HOBBICO IS SELLING LiFe Source 6.6-volt, 1100 mAh 10C
receiver battery packs. This Lithium-Iron-Phosphate LiFePO4
technology makes for a lightweight, high-energy, high-density
battery with more power than Ni-Cd or NiMH receiver batteries can
provide.
It is claimed that no regulators are required. While LiFe Source
packs have a nominal voltage of 6.6 volts, it can be as high as 7.2
immediately off of a charge.
Most manufacturers are okay with 6.0 volts for airborne packs.
Futaba says no to this higher voltage. Is that company merely being
conservative? I don’t know about the other manufacturers.
I do know that hard, fast numbers in these cases are difficult to
pin down. I also know that higher voltage is generally more stressful
in most electronics applications that are designed for a specific
voltage.
So how much is too much? I sought the advice of Tony Stillman
of Radio South, and following is his reply.
“I am a little concerned as well, but many people have used this
LiFePO4 chemistry without any regulators. I know that some servos
don’t like 6 volts, so they should not be used with these packs. The
receivers should handle the voltage without
problem.”
(Editor’s note: Using the LiFe packs
from Hobbico has been a success so far in
30- to 90-size helicopters and aerobatic
models.)
Staying Charged for Years: You might
have been going to the same RC meets for
years, but have you noticed that one person
who always seems to be there to hold down
the frequency impound?
At the On Top of the World RC Flyers
events in Ocala, Florida, that is Adella
Sherman. She is the wife of club member
Sid Sherman (who was a World War II PBY
crewman).
I asked Adella how long she has been
September 2010 83
Red Scholefield | redscho@The Battery Clinic bellsouth.net
Is a two-cell Lithium battery too much for your receiver/servos?
The Super Turbo II syncs with a PC and offers command-status
information that can be saved. This is an Ni-Cd charge curve that
Red completed during testing.
The Super Turbo II charger works with almost all battery
chemistries. This is one Li-Poly voltage/current charge curve test
that showed an anomaly.
Dedicated club volunteers deserve our everlasting gratitude—and
a free lunch. This impound lady keeps us flying safely; thank you,
Adella Sherman.
The Dymond Modelsport Super Turbo II
has a carbon-fiberish look that sets it apart
from the rest at the field. It’s offered at a
great price in either an AC or DC version.
Balance boards are available.
Also included in this column:
• Modeling’s leading ladies
• Dymond’s new Super Turbo II
• What is your club doing to
accommodate electric flight?
• Breakthrough technologies
and challenges
09sig3x_00MSTRPG.QXD 7/22/10 9:12 AM Page 83
84 MODEL AVIATION
handling impound duties. She replied that
she offered her services for Orville and
Wilbur at that little meet they had at Kitty
Hawk, North Carolina, but that they didn’t
need it.
Adella is the kind of person who makes
this hobby what it is: fun! Everyone should
be particularly nice to the impound lady.
The first thing you might notice when you
unpack the new Dymond Modelsport Super
Turbo II charger is the unusual finish on the
case. The carbon-fiberish look sets it apart
from the rest of the units at the field.
I was curious about what the material is,
so I asked the people at Dymond
Modelsport. Following is their answer.
“The design of the housing can be called
Carbon Look plastic. The same technique is
used by Graupner and some other
manufacturers for electronic devices like
chargers, amplifiers or phone housings.”
The configuration of the Super Turbo II
is basically standard for today’s four-button
chargers. Identification on the programming
buttons is molded into the case and can be
difficult to read from certain angles.
But that is no problem, since the layout
is the same as on any other four-button
charger. After awhile, the labels will
become so familiar that you might not need
to read them. And connections are on the
right-side panel, where they do not clutter
the working face of the charger.
For those who want to charge both at
home and at the field, the Super Turbo II is
sold in two versions: 12 volts only and 110-
220 AC/DC. The AC cord plugs into the
charger, so you don’t have to drag it along
to the field. The DC power cord uses a
regular plug, such as that for your
transmitter charger, so it can be removed
and not congest your charging bench.
In addition to the four adapter boards
(you can specify which ones you want when
you order the charger) that will
accommodate nearly any balancing
connector (except the FMA Direct
Revolectrix) found on Lithium batteries,
this charger provides an “octopus” with
seven power connectors. Included are those
for transmitter, receiver, glow driver, Deans
Ultra, and GWS.
