Automated Battery Validation for Next-Generation UAV Power Systems

Summary

A company developing battery-powered unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) needed a better way to validate the battery systems at the heart of its aircraft. Their engineering team was running long-duration functional and environmental tests across multiple battery pack designs and needed a solution that could automate test execution, collect detailed performance data, and reliably operate for extended periods.

Developing batteries for UAV applications requires far more than simply measuring capacity. Engineers need to understand how battery packs behave throughout realistic operating cycles while collecting the data needed to evaluate performance, reliability, and long-term health. DMC designed and delivered a turnkey battery validation platform that combined automated battery cycling, battery communications, real-time control, data management, and custom operator tools into a single integrated solution.

The platform simulated charge and discharge profiles representative of real-world operation, helping engineers evaluate battery performance under the conditions they expected to encounter in the field. The completed solution gives the client a repeatable and scalable battery validation platform that accelerates testing activities and helps engineers make informed decisions as they continue developing next-generation UAV power systems.

Customer Benefits

Solution

Developing battery systems for UAVs requires more than simply charging and discharging packs. Engineers need to understand how UAV batteries perform over time, under varying operating conditions, and across multiple designs.

The client needed a platform that could automate each of these processes, improve monitoring, and collect data. DMC designed a complete validation system that integrated test execution, real-time control, battery communications, safety systems, and reporting into a single solution that could support continued battery development.

Behind the scenes, NI VeriStand running on NI CompactRIO hardware formed the real-time control layer, delivering deterministic data acquisition, control, logging, and alarm management. VeriStand’s integration with TestStand enabled DMC to combine high-level test automation with reliable real-time execution.

Together, these technologies enabled DMC to deliver a scalable validation platform that balanced ease of use for operators with the flexibility and extensibility required for long-term battery development programs.

Integrated Battery Communications and Data Visibility

The ability to monitor battery behavior throughout testing was another key requirement of this project. The platform communicated with the battery BMS throughout testing, allowing engineers to collect BMS-reported data alongside cycler and external temperature-sensing measurements, as well as environmental information.

DMC also developed a custom operator application that provided visibility into battery health, cell-level measurements, temperature data, test progress, alarms, and historical performance trends in a single interface. Engineers could quickly assess system status, review historical data, and troubleshoot issues without interacting with the underlying control architecture.

Cycler Parallelization

To meet the customer’s required channel count and power levels for certain UAV battery models, DMC used multiple cyclers and a programmatically controlled DC combiner in some test scenarios to double power. DMC controlled this with internal high-power contactors and synchronized cycler control. This allowed the customer to set up to 8 low-power packs or up to 4 high-power packs at a time, greatly improving their ability to meet testing demands.

Electrical Design

The system combines high-power battery testing equipment with low-power controls, instrumentation, and communications hardware. DMC designed a dedicated electrical panel for high-power distribution, separate from the remaining control hardware & instrumentation, in order to remove any possibility of electrical noise on the precise signal measurements.

• High-Power Panels
  • High-power relays
  • Impedance-matched high-power cabling
  • Fusing infrastructure
  • Fan cooling
• Low-Power Panel
  • NI-XNET CAN communication
  • Real-time control (cRIO-9049 x2)
  • Thermocouple inputs
  • Digital IO
  • Safety relays / Interlocks
  • Fan cooling
  • Door proximity sensors
  • Two E-STOP buttons (one remote E-STOP)
  • External interlock inputs/outputs

Safety

Because battery validation involves significant power cycling and extended unattended operation, safety is always a critical consideration. The platform incorporates emergency stop circuits, safety interlocks, automated alarm handling, and controlled shutdown responses designed to place the system into a safe state whenever abnormal conditions are detected. A pair of IOs exposed by the DMC test system allows the customer to integrate the test stand with their broader facility safety, allowing them to both trigger and monitor facility safety events.

Data Collection and Analysis

One of the client’s primary goals was to improve the usefulness of collected data and get more out of their analysis. The completed system automatically captures performance information throughout each validation campaign, generating reports and historical datasets that can be used to evaluate battery behavior over time. Automated reporting and centralized data storage then help streamline the entire validation process and make results easier to review, share, and interpret.

Rather than spending time manually operating equipment or compiling results, engineers can focus on comparing battery designs and identifying performance trends. This will help them iterate future designs more quickly and apply insights to future battery development efforts.

Key Technologies

Hardware

Software

Results

Rather than delivering a standalone battery cycler, DMC developed a complete validation platform that combined automated test execution, real-time control, battery communications, data management, reporting, safety systems, and operator workflows into a single solution.

The result is a robust platform that helps the client’s engineering team efficiently evaluate battery performance, reliability, and long-term behavior before new designs move into flight testing. By automating the validation process and providing greater visibility into battery performance, the system supports faster development cycles and more informed engineering decisions for our customer as they look to scale their UAV production quickly.