Xbattery’s BharatBMS stands out as India’s first homegrown Battery Management System, developed to address energy storage challenges across diverse sectors, including homes, factories, EV fleets, and solar power systems. In a conversation with EFY’s Nitisha, Satish Reddy from Xbattery highlights the patented technology behind BharatBMS and emphasises its flexibility, noting how effortlessly it can be customised for integration into any vehicle.
Q. How does BharatBMS optimise battery performance across vehicles and energy storage systems?
A. BharatBMS incorporates advanced features for optimising battery performance. It provides accurate estimations of State of Charge (SoC) and State of Health (SoH), crucial for predicting battery runtime and lifespan. The system utilises active cell balancing, ensuring uniform charge distribution and maximising the usable capacity of the battery pack. Telemetry capabilities enable real-time data collection and logging of key battery parameters, facilitating detailed analysis. This data then powers predictive maintenance algorithms, allowing for early detection of potential issues and proactive interventions to prevent failures and extend battery life. Finally, BharatBMS leverages digital twin technology, creating a virtual replica of the battery system to simulate performance, optimise control strategies, and ensure reliable operation.
Q. How configurable is BharatBMS for different vehicle or battery applications?
A. BharatBMS is designed as a platform, meaning it supports a wide range of voltages, chemistries, and applications. The same system can be configured for use in a small two-wheeler or a large commercial bus. It can also be used for home energy storage or solar integration. This flexibility is achieved through the use of configurable software and hardware design. It supports lithium chemistries like LFP and NMC, and can easily adapt to future chemistries like sodium-ion. It’s a scalable, modular, and software-adaptable platform.
Q. What voltage and current range does BharatBMS support, and how does it handle high-load conditions?
A. Our BMS supports up to 800 V DC, which is suitable for large electric vehicles (EVs), such as trucks and buses, as well as high-capacity energy storage systems. We’ve engineered it to manage high voltages efficiently while integrating thermal sensors and external cooling triggers. The BMS can automatically activate cooling systems when temperatures rise beyond safe levels, which is crucial for battery longevity and safety.
Q. Can BharatBMS integrate with existing battery pack designs?
A. Yes, it is highly plug-and-play. If a customer is using a different BMS, they can remove it and replace it with BharatBMS. All that’s needed is a configuration update to set parameters like cell count and arrangement. It supports standard protocols such as CAN, RS-485, and SPI, ensuring seamless integration with inverters, vehicle control units, and other systems.
Q. How does your BMS manage cell balancing?
A. For small systems, we use passive balancing, which is simpler and sufficient. For high-performance systems like electric cars and commercial vehicles, we use active balancing. Active balancing ensures better performance and efficiency, especially in large packs where imbalance can cause degradation and performance loss.
Q. How is thermal performance managed during fast charging or long operation?
A. We use onboard and external temperature sensors, thermal runaway detection, and pressure sensors. The BMS can monitor the thermal status of each cell and control the external cooling system. This enables us to manage and prevent overheating, a major concern in battery safety. The system is also designed in compliance with ASIL standards for automotive safety.
Q. Does BharatBMS support real-time diagnostics and remote monitoring?
A. Yes. We offer a cloud platform that enables users to monitor battery health, download historical data, view fault alerts, and track performance over time. This platform supports fleet management with predictive maintenance, real-time alerts, and digital twins. We also offer API integration, so customers can pull this data into their platforms if they prefer.
Q. How much of your technology is developed in-house?
A. Almost everything critical is done in-house. We design, assemble, test, and write the software for our products ourselves. While we outsource certain non-core components like metal enclosures, the electronics design, firmware, assembly, testing, and heat analysis are all handled by our own team. We also use advanced facilities at T-Works in Hyderabad to access high-end equipment for thermal testing, PCB assembly, and welding.
Q. Who are your target customers?
A. Our target audience includes auto OEMs (original equipment manufacturers), such as electric car, bus, and two-wheeler companies. We also work with system integrators who build large-scale battery energy storage systems (BESS), solar energy companies, and real estate developers who integrate energy storage into residential or commercial buildings. Essentially, any company working with battery packs is a potential customer for Xbattery or our complete battery solutions.
Q. Is your technology patented?
A. Yes, we have filed a patent for our core BMS technology. We are committed to developing intellectual property (IP) around our products to ensure long-term value and competitive differentiation.
Q. What warranty and support do you offer?
A. We offer a five-year warranty on BharatBMS and a ten-year warranty on complete battery packs. We also provide technical support and Annual Maintenance Contracts (AMC) for home and commercial devices. For OEMs using our BMS, we offer hardware replacements and remote diagnostics as part of our support.
Q. How easy is it to migrate from an imported BMS to BharatBMS?
A. Very easy. Because BharatBMS is highly configurable, it can be adapted to existing systems with minimal effort. All it requires is proper configuration, and the system can be deployed quickly.
Q. Does your BMS support modular battery configurations?
A. Yes. We have developed BMS solutions for modular battery systems, especially for telecom and swappable battery applications. Each module can be independently managed and then stacked or linked based on capacity needs.
Q. Can BharatBMS interface with vehicle telematics and fleet software?
A. Absolutely. We have strong integration with Vehicle Control Units (VCU) and provide all necessary communication protocols. Our system can feed real-time battery data into third-party platforms through APIs.
Q. How scalable is your solution for large-capacity needs, such as buses or grid storage?
A. The architecture is fully scalable. We can design and produce customised BMS boards for packs with 300–400 cells or more. The platform ensures optimal cost-performance balance by scaling hardware and software as needed.
Q. Does the BMS support cloud deployment on platforms like AWS or Azure?
A. Yes. Our platform is built on Microsoft Azure, but we support deployment on AWS or private cloud servers using one-click installers. Customers can choose to host the entire infrastructure within their own systems for privacy and control.
Q. What cybersecurity features are in place?
A. We’ve integrated a Hardware Security Engine (HSE) for cryptographic encryption and secure boot. Even with physical access, unauthorised manipulation of data or firmware is extremely difficult. We also support key management and encrypted communication for enhanced protection.
Q. Do you support predictive analytics for battery degradation?
A. Yes. By utilising digital twins and collecting granular telemetry data, we can accurately predict battery degradation and estimate the Remaining Useful Life (RUL). We use AI and machine learning models to optimise charging and discharging strategies and forecast failures in advance.
Q. What are some of the major challenges you’ve faced in building this business?
A. One of the biggest challenges is the lack of a local ecosystem for deep tech hardware startups. Specialised test equipment and battery packs are difficult to source in India and must usually be imported, which involves complex customs procedures and lengthy lead times. Sourcing electronic components, especially in small quantities, is another issue due to regulatory hurdles. In addition, funding for deep tech and manufacturing startups remains limited. While there are grant programs, they are challenging to obtain and often insufficient for the kind of infrastructure we need.
Q. Do you offer training or onboarding support for staff or partners?
A. Yes. We follow a selective and principle-based hiring model. We evaluate candidates for critical thinking and problem-solving. Fresh graduates often start as interns, and after six months of close mentoring, they are ready to tackle real-world engineering problems. For partners or customers, we offer onboarding support and technical training as needed.
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