A pocket-size, 15-page instruction book,
written in understandable English, covers
the operation of the Super Turbo II and
includes a Program Flow Chart for Li-Poly,
LiFe (A123), Li-Ion, Ni-Cd, NiMH, and
Lead-Acid batteries in various modes,
available working in fast, balance, storage,
or cycle charge options. Warning and error
messages are delineated on the last page.
This charger also includes a storage
function for Lithium-based batteries and a
modest discharge capability, up to 1 amp.
Charge rates as high as 5 amps (or 75 watts)
can be programmed into any of the five
memories, allowing the user to call them up
without having to re-enter the parameters.
You have the choice between balancecharging
or not with Lithium packs. The
Super Turbo II also allows the user to cycle
the packs as many as three times, to check
or confirm their capacity.
A plot of the charge profile for Ni-Cds
and Li-Polys showed no surprises and
followed the conventional protocol for most
hobby chargers. A screen shot shows the
classic Ni-Cd charge curve, where the
voltage is sampled
to determine where
the peak cutoff is
initiated. Cutoff
sensitivity can be
selected from 5 to
20 millivolts per
cell.
The voltage and
current profile for a
2-cell Li-Poly is
shown in a different
screen capture. It
appears that the
little dip in voltage
denoted by the
question mark
signifies that the
4.2-volt limit is hit.
The current is then adjusted accordingly, to
bring the voltage slowly back to the 4.2
level where the charge is terminated.
The compact Super Turbo II has all the
features necessary to maintain the health of
any battery pack. It has a 0.1- to 5.0-amp
charge capacity and can accommodate a
one- to six-cell Li-Poly pack, a one- to 15-
cell Ni-Cd or NiMH pack, or one- to 10-cell
Lead Acid pack.
The charger comes with one balancing
board to suit the one- to six-cell connector
of your choice, with three others available.
The full set of four balancing boards costs
$15.
The list price for the Super Turbo II is
$149.95, but it is discounted on the Dymond
Modelsport Web site to a reasonable $79.99
plus shipping and handling. A DC-only
version is only $59.99 plus shipping and
handling, making it an excellent buy if you
already have DC available at your charging
bench.
First-Class Charging Station: Following is
a piece that Walt Thyng posted on an online
forum.
“Awhile back I asked for input on how
to build a club charging station. Following
Above: The Fox Valley Aero Club goes
first class for electric fliers. Does your
club have a charging station that is this
high-tech? Conveniences such as these
make electric-power aeromodeling even
safer.
Left: Solar-powered flight becomes a
reality with the Solar Impulse. It flew
successfully over Payerne, Switzerland,
for 87 minutes, with a cruise and flight
speed of nearly 30 mph.
09sig3x_00MSTRPG.QXD 7/22/10 9:12 AM Page 84
is what the Fox Valley Aero Club in St.
Charles, Il. (my club) did.
“The ‘Juice Bar’ (my wife came up
with the name and it stuck) comprises
nine charging stations powered by three
Iota DLS 55 power supplies. The 12v
lugs are 3/8 threaded brass tubing with a
3.2mm hole for banana plugs. This
covers just about any type of charger
power lead requirements.
“Because there are some flyers with
special needs, each station has 110 AC as
well. Each group of three stations has its
own power supply and on/off switch so
that we don’t have to run the whole
system all the time. The entire system is
controlled by a master timer which turns
it on and off at the beginning and end of
the day.”
Vaporware Department: So I am not
accused of keeping you in the dark about
the latest, I have a couple of items for
you to ponder. Following is a piece from
the MIT Technology Review, titled
“Flexible Sheets Capture Energy from
Movement.”
“Material could charge portable
electronics with every step. Researchers
at Princeton University have created a
flexible material that produces record
amounts of energy when stressed.
“The researchers say the material
could be incorporated into the soles of
86 MODEL AVIATION
shoes to power portable electronics, or even
placed on a heart patient’s lungs to recharge
a pacemaker as he/she breathes.”
Maybe you can use your imagination to
apply that to aeromodeling.
Following is an article by Darren Quick,
titled “Lithium-air batteries offer three times
the energy density,” that was featured on
Gizmag.com.
