Battery charging bank help

[davedobson]

Hi guys I'll add some images below of a diy battery bank I bought off ebay - total newbie here so any help is appreciated. They said all you need are the batteries which I bought. but the thing didn't come with any wires or connections at all so I don't know what I need or what to do with it as no instructions were included.. this is the link to the product if you want to have a look. I guess I just need to know what else I need to get and how to hook it up?
http://www.ebay.ca/itm/310747665121?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

in the pic below there are little wings in the bottom piece with little silver tabs that stick out one side has a '+' and the other a '-' if that helps.

 

[BobK]

Connect both of the batteries + terminals to the + input on the board and both of the batteries - terminals to the - input on the board. Which is what the seller is saying here:

Note:
Please connect the battery in parallel, in accordance with the circuit board
labeled (B + ) connected to battery "+" and (B -) connected to battery "-".
If you Reverse polarity wrongly, the board will get burned and we will not
Responsible for erroneous operation!

Bob

 

[jpanhalt]

There are mechanical and electrical aspects.
Mechanical:
The circuit board with the LED's on top that show "8.8." when off is mounted such that the USB ports are accessible through the side of the box and the LED's show through the small, approximately square hole in the top. Call that circuit the voltage regulator. There is a little decorative plate that covers the covers the USB port side. There is a similar decorative plate for the switch.

Electrical:
The batteries need to be connected in parallel. That is, positive end to positive end and negative end to negative end. If there are tabs (probably) welded to the battery, those tabs are used. Apparently, you need to solder those connections. That makes the "battery pack" Two wires then connect the battery pack to the voltage regulator. Those connections may be built into the device. I can't tell from the picture. The eBay picture says "anode" , but the PCB for the regulator seems to show B+. However, there are two contacts there and only a careful examination will tell you where the positive lead from the batter pack goes. The negative lead from the pack needs to be attached to the other contact. CAUTION: Nomenclature for batteries can be confusing. The "anode" of a battery is the negative end (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anode). The anode in most other references is the positive end. Whether the board manufacture was aware of that is up to question. The word "anode" in the picture may be referring to the anode of the regulator (i.e., positive terminal) or the anode of the battery. I suspect it is the former, but you need to be sure. So, I would trace the circuit and try to identify the "ground" of the system. Then, the negative end of the battery attaches to that, and the positive end goes to the other contact. Do you have an ohmmeter?

Sorry, somehow, this post got posted before I was done with it. Hence the edit.

John

 

[davedobson]

Hi Bob, thanks so much for your help I appreciate it. Keep in mind I am completely new to electronics, I apologize if these are dumb questions, but the kit didn't come with any wires or anything at all. Am I to solder wire directly to the tops and bottoms of the batteries ( as the image below) or is there something else I should be doing? I don't want to blow myself up do I need a certain type of wire? something specific to connect them?

 

[davedobson]

Hi John thanks so much for your input... realistically I was just looking for a quick diy project haha. I may be in over my head here since most of what you've said is like a foreign language to me

 

[BobK]

Soldering directly to the terminals is not a good idea, unless they have tabs welded to them. You might be able to find battery holders, which would make it easier.

Bob

 

[davedobson]

Thanks Bob - would something like this work:
http://www.ebay.ca/itm/Black-Plasti...628?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_2&hash=item3f2c667084

and then just wiring the red wire to the + and black to the - on the board?
Does it matter that the batteries won't all be facing the same direction considering the note below from the seller on ebay?

Note:
Please connect the battery in parallel, in accordance with the circuit board
labeled (B + ) connected to battery "+" and (B -) connected to battery "-".
If you Reverse polarity wrongly, the board will get burned and we will not
Responsible for erroneous operation!

 

[jpanhalt]

Is there is a chance the box already has pressure contacts for the batteries installed? Can't tell from the pictures. If there are no pressure contacts, and if the batteries don't have tabs, soldering to the batteries is possible. Many people do it. I have done it. But, I would leave that to someone with experience in soldering. It is actually not that hard, IF you have done it before -- maybe that is a big "if."

Do your batteries have tabs attached? They are usually about 4 to 6 mm wide and thin metal (often a nickle). Are there pressure contacts in the box?

The battery holder you show is designed for connecting the batteries in series. That is, you will get 3X the voltage of each cell. It should not be used, according to the eBay listing.

John

 

[davedobson]

Hi john, here a shot a tried to get the tops and bottom of the batteries and the case is just plain old plastic, not a thing inside...

 

[BobK]

If you want to use that battery holder, you will have to break the existing connections, then connect all the pluses together to the red wire and all the minuses together to the black wire. That would put all the batteries in parallel. It does not matter that the batteries are facing different directions, as long as the connections are right.

Bob

 

[jpanhalt]

Here is what a parallel box will look like:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Battery-Cas...192?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3f28201290

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Battery-Box...862?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item41798f748e

If you are in the USA, I would suggest going to a local hobby shop or HobbyLobby, particularly a shop that caters to RC cars. It may have the right type of battery box and you can test fit.

John

 

[davedobson]

awesome john thanks - and if I got the one with the 3 sets of wires i would take the 3 red and solder all together to the + on the board and the same with the black to the -?

 

[jpanhalt]

Yes, that is it. Be sure the box fits inside your USB supply box. A hobby shop may have a version that would not require soldering the wires and be a bit quicker than shipping from HK.

John

 

[davedobson]

I'll have a look. thanks a ton guys, I appreciate it!

 

[KJ6EAD]

It looks like the housing is made to hold the board and the three cells but is missing the contact strips.