Its modular design accelerates BMS development, reduces costs, and supports scalable testing across EVs, energy storage, and aerospace systems.
Pickering Interfaces has expanded its PXI battery simulator range with new 5 A per-channel modules that bring higher current capability, faster testing, and safer operation to battery management system (BMS) development. The new 41-754 (PXI) and 43-754 (PXIe) modules deliver up to 8 V and 5 A per channel, available in 2- or 4-channel configurations. Each channel is fully isolated from ground and from other channels—allowing them to be connected in series to emulate multi-cell battery stacks used in electric vehicles, aerospace, and energy storage systems.
The key characteristics are:
- Major upgrade from earlier 300 mA versions
- Enables testing across a wider current range
- Maintains high precision and control for BMS validation
Engineers can now emulate real battery conditions such as imbalance, cell aging, or overcharge without the risks of handling live batteries. Because the simulator stores no energy, it eliminates the potential for thermal runaway and simplifies fault testing in high-voltage systems.
Built in the PXI/PXIe modular format, the 5 A simulator integrates easily into existing test platforms and can scale to match application needs. Additional modules can be added to simulate higher-voltage stacks or combined with fault insertion and thermocouple simulators for advanced system testing. This modular approach reduces capital costs, shortens development cycles, and supports long-term flexibility as test needs evolve.
For software and control algorithm validation, the simulator supports hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) setups—allowing real-time testing of parameters such as state-of-charge, state-of-health, and degradation models. Engineers can instantly switch between test conditions, removing the wait time associated with charging and discharging real batteries.Applications span EV propulsion systems, grid-scale and residential energy storage, robotics, and electrified industrial equipment. With up to 1000 V isolation to ground and 750 V between channels, the module ensures robust protection even under demanding test conditions.
The 5 A simulator ships with drivers for Windows, Linux, and real-time operating systems and is backed by Pickering’s three-year warranty and long-term product support.