“Lithium-air battery technology looks to
have a big future. With the potential of
providing energy densities up to three times
that of the conventional lithium-ion batteries
found in just about every portable consumer
electronics device going around (not to
mention the incoming wave of electric
vehicles), many companies, including IBM
and General Motors are pursuing work on
lithium-air batteries.
“Now researchers at MIT [Massachusetts
Institute of Technology] have made a
breakthrough that could help make the
commercial development of lightweight
rechargeable batteries a reality. …
“Unfortunately lithium-air batteries
haven’t become a commercial reality
because there has been a lack of
understanding of what kinds of electrode
materials could promote the
electrochemical reactions that take place in
these batteries. …
“The MIT team admits there are still a
number of issues that need to be addressed
before lithium-air batteries become a
practical commercial product. …
“But the biggest issue is developing a
system that keeps its power through a
sufficient number of charging and
discharging cycles for it to be useful in
vehicles or electronic devices.
“Researchers also need to look into
details of the chemistry of the charging and
discharging processes, to see what
compounds are produced and where, and
how they react with other compounds in the
system. …
“While some companies working on
lithium-air batteries have said they see it as
a 10-year development program, [MIT
associate professor of mechanical
engineering and materials science] Shao-
Horn says it is too early to predict how long
it may take to reach commercialization.
“‘It’s a very promising area, but there
are many science and engineering
challenges to be overcome,’ she says. ‘If it
truly demonstrates two to three times the
energy density’ of today’s lithium-ion
batteries, she says, the likely first
applications will be in portable electronics
such as computers and cell phones, which
are high-value items, and only later would
be applied to vehicles once the costs are
reduced.”
There must be no RC fliers at MIT.
Also covered on Gizmag.com, the
Solar Impulse HB-SIA took to the air for
the first time, over Payerne, Switzerland.
The solar-powered, man-carrying craft
reached a 4,000-foot altitude and
performed a variety of maneuvers to test
its control systems. It was airborne for 87
minutes before landing safely. The
following is from the article.
“With the wingspan of a Boeing 747 and
the weight of a car, never before has an
airplane as large and light as the Solar
Impulse flown before. It lifted off at a speed
no faster than 45 kmh and, once airborne,
completed a series of turns by gently tilting
its wings that measure 63 meters (208 feet)
from tip to tip.”
You know, I think that one will work for
us—at least here in the Sunshine State. MA
Sources:
Hobbico
(217) 398-8970
www.hobbico.com
Dymond Modelsport
(858) 220-4004
www.rc-dymond.com
Gizmag.com
www.gizmag.com
The Battery Clinic
12219 NW 9th Ln.
Newberry FL 32669
www.hangtimes.com/redsbatteryclinic.html
09sig3x_00MSTRPG.QXD 7/22/10 9:12 AM Page 86
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/09
Page Numbers: 83,84,86
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/09
Page Numbers: 83,84,86
HOBBICO IS SELLING LiFe Source 6.6-volt, 1100 mAh 10C
receiver battery packs. This Lithium-Iron-Phosphate LiFePO4
technology makes for a lightweight, high-energy, high-density
battery with more power than Ni-Cd or NiMH receiver batteries can
provide.
It is claimed that no regulators are required. While LiFe Source
packs have a nominal voltage of 6.6 volts, it can be as high as 7.2
immediately off of a charge.
Most manufacturers are okay with 6.0 volts for airborne packs.
Futaba says no to this higher voltage. Is that company merely being
conservative? I don’t know about the other manufacturers.
I do know that hard, fast numbers in these cases are difficult to
pin down. I also know that higher voltage is generally more stressful
in most electronics applications that are designed for a specific
voltage.
So how much is too much? I sought the advice of Tony Stillman
of Radio South, and following is his reply.
“I am a little concerned as well, but many people have used this
LiFePO4 chemistry without any regulators. I know that some servos
don’t like 6 volts, so they should not be used with these packs. The
receivers should handle the voltage without
problem.”
(Editor’s note: Using the LiFe packs
from Hobbico has been a success so far in
30- to 90-size helicopters and aerobatic
models.)
Staying Charged for Years: You might
have been going to the same RC meets for
years, but have you noticed that one person
who always seems to be there to hold down
the frequency impound?
