Electronic Loads - Why so expensive?

[plazma]

For anyone interested, I just received a new and shiny ZKE EBC-A05+.

I have already had is lid off and all looks to be in order inside the unit. Neat little design that looks suitable for my requirement. I have electronic loads and battery analysers but I wanted a battery exerciser that would charge, discharge, and then charge again with a record of performance. I have loads of spare laptops to dedicate to the unit so i will have a dedicated battery exercise station. The only real limitation is the 10V maximum charge rather than a more useful 16V which would have coped with a broader range of battery packs.

I found the software and English User manual. I attach the user manual for those who need it.

My unit is Firmware version 3.0.2 with a date code of  16-11-01. That could be 01 Nov 2016 or 11 Jan 2016 depending upon which format they use for date info.

I attach some internal pictures of this latest version.

Fraser

Where is the PC SW available? Is there any FW updates?

[ralphrmartin]

My unit is Firmware version 3.0.2 with a date code of  16-11-01. That could be 01 Nov 2016 or 11 Jan 2016 depending upon which format they use for date info.

It is standard for everything in China to write dates logically, i.e. year month day.

(I say logically as eg. in 2016-03-09, for example the 2 is the most significant digit, on the left, and 9 is the least significant digit, on the right, just like when you write an integer like 413).

[HoracioDos]

Where is the PC SW available? Is there any FW updates?

Last item from the table. The one that says EB V1.8.5 English Version Download. AFAIK firmware can be updated from this software.
http://www.zketech.com/nd.jsp?id=15&_np=101_304

[smile]

There is a nice hacked 150W ZKETECH load here EBC-A10-150W:
https://pt.aliexpress.com/item/EBC-A10-150W-aluminum-alloy-electronic-load-capacity-tester-18650-minute-capacity-cycle-charging-and-discharging/32813597066.html

The only electronic loads from ZKETECH that have charger is EBC-A10 60W; EBC-A05 60W;

[smile]

Seems like the only good one is CBA IV Pro with capability to use external chargers of your choice, and extendability up to 2000W makes it no brainer IMO.

The other option is maynuo m9711 / 9712. But can it be made into charger (battery maintainer)  with external lab power supply? Yes it's more expensive but if you buy direct from China then half the cost.

[ramjet1953]

I have been using the ZKE EBC-A05+ for a while now.

For those Linux users, the ZKE software works fine in Linux, under WINE.
Just install the software and the driver in WINE.
You will then need to make a symbolic link to com2 .

To do this, just open a terminal in your directory:

/home/[your home directory]/.wine/dosdevices

Then type in the following command:

sudo ln -s /dev/ttyUSB0 com2

Enter your sudo password when prompted and you should be good to go.

You may need to change the USB and com port numbers, depending upon your Linux distribution and hardware.

[ez24]

What did the OP get?

I got one of these, lasted 15 minutes at 100 watts.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Battery-Capacity-Tester-Digital-voltmeter-adjustable-Constant-Current-Electronic-Load-charger-usb-volt-ameter-meter/32821857011.html   

Using power rheostats now.

[eurofox]

I got this one, very good price/quality 

https://www.benl.ebay.be/itm/DE-SHIP-M9710-USB-Programmable-DC-Electronic-Load-150W-220V-DHL-BLITZVERSAND-/162547257806?

[ChrisLX200]

I just bought the same one as ^ , comes without the propriatry USB/Serial interface (unlike the 9711) but that can be bought seperately if required. Controlling via a computer is much easier that working through the menus on the device..

[Mechatrommer]

if you have problem with price or the spec or the UI (rotary encoder that requires many many turns)... build your own...

[ElectronicCat]

What did the OP get?

Still haven't got one as I've managed to do without for now. Looking back through the thread there's a few good options I might consider but I'd ideally like one with at least CC, CC and data logging.  Programmable discharge profiles or battery simulation would be ideal but none of the cheap ones seem to support this. The ZKE or Arachnid Labs ones probably look like the best options for me.

[ziplock9000]

I'm tempted to get the EBC-A05+ but as someone else pointed out, I'd like it to at least be able to support 12v+. Possibly even 24v+

Do they have other models that support this?

[HoracioDos]

I'm tempted to get the EBC-A05+ but as someone else pointed out, I'd like it to at least be able to support 12v+. Possibly even 24v+

AFAIK it supports 12v @ 5A for discharge mode and 10v for charging mode.

[batou]

I got one of these, lasted 15 minutes at 100 watts.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Battery-Capacity-Tester-Digital-voltmeter-adjustable-Constant-Current-Electronic-Load-charger-usb-volt-ameter-meter/32821857011.html   

I also got one of these - didn't last 2 minutes at 100W. The main FET is toast - and what's worse is that it fails short so you've potentially got a fire on your hands if you are testing unprotected Li-Ion.

Got a 50% refund from AE, and have now replaced the FET and its working again, but i'd like to know exactly what the limit is and/or how to protect it.

Anyone got any insights? Is there a thread for these somewhere? Maybe I'll start one

[wraper]

if you have problem with price or the spec or the UI (rotary encoder that requires many many turns)... build your own...

I'd like to know how in the hell TIP142 can be interchangeable with IRF540 as written in the circuit? And why TIP142 is drawn as a MOSFET when it's a Darlington BJT?

[Jester]

So I was looking at electronic loads as they seem like they should be a fairly standard piece of test equipment for a lab, and I could use one for some upcoming projects. However, I haven't really been able to find any that I would consider to be affordable for casual hobbyists like myself, the cheapest that I could find is probably the BK Precision BK8540. It's pretty basic, only has CC, CV and CR modes and doesn't appear to have any data logging or modes for battery testing etc. Any yet despite being such a simple device it retails for around £470-500 here in the UK, which is more than a lot of low end scopes!

The iTech IT8211 is identical to the BK8540 for about half the price on ebay and elsewhere.  I bought one a few months ago and am quite pleased with it.  While not remotely programmable you can enter in a short sequences of steps (LIST mode) for it to execute from the front panel.  Admittedly these are not all  that useful since they are a maximum of time of 25 seconds per step and a maximum of 25 steps per list with no ability to loop.
I wonder if there's not someway, using the 9-pin D connection, in the back of this load to get into a remote access mode.  The front panel allows you to set the address of this port but the manual says it's for factory use only.  Weird!

I picked up the BK version of these recently and am quite pleased with it so far. Its very quiet unless heavily loaded and the 1mA resolution is a must for me. The current scale is quite accurate, however the voltage scale is not as accurate as I would like, does anyone know how to calibrate the V scale?