TOKYO — The lithium-battery safety guidelines compiled by two Japanese industry associations in the wake of last summer's notebook PC battery recalls have moved to International Electrotechnical Commission committees for consideration as standard procedure.
A 12-company joint task force of the Japan Electronics & Information Technology Industries Association (JEITA) and the Battery Association of Japan (BAJ) released guidelines for the safe usage of lithium ion batteries in notebook PCs last Friday (April 20). Among the recommendations is that the charge voltage should be less than 4.25 volts for lithium ion batteries with LiCoO2 anodes.
"We compiled the guidelines with the aim of reducing the occurrence of serious problems, such as systems' catching fire, to zero," said task force chairman Masami Yamamoto, a corporate vice president of Fujitsu Ltd. The guidelines address cell design, battery pack design and new test and evaluation criteria.
JEITA and BAJ proposed their cell design criteria to the IEC SA-21 committee in March. The battery pack design guidelines were proposed to the IEC TC-108 committee this month. Both committees have agreed to weigh the proposals for adoption.
The guidelines are available in Japanese the JEITA and BAJ Web sites. An English version is expected in May.
