly termed multimetric sensing in the literature, is proposed. The framework is implemented on the Xnode, a next-generation wireless smart sensor platform, and integrates with the strain sensor for strain acquisition. An application of the multimetric sensing framework is illustrated for total displacement estimation. Finally, the potential of the proposed framework integrated with vision-based measurement systems for multi-point displacement estimation with camera-motion compensation is demonstrated. The proposed approach is verified experimentally, showing the potential of the developed framework for various SHM applications. Full article

To better asses the ageing and to reduce the hazards involved in the use of Lithium-Ion Batteries, multi-measurand monitoring units and strategies are urged. In this paper, a Cell Management Unit, based on the SENSIPLUS chip, a recently introduced multichannel, multi-mode sensor interface, is described. SENSIPLUS is a single System on a Chip combined with a reduced number of external components, resulting in a highly miniaturized device, built on 20 × 8 mm² printed circuit board. Thanks to SENSIPLUS’ versatility, the proposed system is capable of performing direct measurements (EIS, cell voltage) on the cell it is applied to, and reading different kinds of sensors. The SENSIPLUS versatile digital communication interface, combined with a digital isolator, enable connection of several devices to a single bus for parallel monitoring a large number of cells connected in series. Experiments performed by connecting the proposed system to a commercial Lithium-Ion Battery and to capacitive and resistive sensors are described. In particular, the capability of measuring the cell internal impedance with a resolution of 120 μΩ is demonstrated. Full article