Some Background Information
·
Sealed maintenance-free batteries as used on motorcycles are
very different from similarly described batteries as used in automobiles,
because their cell construction employs separators of glass-wool which reduce
the amount of space available for battery acid. The acid therefore has to compensate for it’s lesser volume by an
increase in density and concentration, resulting in a set of electrochemical
parameters rather different from those of conventional or automobile type
sealed batteries. Because the acid
these “MF” motorcycle batteries require is “special” & not standard battery
acid, & so as to avoid errors, the special acid is always delivered
together with each battery in a specially configured sealed pack which has to
be fitted to the entry ports on top of the battery so as to slowly fill the
battery at a controlled rate in order to avoid air bubble entrapment. Entry of the acid into the battery is
normally done only when the battery is required for installation on the
motorcycle, as the stockist cannot be sure when the next demand for a
particular battery may occur. Having
allowed the acid to trickle from the special pack into the battery (about
twenty minutes), the agent must then allow the battery to stand for at least
thirty minutes to allow the electrochemical reactions (that create the charge
within the battery) to take place. It
is then advisable to give the battery a preliminary charge for thirty
minutes. The delay implicit in this
procedure each time a battery is delivered to an end user is very frustrating
for both seller & customer, & inevitably results in parts of the
correct commissioning procedure being shortened or even omitted
completely. This then inevitably
results in a warranty claim on the battery, or at best, a much shorter service
life.
·
The OptiMate PRO-8 resolves these difficulties by allowing
the battery dealer or distributor to keep a selection of the fastest selling
batteries always perfectly prepared & fully charged for immediate delivery
without any time pressure on seller or buyer.
Because 8 batteries, (each one may be quite different from the others),
can be connected simultaneously to the one charger, each battery to it’s own
independent automatic charging programme, the battery dealer needs only to
check each evening which batteries were sold off the PRO-8 that day, and to
fill with acid & connect to the charger new replacements for those
sold. They will in turn then be ready
for delivery to possible customers by the next morning & may be left
connected for days, weeks, even months, until a customer requires that
particular battery. Meantime the
circuit will automatically maintain the battery in perfect status. The seller must only check that the green
LED indicates the battery is “O.K.” once initially charged. Batteries receive the green LED “O.K.” only
once the circuit has conducted three automatic checks:
·
That the battery has no internal short-circuit.
·
That the battery is truly fully charged.
·
That the battery is able to retain adequate charge after the
maintenance mode charging input has been interrupted for 45 minutes.
·
The genius of the OptiMate PRO-8 is that it performs these
diagnostic feats without involving the user in any decisions or requiring the
user to possess any technical know-how.
A quick glance at the series of four different-coloured
status-indicating LEDs, traffic light style, is all that’s required.
·
Of course the OptiMate PRO-8 is also perfect for
conventional motorcycle and other types of lead acid batteries including
starter & deep-cycle type batteries.
And the batteries don’t have to be new thanks to a special automatic
diagnostic circuit independently administered on each of the 8 charging output
circuits, the OptiMate PRO-8 determines whether the battery is already deep
discharged or sulphated and automatically raises it’s charging voltage on that circuit
to as high as 20 Volts in order to overcome the battery’s abnormal resistance
to accepting the charge. In this way
many batteries which would otherwise become irrecoverable through winter-long
neglect are recoverable and recharged automatically by the OptiMate PRO-8,
which is therefore ideal for overnight or prolonged maintenance of used
batteries in vehicle showrooms & workshops, for the over-winter maintenance
of customers’ batteries, “old-timers” & special collectors’ vehicles.