Lithium Polymer Battery Information and Safety
Lithium polymer (LiPo) batteries can be dangerous. They can produce smoke, heat, and
fire if they fail. Follow these rules to help prevent this:
- ***DON’T leave a LiPo battery unattended while charging or discharging.***
- DON’T charge the battery with anything other than an approved lithium polymer battery charger. (They will be available in lab and at the contest.)
- DON’T attempt to use or charge a battery that is:
- Visibly damaged.
- Bulging.
- Warm.
- Below 6.0V or above 8.4V.
- Not yours.
- DON’T allow the battery to become short-circuited during use or storage. Protect the terminals at all times. Don’t mount your electronics on a metal surface.
- DON’T attempt to modify the battery connectors.
- DON’T connect that battery directly to radio receiver. They are not designed to run at 7.4V, and there is a risk of connecting them backwards. Use the Arduino Nano Carrier or the Battery Eliminator Circuit (BEC) to supply 5V to the radio receiver.
- DON’T leave the battery connected to anything when not in use.
- If a battery appears visibly damaged or is bulging, hot, or outside of the specified voltage range, bring it to the course staff for safe disposal.
- If a battery is releasing white smoke, even a small amount, it is damaged and should be treated as an imminent fire hazard. If possible, place it outside on a concrete surface. Otherwise, place it in a bucket of sand and cover it with sand. (A bucket of sand will be available by the chargers.)
If a battery is on fire, don’t touch it or try to remove it from your robot.
2.007 LiPo Battery Specifications:
Configuration: 2S1P
Nominal Voltage: 7.4V
Usable Voltage Range: 6.0 – 8.4V
Capacity: 500mAh
Max Discharge: 15C (7.5A)
Internal Resistance: 0.14Ω
Things NOT to do to the LiPo Battery: