Citing their paper published in Nature Nanotechnology, Cui said the increased Li-Ion battery capacity was made possible though a new type of anode that utilises silicon nanowires. Traditional Li-Ion Acer Aspire 5610 batteries use graphite as the anode, which limits the amount of lithium -- which holds the charge -- that can be held in the anode, and therefore limits battery life.
Customers may continue to use the laptop computers safely by turning the system off, ejecting the battery, and using the AC adapter and power cord to power the system until the replacement battery is received, the company said.
The number of cells is not the end of the story, however, because two different 6 cell Acer Aspire 5630 batteries can have significantly different run times based on another number: the Watt-hour (Wh) rating (the higher the better). As with most things in the computer business, not all manufacturers publish the specifications for the battery the same way. Some publish the number of cells, while others publish a Watt-hour rating and still others publish neither.
A casual laptop user may see laptop Acer Ferrari 1000 battery life jump from three hours to four-and-a-half hours by switching to the light-powered screens, Jepsen said. The new displays will provide full colour depth and refresh rates that are comparable to conventional laptop screens.
The screens pull as much ambient light from sources as possible, but the technology may not work effectively for users watching DVD movies in dark rooms, Jepsen said.
HP decided it wasn't going to use the power management settings that shipped with Vista, Wozniak said. The company came up with its own set of power management settings for Vista laptops, allowing users to select different power settings, such as "power saver" or "high performance," that strike a balance between processing power and Acer Ferrari 1000-5612 battery life. Lenovo is likewise using its own power management technologies honed over several years, said Howard Locker, director of new technology at Lenovo.
They turned to the capacitor, which was invented nearly 300 years ago. Schindall explains, "We made the connection that perhaps we could take an old product, a capacitor, and use a new technology, nanotechnology, to make that old product in a new way."
Rechargable and disposable batteries use a chemical reaction to produce energy. "That's an effective way to store a large amount of energy," he says, "but the problem is that after many charges and discharges ... the Acer Ferrari 1100 battery loses capacity to the point where the user has to discard it."
2009年4月9日星期四
Tips on maintaining your laptop's battery
Lithium-ion Toshiba PA3615U-1BRS batteries are a major source of mobile power for laptops are lightweight and small, but they pose a threat due to overheating caused by overcharging of electrodes. Researchers at Tonen Chemical, an affiliate of ExxonMobil Chemical based in Tokyo, Japan, have achieved success in creating a polymer separator that plays an active role in preventing the overheating of batteries.
Tips for maintaining laptop batteries
While we are discussing laptop PA3615U-1BRM batteries, here are a few tips to keep your power investment in top shape:
Make sure the battery is discharged and used frequently. When charging, make sure you fully charge it.
IDG News service and SlashGear report that Toshiba is initiating another series of PABAS115 battery recalls due to risk of fire.
The models that may be affected are Satellite A100/A105 and Tecra A7 and two accessory/replacement batteries, model numbers PA3451U-1BRS and PA3399U-2BRS.
Here’s a quote from an article at Technology Review:
Unlike present separators, which break down at a little above 150 ºC, the new Tonen material stays intact up to 190 ºC. By preventing massive electrical shorting, the new separator could prevent the accelerated heating that leads to explosions, said Peter Roth, program manager for advanced technology development at Sandia National Laboratories, in Albuquerque, NM. Sandia is now testing the safety features of the new separator.
This link to Toshiba’s support site can help you check if your PA3614U-1BRP battery is affected or not. This recent recall follows a major set of recalls made last year.Here are a few pointers for getting the most of your laptop PABAS103 battery:Dim your screen to the lowest setting. Disable auto Bluetooth and Wi-Fi network detection (if you don’t need the Internet).Turn off software (like the Hibernate or Stand-by mode in Windows XP) and turn off scheduled tasks.
Tips for maintaining laptop batteries
While we are discussing laptop PA3615U-1BRM batteries, here are a few tips to keep your power investment in top shape:
Make sure the battery is discharged and used frequently. When charging, make sure you fully charge it.