At the On Top of the World RC Flyers
events in Ocala, Florida, that is Adella
Sherman. She is the wife of club member
Sid Sherman (who was a World War II PBY
crewman).
I asked Adella how long she has been
September 2010 83
Red Scholefield | redscho@The Battery Clinic bellsouth.net
Is a two-cell Lithium battery too much for your receiver/servos?
The Super Turbo II syncs with a PC and offers command-status
information that can be saved. This is an Ni-Cd charge curve that
Red completed during testing.
The Super Turbo II charger works with almost all battery
chemistries. This is one Li-Poly voltage/current charge curve test
that showed an anomaly.
Dedicated club volunteers deserve our everlasting gratitude—and
a free lunch. This impound lady keeps us flying safely; thank you,
Adella Sherman.
The Dymond Modelsport Super Turbo II
has a carbon-fiberish look that sets it apart
from the rest at the field. It’s offered at a
great price in either an AC or DC version.
Balance boards are available.
Also included in this column:
• Modeling’s leading ladies
• Dymond’s new Super Turbo II
• What is your club doing to
accommodate electric flight?
• Breakthrough technologies
and challenges
09sig3x_00MSTRPG.QXD 7/22/10 9:12 AM Page 83
84 MODEL AVIATION
handling impound duties. She replied that
she offered her services for Orville and
Wilbur at that little meet they had at Kitty
Hawk, North Carolina, but that they didn’t
need it.
Adella is the kind of person who makes
this hobby what it is: fun! Everyone should
be particularly nice to the impound lady.
The first thing you might notice when you
unpack the new Dymond Modelsport Super
Turbo II charger is the unusual finish on the
case. The carbon-fiberish look sets it apart
from the rest of the units at the field.
I was curious about what the material is,
so I asked the people at Dymond
Modelsport. Following is their answer.
“The design of the housing can be called
Carbon Look plastic. The same technique is
used by Graupner and some other
manufacturers for electronic devices like
chargers, amplifiers or phone housings.”
The configuration of the Super Turbo II
is basically standard for today’s four-button
chargers. Identification on the programming
buttons is molded into the case and can be
difficult to read from certain angles.
But that is no problem, since the layout
is the same as on any other four-button
charger. After awhile, the labels will
become so familiar that you might not need
to read them. And connections are on the
right-side panel, where they do not clutter
the working face of the charger.
For those who want to charge both at
home and at the field, the Super Turbo II is
sold in two versions: 12 volts only and 110-
220 AC/DC. The AC cord plugs into the
charger, so you don’t have to drag it along
to the field. The DC power cord uses a
regular plug, such as that for your
transmitter charger, so it can be removed
and not congest your charging bench.
In addition to the four adapter boards
(you can specify which ones you want when
you order the charger) that will
accommodate nearly any balancing
connector (except the FMA Direct
Revolectrix) found on Lithium batteries,
this charger provides an “octopus” with
seven power connectors. Included are those
for transmitter, receiver, glow driver, Deans
Ultra, and GWS.
A pocket-size, 15-page instruction book,
written in understandable English, covers
the operation of the Super Turbo II and
includes a Program Flow Chart for Li-Poly,
LiFe (A123), Li-Ion, Ni-Cd, NiMH, and
Lead-Acid batteries in various modes,
available working in fast, balance, storage,
or cycle charge options. Warning and error
messages are delineated on the last page.
This charger also includes a storage
function for Lithium-based batteries and a
modest discharge capability, up to 1 amp.
Charge rates as high as 5 amps (or 75 watts)
can be programmed into any of the five
memories, allowing the user to call them up
without having to re-enter the parameters.
You have the choice between balancecharging
or not with Lithium packs. The
Super Turbo II also allows the user to cycle
the packs as many as three times, to check
or confirm their capacity.
A plot of the charge profile for Ni-Cds
and Li-Polys showed no surprises and
followed the conventional protocol for most
hobby chargers. A screen shot shows the
classic Ni-Cd charge curve, where the
voltage is sampled
to determine where
the peak cutoff is
initiated. Cutoff
sensitivity can be
selected from 5 to
20 millivolts per
cell.
The voltage and
current profile for a
2-cell Li-Poly is
shown in a different
screen capture. It
appears that the
little dip in voltage
denoted by the
question mark
signifies that the
4.2-volt limit is hit.
