Engineering Capabilities

Battery Power Systems for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)

Custom Power’s in-house engineering expertise is fully utilised in the design and manufacture of complex power systems for UAVs.

Essential power for your UAV

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), like many other autonomous vehicle systems can be very power hungry, but unlike surface vehicles, weight is a fundamentally limiting factor in determining how much power can be provided by the on-board battery packs. This makes UAV power systems particularly complex, but designing and assembling lightweight, high power battery packs is an area where we have exceptional experience and expertise. The following gives an indication of our extensive in-house design capabilities.

  • Dedicated fuel gauge engineering
  • Firmware development (STMicro STM32 based)
  • Hardware design expertise in power circuit design
  • Cold temperature operation management (light weight heater and insulation)
  • Small footprint (memory) CAN Bus implementation with PC GUI
  • PC based CAN GUI for debug and firmware updates
  • High current PCB design 8-10 layers of 2-oz copper
  • High power interconnect system design using copper-clad weld tabs
  • Vast experience in ruggedised composite material enclosure design

Custom Power’s Design and Engineering excellence

UAV Capability - Power Business Unit

UAV Capability

Cell and Configuration

Battery Management System

Design and Manufacture

Certification and Accreditation

Up to 12S

Custom BMS

Cradle to Grave Design

AS9100

Tier 1 Li Ion Cells

Master/Minion BMS

Altium / Solidworks

ISO 9001:2015

Direct Supply Polymer Cells

High Current PCB Design

Full Case Design

UN38.3 Certification Management

CANBUS

Ultra Lightweight Case Material

IEC Certification Management

Custom Firmware

Cell Holder Design

Multi-Channel EOL Testing

Custom Interface

Active Heating

JOSCAR

Cell Characterisation

Resistive Welding

Cyber Essentials Certified Plus

Thermal Management

Laser Welding


Fuel Gauging

Additional Capability Options

14S

In House 3D Printing

EMC Pre-Compliance

Wire Bonding

Pulse Arc

UAV Capability - Power Business Unit
UAV Capability Cell and Configuration Battery Management System Design and Manufacture Certification and Accreditation
Up to 12S Custom BMS Cradle to Grave Design ISO 9001:2015
Tier 1 Li Ion Cells Master/Minion BMS Altium / Solidworks UN38.3 Certification Management
Direct Supply Polymer Cells High Current PCB Design Full Case Design IEC Certification Management
CANBUS Ultra Lightweight Case Material AS9100
Custom Firmware Cell Holder Design Multi-Channel EOL Testing
Custom Interface Active Heating JOSCAR
Cell Characterisation Resistive Welding Cyber Essentials Certified Plus
Thermal Management Laser Welding
Fuel Gauging
Additional Drone Capability 14S In House 3D Printing EMC Pre-Compliance
Wire Bonding
Pulse Arc

UAV Capability

Additional UAV Capability

Up to 12S

X

X

14S

X

Cylindrical Cells

X

X

Pouch Cells

X

Thermal Management

X

X

Active Heating

X

Full Case Design

X

X

Wire Bonding

X

Custom BMS

X

X

Custom Firmware

X

CANBUS

X

X

Master/Minion BMS

X

Cradle to Grave Design

X

X

High Voltage

X

High Current PCB Design

X

Altium/Solidworks

X

X

IEC 62133/UN38.3 Testing

X

X

EMC Pre Compliance

X

Cell Holder Design

X

X

Cell Characterisation

X

Spot Welding

X

X

Resistive Welding

X

X

Laser Welding

Ultra Lightweight Case Material

X

Multi-channel End of Line Tester

X

X

AS9100

X

Thermal Management (Cold Operation)

Cold batteries are inefficient and at best will provide limited run time, at worst they will fail to operate correctly at all. To overcome the problems associated with cold operation we custom design heaters that are capable of heating core battery packs from -20°C to +5°C in less than 20 minutes.

These Mylar based thermo foil heaters have uniform heat output and exceptional heat transfer properties resulting in superior pack heating. Each is custom designed for the specific requirements of the battery pack and features a number of specific attributes including embedded temperature sensors (thermistors).

A complete solution

Our design and engineering capabilities, coupled with decades of complex custom build battery pack experience enables us to provide a complete solution to our UAV customers.

From the initial choice of most suitable cells for a given application to the final enclosure design and use of the latest rugged composite materials our engineering teams are at the forefront of battery pack design.

With large state-of-the-art design and production facilities in the UK and the USA utilising the very latest equipment and processes, our customers can be assured that their custom power system will be of the utmost quality and work seamlessly within their product.

UAV and Drone Camera Solutions

To compare the features of our Harrier AF-Zoom cameras and Oriole board cameras and see which one will best suit you, download our “Cameras for UAVs and Gimbals” brochure.

Speak To A Specialist About Your Custom Battery Pack Requirements

Phone

+44 (0) 1460 980 100