IDG News service and SlashGear report that Toshiba is initiating another series of PABAS115 battery recalls due to risk of fire.
The models that may be affected are Satellite A100/A105 and Tecra A7 and two accessory/replacement batteries, model numbers PA3451U-1BRS and PA3399U-2BRS.
Here’s a quote from an article at Technology Review:
Unlike present separators, which break down at a little above 150 ºC, the new Tonen material stays intact up to 190 ºC. By preventing massive electrical shorting, the new separator could prevent the accelerated heating that leads to explosions, said Peter Roth, program manager for advanced technology development at Sandia National Laboratories, in Albuquerque, NM. Sandia is now testing the safety features of the new separator.
This link to Toshiba’s support site can help you check if your PA3614U-1BRP battery is affected or not. This recent recall follows a major set of recalls made last year.Here are a few pointers for getting the most of your laptop PABAS103 battery:Dim your screen to the lowest setting. Disable auto Bluetooth and Wi-Fi network detection (if you don’t need the Internet).Turn off software (like the Hibernate or Stand-by mode in Windows XP) and turn off scheduled tasks.
2009年4月8日星期三
That’s a lithium-ion battery cooking out
He said he threw the phone to the ground where it burnt the floor and melted a nearby electrical cord, resulting in the school being evacuated and the Airdrie fire department called in.Shayne’s mother, Tammy Cryderman, said she’s filed a complaint with the Canadian Safety Board because she fears the product could end up hurting someone else. Tammy Cryderman said her son complained that when he was using the phone, the screen began to get blurry and fuzzy. Shayne informed his mother that it began sparking and making high-pitched squealing noises before it started to melt and puff up in his hand.
Calls to the Apple media relations line seeking comment were not immediately returned.A technician at Apple’s telephone help center said he was unable to comment, but noted that Cryderman’s case was extremely rare.A representative who answered the phone at the Apple Store in Calgary’s Market Mall deferred a call for comment to Apple’s media line, but also noted that it was not common for iPhones to combust like how Cryderman’s claims.Ryan MacKay, a service technician at WestWorld Computers in Calgary, said he’s never personally seen a severe case like the Cryderman’s before.
Although WestWorld doesn’t service iPhones, they do deal with Apple/Macintosh computers and iPods, which also commonly use lithium-ion Dell Vostro A860 Battery Original . .“Google‘exploding lap tops’ and you’ll see lots of video of lap tops going up in smoke.” Although he had no dealings with Cryderman’s phone, he did say in his experience it sounded like a battery issue.
“They are superior in a lot of regards to the Nickel Metal Hydride … and all the other [batteries] they used to use because they can hold way more power. In 2006, millions of Sony manufactured lap top Original Dell WU841 Battery 56WH were recalled after it was discovered that in some rare cases, microscopic metals made during manufacturing could cause a short-circuit if they came in contact with other parts of the Dell D044H battery cell, potentially leading to a fire. Because Shayne’s iPhone was on a pre-paid plan and was a device he had bought second hand, there were some delays in getting a straight answer from Apple in regards to replacing the phone, Tammy Cryderman said.
“Now [Apple] said they’ll send a cheque and [will] replace his phone with whatever phone he chooses,” she said.“What I’m trying to do now is see if they can do a recall on these phones for people because if they’re that unsafe, or if it’s a problem with the battery itself, that needs to be corrected before someone really gets hurt.”Both older model iPhones and newer model phones commonly use lithium-ion Dell Vostro A840 Battery Original .An Airdrie high school student was lucky to avoid injury after he claims his Apple iPhone internally combusted and began smoking, hissing and expanded in his hand before he threw it to the ground.
Shayne Cryderman, a Grade 11 student at George McDougall High School, said he was texting on the phone at school March 23 when it suddenly got hot and began expanding. “It [expanded], it got really big and then it started to smoke a bit and then combusted inside,” “There’s been exploding laptops Original Dell T749D Battery 56WH for the last few years. It’s basically because of the way lithium-ion as a technology works.
Cryderman, 16, said.“I would have never even thought something like that could happen,” she said. “You don’t think of these things when you buy this technology.“You don’t want to see someone else have this happen and have it be something a lot more serious than what happened with my son.”
“That’s very scary,” she said. “People need to be aware and cautious about it.”The iPhone in question was an older generation model and not a newer 3G version, Shayne noted.
MacKay said he has never seen an iPod or Apple computer suffer a similar fate as Cryderman’s did.“I’ve seen really bubbled up lithium-ion batteries, but that’s just the technology as a whole and the way the lithium-ion batteries work as a class,” MacKay said. “But nothing ever fire related.
“That’s a lithium-ion battery cooking out,” he said.“But having way more power in them makes them way more volatile.During a telephone interview with MacKay, he explained the situation and asked what would likely cause an electrical device to act in a manner like Shayne Cryderman’s. The recall affected many companies who manufacture and selllaptops,including Apple.The mother and son said they have been in contact with Apple representatives about replacing the phone.
Calls to the Apple media relations line seeking comment were not immediately returned.A technician at Apple’s telephone help center said he was unable to comment, but noted that Cryderman’s case was extremely rare.A representative who answered the phone at the Apple Store in Calgary’s Market Mall deferred a call for comment to Apple’s media line, but also noted that it was not common for iPhones to combust like how Cryderman’s claims.Ryan MacKay, a service technician at WestWorld Computers in Calgary, said he’s never personally seen a severe case like the Cryderman’s before.
Although WestWorld doesn’t service iPhones, they do deal with Apple/Macintosh computers and iPods, which also commonly use lithium-ion Dell Vostro A860 Battery Original . .“Google‘exploding lap tops’ and you’ll see lots of video of lap tops going up in smoke.” Although he had no dealings with Cryderman’s phone, he did say in his experience it sounded like a battery issue.
“They are superior in a lot of regards to the Nickel Metal Hydride … and all the other [batteries] they used to use because they can hold way more power. In 2006, millions of Sony manufactured lap top Original Dell WU841 Battery 56WH were recalled after it was discovered that in some rare cases, microscopic metals made during manufacturing could cause a short-circuit if they came in contact with other parts of the Dell D044H battery cell, potentially leading to a fire. Because Shayne’s iPhone was on a pre-paid plan and was a device he had bought second hand, there were some delays in getting a straight answer from Apple in regards to replacing the phone, Tammy Cryderman said.
“Now [Apple] said they’ll send a cheque and [will] replace his phone with whatever phone he chooses,” she said.“What I’m trying to do now is see if they can do a recall on these phones for people because if they’re that unsafe, or if it’s a problem with the battery itself, that needs to be corrected before someone really gets hurt.”Both older model iPhones and newer model phones commonly use lithium-ion Dell Vostro A840 Battery Original .An Airdrie high school student was lucky to avoid injury after he claims his Apple iPhone internally combusted and began smoking, hissing and expanded in his hand before he threw it to the ground.
Shayne Cryderman, a Grade 11 student at George McDougall High School, said he was texting on the phone at school March 23 when it suddenly got hot and began expanding. “It [expanded], it got really big and then it started to smoke a bit and then combusted inside,” “There’s been exploding laptops Original Dell T749D Battery 56WH for the last few years. It’s basically because of the way lithium-ion as a technology works.
Cryderman, 16, said.“I would have never even thought something like that could happen,” she said. “You don’t think of these things when you buy this technology.“You don’t want to see someone else have this happen and have it be something a lot more serious than what happened with my son.”
“That’s very scary,” she said. “People need to be aware and cautious about it.”The iPhone in question was an older generation model and not a newer 3G version, Shayne noted.