The current is then adjusted accordingly, to
bring the voltage slowly back to the 4.2
level where the charge is terminated.
The compact Super Turbo II has all the
features necessary to maintain the health of
any battery pack. It has a 0.1- to 5.0-amp
charge capacity and can accommodate a
one- to six-cell Li-Poly pack, a one- to 15-
cell Ni-Cd or NiMH pack, or one- to 10-cell
Lead Acid pack.
The charger comes with one balancing
board to suit the one- to six-cell connector
of your choice, with three others available.
The full set of four balancing boards costs
$15.
The list price for the Super Turbo II is
$149.95, but it is discounted on the Dymond
Modelsport Web site to a reasonable $79.99
plus shipping and handling. A DC-only
version is only $59.99 plus shipping and
handling, making it an excellent buy if you
already have DC available at your charging
bench.
First-Class Charging Station: Following is
a piece that Walt Thyng posted on an online
forum.
“Awhile back I asked for input on how
to build a club charging station. Following
Above: The Fox Valley Aero Club goes
first class for electric fliers. Does your
club have a charging station that is this
high-tech? Conveniences such as these
make electric-power aeromodeling even
safer.
Left: Solar-powered flight becomes a
reality with the Solar Impulse. It flew
successfully over Payerne, Switzerland,
for 87 minutes, with a cruise and flight
speed of nearly 30 mph.
09sig3x_00MSTRPG.QXD 7/22/10 9:12 AM Page 84
is what the Fox Valley Aero Club in St.
Charles, Il. (my club) did.
“The ‘Juice Bar’ (my wife came up
with the name and it stuck) comprises
nine charging stations powered by three
Iota DLS 55 power supplies. The 12v
lugs are 3/8 threaded brass tubing with a
3.2mm hole for banana plugs. This
covers just about any type of charger
power lead requirements.
“Because there are some flyers with
special needs, each station has 110 AC as
well. Each group of three stations has its
own power supply and on/off switch so
that we don’t have to run the whole
system all the time. The entire system is
controlled by a master timer which turns
it on and off at the beginning and end of
the day.”
Vaporware Department: So I am not
accused of keeping you in the dark about
the latest, I have a couple of items for
you to ponder. Following is a piece from
the MIT Technology Review, titled
“Flexible Sheets Capture Energy from
Movement.”
“Material could charge portable
electronics with every step. Researchers
at Princeton University have created a
flexible material that produces record
amounts of energy when stressed.
“The researchers say the material
could be incorporated into the soles of
86 MODEL AVIATION
shoes to power portable electronics, or even
placed on a heart patient’s lungs to recharge
a pacemaker as he/she breathes.”
Maybe you can use your imagination to
apply that to aeromodeling.
Following is an article by Darren Quick,
titled “Lithium-air batteries offer three times
the energy density,” that was featured on
Gizmag.com.
“Lithium-air battery technology looks to
have a big future. With the potential of
providing energy densities up to three times
that of the conventional lithium-ion batteries
found in just about every portable consumer
electronics device going around (not to
mention the incoming wave of electric
vehicles), many companies, including IBM
and General Motors are pursuing work on
lithium-air batteries.
“Now researchers at MIT [Massachusetts
Institute of Technology] have made a
breakthrough that could help make the
commercial development of lightweight
rechargeable batteries a reality. …
“Unfortunately lithium-air batteries
haven’t become a commercial reality
because there has been a lack of
understanding of what kinds of electrode
materials could promote the
electrochemical reactions that take place in
these batteries. …
“The MIT team admits there are still a
number of issues that need to be addressed
before lithium-air batteries become a
practical commercial product. …
“But the biggest issue is developing a
system that keeps its power through a
sufficient number of charging and
discharging cycles for it to be useful in
vehicles or electronic devices.
“Researchers also need to look into
details of the chemistry of the charging and
discharging processes, to see what
compounds are produced and where, and
how they react with other compounds in the
system. …
“While some companies working on
lithium-air batteries have said they see it as
a 10-year development program, [MIT
associate professor of mechanical
engineering and materials science] Shao-
Horn says it is too early to predict how long
it may take to reach commercialization.
