Battery Pack Version 2
Improvements:
- 17.76Wh battery
- 66.5mm x 132mm x 9.7mm
- LED battery indicator at the back
- Housing and case are two separate pieces for ease of assembly and repair
- less complex
- thumb grip for ease of pulling in and out of slot
Disadvantages:
- The back of the battery is not flush with the module
- capacity is still limited and not within the legal flying limit**
- shell is thin to accommodate the most capacity
- The rear stock cover needs to be modified along with other parts of the original frame to fit correctly (will most likely need to be replaced with a 3D printed chassis)
- tolerance issues with the frame rails
- The battery pack can only fit one way due to the Z asymmetry of the rails
- The cage is flimsy and warps out of the shell (I am guessing that the added PCB and cells will be enough to stiffen the frame)
**The FAA is unclear if two separate batteries carried by one device are considered one size.
Further development:
- I need the physical expansion bay module on hand to test Z clearance with the laptop. I also need to check if replacing the stock frame with a modified one is possible.
- Currently, the dimensions and circuits for the battery pack and the expansion module have yet to be specified. The most that has been discussed has been from @Aaron_Baff.
- The battery cells used to get the Wh estimate are from here (Model No. LP703051). I’m considering having a custom pack made to increase capacity further.
- I’ve been looking at the USB PD standard to see if the theoretical 14.8v the pack can supply will be adequate for the 45w spec.
- Looking at routes for development and ways of distributing products of this type. Thus far, the plan is to keep everything open source (it makes no sense to do anything else). 3D printing the cage, along with a list of parts for assembly and instruction, seems the way I’m going to go with it. Along with having assembly kits and/or complete units available. Currently, the battery shell and cage are hard to print; I’m going to work on optimizing the design for printing once a final design has been reached.
I would love to hear feedback (criticisms, improvements, thoughts, ideas, etc.)
Some more photos of version 2
note: the USB C plug is not designed yet but does fit within the current dimensions
