WASHINGTON-Wireless industry officials and engineers expect to meet in San Diego this week to continue work on a mobile-phone battery standard, an effort that comes in response to reports of injuries from exploding handsets likely caused by faulty batteries.
CTIA and the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers gathered for the first time Nov. 16 on the lithium-ion mobile-phone battery standard initiative, electing officers and setting a schedule for future meetings.
“We are pleased to be working with a globally recognized standard-setting organization like IEEE on this important task,” said CTIA President Steve Largent. “The publication of a new battery standard together with the development of a laboratory accreditation program is a top priority for the wireless industry.”
Last month’s meeting had 50 attendees from 26 organizations, including cellular service carriers, phone manufacturers, and manufacturers of batteries and battery components. Jason Howard, energy technologies manager at Motorola Energy Systems, was elected to chair the working group. Other officers chosen were Lou LaMedica, director of cellular products and equipment at Verizon Wireless (vice chairman), and Rene Sorra, mechanical-environmental test engineer at PCTEST Wireless (secretary).
In a joint press statement, the two organizations said IEEE P1725-Standard for Rechargeable Batteries for Cellular Telephones-is on a fast track within the IEEE Standard Association Corporate Program and is scheduled for completion in December 2005. The working group plans to meet again Dec. 13-14 in San Diego and at four- to six-week intervals thereafter.
CTIA and IEEE said the new standard, which will build on the IEEE LIVIUM standard for notebook computer batteries, will seek to make cellular-phone batteries more robust by setting uniform criteria for their design, production and evaluation. It will aim to eliminate cell failure when mobile-phone batteries are used as intended and to minimize failure under abusive operating conditions.
The standard, according to the two industry groups, will consider battery electrical and mechanical construction, chemistries, packaging technologies, quality control and many other areas. In parallel with the development of the standard, CTIA is developing a laboratory accreditation program to authorize test labs to validate compliance with the standard to ensure the availability of high-quality, properly made batteries. They said CTIA’s goal is to have labs ready to test batteries to the new standard once it is published.
“IEEE P1725 will help the industry provide reliable cell-phone batteries that deliver the power and energy density needed in feature-rich phones,” said Howard. “Our aim is to improve the user’s experience even as batteries grow more complex by addressing the entire envelope from battery cells and packs to the handsets they power.”
In August, an exploding phone sent a California teen to the hospital emergency room. The teen reportedly was using a Verizon Wireless LG Electronics Co. Ltd. phone.
In a Sept. 7 letter to the teen’s parents, Korea-based LG said an investigation concluded the battery at issue was a counterfeit, and therefore, it was not responsible for the accident. Similar incidents have been reported during the past year.
In January, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recalled batteries in phones manufactured for Kyocera Wireless Corp. The recall was prompted by four reports received by Kyocera of battery failures, including one minor burn injury. The CPSC said the recalled batteries can short circuit and erupt with force or pose a burn hazard to consumers.