“‘It’s a very promising area, but there
are many science and engineering
challenges to be overcome,’ she says. ‘If it
truly demonstrates two to three times the
energy density’ of today’s lithium-ion
batteries, she says, the likely first
applications will be in portable electronics
such as computers and cell phones, which
are high-value items, and only later would
be applied to vehicles once the costs are
reduced.”
There must be no RC fliers at MIT.
Also covered on Gizmag.com, the
Solar Impulse HB-SIA took to the air for
the first time, over Payerne, Switzerland.
The solar-powered, man-carrying craft
reached a 4,000-foot altitude and
performed a variety of maneuvers to test
its control systems. It was airborne for 87
minutes before landing safely. The
following is from the article.
“With the wingspan of a Boeing 747 and
the weight of a car, never before has an
airplane as large and light as the Solar
Impulse flown before. It lifted off at a speed
no faster than 45 kmh and, once airborne,
completed a series of turns by gently tilting
its wings that measure 63 meters (208 feet)
from tip to tip.”
You know, I think that one will work for
us—at least here in the Sunshine State. MA
Sources:
Hobbico
(217) 398-8970
www.hobbico.com
Dymond Modelsport
(858) 220-4004
www.rc-dymond.com
Gizmag.com
www.gizmag.com
The Battery Clinic
12219 NW 9th Ln.
Newberry FL 32669
www.hangtimes.com/redsbatteryclinic.html
09sig3x_00MSTRPG.QXD 7/22/10 9:12 AM Page 86
Edition: Model Aviation - 2010/09
Page Numbers: 83,84,86
HOBBICO IS SELLING LiFe Source 6.6-volt, 1100 mAh 10C
receiver battery packs. This Lithium-Iron-Phosphate LiFePO4
technology makes for a lightweight, high-energy, high-density
battery with more power than Ni-Cd or NiMH receiver batteries can
provide.
It is claimed that no regulators are required. While LiFe Source
packs have a nominal voltage of 6.6 volts, it can be as high as 7.2
immediately off of a charge.
Most manufacturers are okay with 6.0 volts for airborne packs.
Futaba says no to this higher voltage. Is that company merely being
conservative? I don’t know about the other manufacturers.
I do know that hard, fast numbers in these cases are difficult to
pin down. I also know that higher voltage is generally more stressful
in most electronics applications that are designed for a specific
voltage.
So how much is too much? I sought the advice of Tony Stillman
of Radio South, and following is his reply.
“I am a little concerned as well, but many people have used this
LiFePO4 chemistry without any regulators. I know that some servos
don’t like 6 volts, so they should not be used with these packs. The
receivers should handle the voltage without
problem.”
(Editor’s note: Using the LiFe packs
from Hobbico has been a success so far in
30- to 90-size helicopters and aerobatic
models.)
Staying Charged for Years: You might
have been going to the same RC meets for
years, but have you noticed that one person
who always seems to be there to hold down
the frequency impound?
At the On Top of the World RC Flyers
events in Ocala, Florida, that is Adella
Sherman. She is the wife of club member
Sid Sherman (who was a World War II PBY
crewman).
I asked Adella how long she has been
September 2010 83
Red Scholefield | redscho@The Battery Clinic bellsouth.net
Is a two-cell Lithium battery too much for your receiver/servos?
The Super Turbo II syncs with a PC and offers command-status
information that can be saved. This is an Ni-Cd charge curve that
Red completed during testing.
The Super Turbo II charger works with almost all battery
chemistries. This is one Li-Poly voltage/current charge curve test
that showed an anomaly.
Dedicated club volunteers deserve our everlasting gratitude—and
a free lunch. This impound lady keeps us flying safely; thank you,
Adella Sherman.
The Dymond Modelsport Super Turbo II
has a carbon-fiberish look that sets it apart
from the rest at the field. It’s offered at a
great price in either an AC or DC version.
Balance boards are available.
Also included in this column:
• Modeling’s leading ladies
• Dymond’s new Super Turbo II
• What is your club doing to
accommodate electric flight?
• Breakthrough technologies
and challenges
09sig3x_00MSTRPG.QXD 7/22/10 9:12 AM Page 83
84 MODEL AVIATION
handling impound duties. She replied that
she offered her services for Orville and
Wilbur at that little meet they had at Kitty
Hawk, North Carolina, but that they didn’t
need it.
