MAN-000020-00 REV A
18
Basic Charge Cycle Operation
Figure 12: Typical charge cycle
– charge modes
The charge cycle for an opportunity charger consists of the first three modes on a
daily basis, with all five modes occurring on a weekly basis. A brief description of the
various modes is listed below and all modes are shown above in Figure 14.
Trickle:
Trickle mode is rarely used, as it is typically only encountered when a
battery is extremely discharged (average cell voltage of ~1.85 volts). This mode
charges the battery at a very low current (typically ~3%) until the battery voltage
rises above the trickle voltage setting.
CC:
CC mode is where the bulk of the battery charging occurs. This mode is the
Constant Current mode where the current is held steady at ~25% of the battery
capacity. This mode continues until the battery voltage rises to an average cell
voltage of ~2.4 volts (CV voltage), and the charge cycle then transitions into the CV
mode. This voltage is partially inflated above the true battery voltage due to the fact
that current is being pushed into the battery and the internal battery resistance
causes the battery voltage to artificially rise above the resting battery voltage.
CV:
CV mode ensures the battery rises to ~85% charged. This mode holds the
voltage of the charge steady at approximately 2.4 volts per cell and allows the
current into the battery to taper off as the battery voltage gets closer to holding itself
at the set voltage. The current will continue to taper off until it reaches the CV Finish
Current, at which time the charge cycle will terminate, unless finish is enabled. If
Finish is enabled, the current will continue to decrease until it reaches the Finish
Current, at which time the charger will transition into Finish mode.
