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On December 2 at EVS23 (International Electric Vehicle Symposium and Exposition) A123Systems unveiled the lithium ion battery cell that they have co-developed with General Motors specifically for the Chevy Volt.
It is a flat cell that is significantly larger than the cylindrical cells previously built by A123. The cell is rectangular and designed to be stacked like slices of bread within the battery pack. GM chose this form factor for the Volt so as to minimize the volume of the pack.
According to A123 engineers at the event they have also developed proprietary algorithms that can precisely monitor their battery technology’s voltage and state of charge, eliminating concerns that the battery could suddenly drain completely without warning.
They developed their batter management software as a part of their hybrid electric bus program, which goes into Daimler buses next year and is independent of their work with GM. GM’s Denise Gray has stated in the past that they are developing their own battery management software “in-houseâ€, so it is unclear if A123’s software will be shared as a part of the Volt program.