[ TBOS TECH ] Flexible Input and Configurable Output Voltages

Today’s battery packs have pre-defined input and output voltages. To change either, you must redesign the solution and manufacture new hardware. This is one of the reasons why it’s so difficult, expensive, and time-consuming to develop electrified equipment.

But TBOS’s software-defined battery system makes this challenge a thing of the past. 

With TBOS, you can set any target output voltage for an application. No battery pack on the market offer such a feature as our technology. The feature gives product developers a lot of flexibility while shortening the development cycle and drastically reducing development costs.

You don’t have to custom design a battery pack to meet specific output requirements. You can simply integrate our battery solution, configure parameters like output voltage and charging voltage on the screen, and the product is ready to go.

So how does it work?

We call this technology the switched power path architecture (SPPA). The switches on the power line allow operators to connect and disconnect each cell via a software interface. The number of cells connected in series will define the battery's output voltage. 

Simply by adjusting the number of cells connected to the power line, operators can change the output voltage on the fly without opening a piece of equipment and swapping out the battery pack, which is a time-consuming and labor-intensive task.

The theory sounds simple. So why wasn’t this done before?

Switches in a power path typically cause energy loss and affect a battery pack’s efficiency. But our patented design leverages the latest semiconductor technology to minimize conduction losses. As such, it works well for any application with reasonable C requirements.

And how do we support varying input voltage?

Each battery module can rearrange its cell configuration automatically to maintain its voltage within a consistent range. This process also works in reverse to recharge the pack. Therefore, you can use any constant voltage power supply to charge the system.

For example, if you plug the battery into a 48V source, the system’s voltage will automatically be set to under 48V to charge it. We can implement current limiting with an internal or external component for specific applications, which the operator can bypass to keep energy loss to a minimum. 

Since battery packs driven by TBOS can be charged from any source and output any voltage, operators can stock just a few models to power multiple types of equipment. This helps streamline supply chain management, increase efficiency, and improve cash flow because of the lower inventory level.