Adella is the kind of person who makes
this hobby what it is: fun! Everyone should
be particularly nice to the impound lady.
The first thing you might notice when you
unpack the new Dymond Modelsport Super
Turbo II charger is the unusual finish on the
case. The carbon-fiberish look sets it apart
from the rest of the units at the field.
I was curious about what the material is,
so I asked the people at Dymond
Modelsport. Following is their answer.
“The design of the housing can be called
Carbon Look plastic. The same technique is
used by Graupner and some other
manufacturers for electronic devices like
chargers, amplifiers or phone housings.”
The configuration of the Super Turbo II
is basically standard for today’s four-button
chargers. Identification on the programming
buttons is molded into the case and can be
difficult to read from certain angles.
But that is no problem, since the layout
is the same as on any other four-button
charger. After awhile, the labels will
become so familiar that you might not need
to read them. And connections are on the
right-side panel, where they do not clutter
the working face of the charger.
For those who want to charge both at
home and at the field, the Super Turbo II is
sold in two versions: 12 volts only and 110-
220 AC/DC. The AC cord plugs into the
charger, so you don’t have to drag it along
to the field. The DC power cord uses a
regular plug, such as that for your
transmitter charger, so it can be removed
and not congest your charging bench.
In addition to the four adapter boards
(you can specify which ones you want when
you order the charger) that will
accommodate nearly any balancing
connector (except the FMA Direct
Revolectrix) found on Lithium batteries,
this charger provides an “octopus” with
seven power connectors. Included are those
for transmitter, receiver, glow driver, Deans
Ultra, and GWS.
A pocket-size, 15-page instruction book,
written in understandable English, covers
the operation of the Super Turbo II and
includes a Program Flow Chart for Li-Poly,
LiFe (A123), Li-Ion, Ni-Cd, NiMH, and
Lead-Acid batteries in various modes,
available working in fast, balance, storage,
or cycle charge options. Warning and error
messages are delineated on the last page.
This charger also includes a storage
function for Lithium-based batteries and a
modest discharge capability, up to 1 amp.
Charge rates as high as 5 amps (or 75 watts)
can be programmed into any of the five
memories, allowing the user to call them up
without having to re-enter the parameters.
You have the choice between balancecharging
or not with Lithium packs. The
Super Turbo II also allows the user to cycle
the packs as many as three times, to check
or confirm their capacity.
A plot of the charge profile for Ni-Cds
and Li-Polys showed no surprises and
followed the conventional protocol for most
hobby chargers. A screen shot shows the
classic Ni-Cd charge curve, where the
voltage is sampled
to determine where
the peak cutoff is
initiated. Cutoff
sensitivity can be
selected from 5 to
20 millivolts per
cell.
The voltage and
current profile for a
2-cell Li-Poly is
shown in a different
screen capture. It
appears that the
little dip in voltage
denoted by the
question mark
signifies that the
4.2-volt limit is hit.
The current is then adjusted accordingly, to
bring the voltage slowly back to the 4.2
level where the charge is terminated.
The compact Super Turbo II has all the
features necessary to maintain the health of
any battery pack. It has a 0.1- to 5.0-amp
charge capacity and can accommodate a
one- to six-cell Li-Poly pack, a one- to 15-
cell Ni-Cd or NiMH pack, or one- to 10-cell
Lead Acid pack.
The charger comes with one balancing
board to suit the one- to six-cell connector
of your choice, with three others available.
The full set of four balancing boards costs
$15.
The list price for the Super Turbo II is
$149.95, but it is discounted on the Dymond
Modelsport Web site to a reasonable $79.99
plus shipping and handling. A DC-only
version is only $59.99 plus shipping and
handling, making it an excellent buy if you
already have DC available at your charging
bench.
First-Class Charging Station: Following is
a piece that Walt Thyng posted on an online
forum.
“Awhile back I asked for input on how
to build a club charging station. Following
Above: The Fox Valley Aero Club goes
first class for electric fliers. Does your
club have a charging station that is this
high-tech? Conveniences such as these
make electric-power aeromodeling even
safer.
Left: Solar-powered flight becomes a
reality with the Solar Impulse. It flew
successfully over Payerne, Switzerland,
for 87 minutes, with a cruise and flight
speed of nearly 30 mph.
