Erik Stafl, president of Stafl Systems, explains two primary purposes of a battery management system for a lithium-ion battery pack: providing safe and reliable operation. The Battery Management System takes a number of inputs, including voltage, temperatures, and current among other inputs. The BMS then runs algorithms to create a series of outputs including state of charge (the fuel gauge), the state of health, the safe operating envelope ™, and any faults the battery pack may have.
Erik then describes how the BMS is used in a multi-cell application, using a system diagram.