MacKay said he has never seen an iPod or Apple computer suffer a similar fate as Cryderman’s did.“I’ve seen really bubbled up lithium-ion batteries, but that’s just the technology as a whole and the way the lithium-ion batteries work as a class,” MacKay said. “But nothing ever fire related.
“That’s a lithium-ion battery cooking out,” he said.“But having way more power in them makes them way more volatile.During a telephone interview with MacKay, he explained the situation and asked what would likely cause an electrical device to act in a manner like Shayne Cryderman’s. The recall affected many companies who manufacture and selllaptops,including Apple.The mother and son said they have been in contact with Apple representatives about replacing the phone.
2009年4月7日星期二
The mentioning of limited service life on lithium-ion has caused concern in the battery industry
The mentioning of limited service life on lithium-ion has caused concern in the battery industry and I will need to add some clarifications. Let me explain:
If someone asks how long we humans live, we would soon find out that the longevity varies according to life style and living conditions that exist in different countries. Similar conditions exist with the Dell Studio 1735 Battery Original 56WH batteries, lithium-ion in particular. Since BatteryUniversity bases its information on the feedback from users as opposed to scientific information derived from a research lab, longevity results may differ from manufacturer' specifications. Let's briefly look at the various living conditions of the lithium-ion battery.
If possible, store the
Dell RM791 Battery Original 56WH in a cool place at about a 40% state-of-charge. Some reserve charge is needed to keep the battery and its protection circuit operational during prolonged storage. Avoid keeping the battery at full charge and high temperature. This is the case when placing a cell phone or spare battery in a hot car. Running a laptop computer on the mains has a similar temperature problem. While the battery is kept fully charged, the inside temperature during operation rises to 45°C (113°F).
A large number of lithium-ion batteries for cell phones are being discarded under the warranty return policy. Some failed
Dell KM973 Battery Original 56WH are sent to service centers or the manufacturer, where they are refurbished. Studies show that 80%-90% of the returned batteries can be repaired and returned to service.
All personal computers (and some other electronic devices) contain a battery for memory back up. This battery is commonly a small non-rechargeable lithium cell, which provides a small current when the device is turned off. The PC uses the battery to retain certain information when the power is off. These are the BIOS settings, current date and time, as well as resource assignment for Plug and Play systems. Storage does shorten the service life of the backup battery to a few years. Some say 1-2 years. By keeping the computer connected to the main, albeit turned off, a battery on the PC motherboards should be good for 5-7 years. A PC should give the advanced warning when battery gets low. A dead back-up battery will wipe out the volatile memory and erase certain settings. After
Toshiba Satellite M50 Series battery is replaced, the PC should again be operational.
Removing the battery from the laptop when running on fixed power protects the battery from heat. With the concern of the battery overheating and causing fire, a spokesperson for the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission advises to eject the battery of affected laptops and to run the machines on a power cord. It should be noted that on a power outage, unsaved works will be lost.
The question is often asked, should the laptop be disconnected from the main when not in use? Under normal circumstances, it should not matter with lithium-ion. Once the battery is fully charged, no further charge is applied. However, there is always the concern is malfunction of the AC adapter, the laptop or the battery.
Not only is it better to charge lithium-ion battery at a slower charge rate, high discharge rates also contribute the extra wear and tear. Figure 3 shows the cycle life as a function of charge and discharge rates. Observe the good laboratory performance if the battery is charged and discharged at 1C. (A 0.5C charge and discharge would further improve this rating.)
Permanent capacity loss of lithium-ion as a function of temperature and charge level.
High charge levels and elevated temperatures hasten permanent capacity loss. Improvements in chemistry have increased the storage performance of lithium-ion batteries.
The voltage level to which the cells are charged also plays an important role to longevity. For safety reasons, most lithium-ion cannot exceed 4.20 volts per cell. While a higher voltage boosts capacity, the disadvantage is lower cycle life. Figure 2 shows the cycle life as a function of charge voltage
There are no remedies to restore lithium-ion once worn out. A momentary improvement in performance is noticeable when heating up the Dell F287H G069H Battery Original . This lowers the internal resistance momentarily but the condition reverts back to its former state when the temperature drops. Cold temperature will increase the internal resistance.