09sig3x_00MSTRPG.QXD 7/22/10 9:12 AM Page 84
is what the Fox Valley Aero Club in St.
Charles, Il. (my club) did.
“The ‘Juice Bar’ (my wife came up
with the name and it stuck) comprises
nine charging stations powered by three
Iota DLS 55 power supplies. The 12v
lugs are 3/8 threaded brass tubing with a
3.2mm hole for banana plugs. This
covers just about any type of charger
power lead requirements.
“Because there are some flyers with
special needs, each station has 110 AC as
well. Each group of three stations has its
own power supply and on/off switch so
that we don’t have to run the whole
system all the time. The entire system is
controlled by a master timer which turns
it on and off at the beginning and end of
the day.”
Vaporware Department: So I am not
accused of keeping you in the dark about
the latest, I have a couple of items for
you to ponder. Following is a piece from
the MIT Technology Review, titled
“Flexible Sheets Capture Energy from
Movement.”
“Material could charge portable
electronics with every step. Researchers
at Princeton University have created a
flexible material that produces record
amounts of energy when stressed.
“The researchers say the material
could be incorporated into the soles of
86 MODEL AVIATION
shoes to power portable electronics, or even
placed on a heart patient’s lungs to recharge
a pacemaker as he/she breathes.”
Maybe you can use your imagination to
apply that to aeromodeling.
Following is an article by Darren Quick,
titled “Lithium-air batteries offer three times
the energy density,” that was featured on
Gizmag.com.
“Lithium-air battery technology looks to
have a big future. With the potential of
providing energy densities up to three times
that of the conventional lithium-ion batteries
found in just about every portable consumer
electronics device going around (not to
mention the incoming wave of electric
vehicles), many companies, including IBM
and General Motors are pursuing work on
lithium-air batteries.
“Now researchers at MIT [Massachusetts
Institute of Technology] have made a
breakthrough that could help make the
commercial development of lightweight
rechargeable batteries a reality. …
“Unfortunately lithium-air batteries
haven’t become a commercial reality
because there has been a lack of
understanding of what kinds of electrode
materials could promote the
electrochemical reactions that take place in
these batteries. …
“The MIT team admits there are still a
number of issues that need to be addressed
before lithium-air batteries become a
practical commercial product. …
“But the biggest issue is developing a
system that keeps its power through a
sufficient number of charging and
discharging cycles for it to be useful in
vehicles or electronic devices.
“Researchers also need to look into
details of the chemistry of the charging and
discharging processes, to see what
compounds are produced and where, and
how they react with other compounds in the
system. …
“While some companies working on
lithium-air batteries have said they see it as
a 10-year development program, [MIT
associate professor of mechanical
engineering and materials science] Shao-
Horn says it is too early to predict how long
it may take to reach commercialization.
“‘It’s a very promising area, but there
are many science and engineering
challenges to be overcome,’ she says. ‘If it
truly demonstrates two to three times the
energy density’ of today’s lithium-ion
batteries, she says, the likely first
applications will be in portable electronics
such as computers and cell phones, which
are high-value items, and only later would
be applied to vehicles once the costs are
reduced.”
There must be no RC fliers at MIT.
Also covered on Gizmag.com, the
Solar Impulse HB-SIA took to the air for
the first time, over Payerne, Switzerland.
The solar-powered, man-carrying craft
reached a 4,000-foot altitude and
performed a variety of maneuvers to test
its control systems. It was airborne for 87
minutes before landing safely. The
following is from the article.
“With the wingspan of a Boeing 747 and
the weight of a car, never before has an
airplane as large and light as the Solar
Impulse flown before. It lifted off at a speed
no faster than 45 kmh and, once airborne,
completed a series of turns by gently tilting
its wings that measure 63 meters (208 feet)
from tip to tip.”
You know, I think that one will work for
us—at least here in the Sunshine State. MA
Sources:
Hobbico
(217) 398-8970
www.hobbico.com
Dymond Modelsport
(858) 220-4004
www.rc-dymond.com
Gizmag.com
www.gizmag.com
The Battery Clinic
12219 NW 9th Ln.
Newberry FL 32669
www.hangtimes.com/redsbatteryclinic.html
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