The worst condition is keeping a fully charged battery at elevated temperatures, which is the case with running laptop batteries. If used on main power, the battery inside a laptop will only last for 12-18 months. I must hasten to explain that the pack does not die suddenly but begins with reduced run-times.
Longevity of high-power lithium-ion Generally speaking, batteries live longer if treated in a gentle manner. High charge voltages, excessive charge rate and extreme load conditions will have a negative effect and shorten the battery life. This also applies to high current rate lithium-ion batteries.
Some lithium-ion batteries fail due to excessive low discharge. If discharged below 2.5 volts per cell, the internal safety circuit opens and the battery appears dead. A charge with the original charger is no longer possible. Some battery analyzers (Cadex) feature a boost function that reactivates the protection circuit of a failed battery and enables a recharge. However, if the cell voltage has fallen below 1.5V/cell and has remained in that state for a few months, a recharge should be avoided because of safety concerns. To prevent failure, never store the battery fully discharged. Apply some charge before storage, and then charge fully before use.
2009年4月5日星期日
sacrificing the mouse pad to save space
One of its features, “instant mode”, enables a quick boot up into Sony VGP-BPS2C ’s Xross Media Bar interface and access to music, video, photos and the web — without having to wait for Vista to boot. The webcam, located in the top right-hand corner of the panel, is also pretty cool.
My review unit has a 64GB solid-state drive powered by Intel’s Atom Z520 processors, running at 1.33 GHz. It’s got 2GB of RAM and ships with Windows Vista Home Premium. Models with a 60GB hard drive are also available.
The VGN-P15 has a built-in webcam, as well as noise-cancelling technology and included headphones (only with the VGN-P15G model). Unfortunately, the headphones had disappeared somewhere along the way before I got my review unit so I don’t know what they are like.
As expected with a lightweight machine like this,Sony VGP-BPS2B battery life is short. Sony VGP-BPS2A claims you can get up to three hours of use out of it, but I think that would require sticking to low-power tasks.
Sony VGP-BPL2C ’s ultraportable Vaio VGN-P15G arrived at my desk last week. Measuring 245 by 20 by 120 mm, and weighing in at 599 grams, it resembles a slightly larger than normal pencil case. It would easily slip into your bag or even your pocket.
The tiny machine also has built-in wireless LAN 802.11b/g/Draft n and Bluetooth. It sports two USB ports, a SD card slot, a memory card slot and a display port.
On the downside, sacrificing the mouse pad to save space, to me, was a mistake – I found the stick pointer difficult and annoying to use. I also found the keyboard quite difficult to type on. Sure, it is not meant to be a power-user work machine, though for the occasional email or jotting numbers down while out in the field it may work just fine. But I felt like I spent more time trying to do things on the VGN-P15 and getting annoyed when it didn’t work, rather than actually using it.
The 1600x768 LED display is just over 7 inches wide. Sony VGP-BPL2A says it is an 8-inch screen and this is true if measured diagonally.In my opinion — as cute and light as it is — with a recommended retail price of $2,299.95, the VGN-P15G is quite expensive for what it offers.
To sum up its advantages, the VGN-P15 is cute and lightweight with a nice colour range. It also gets extra points for its surprisingly small charger.
My review unit has a 64GB solid-state drive powered by Intel’s Atom Z520 processors, running at 1.33 GHz. It’s got 2GB of RAM and ships with Windows Vista Home Premium. Models with a 60GB hard drive are also available.
The VGN-P15 has a built-in webcam, as well as noise-cancelling technology and included headphones (only with the VGN-P15G model). Unfortunately, the headphones had disappeared somewhere along the way before I got my review unit so I don’t know what they are like.
As expected with a lightweight machine like this,Sony VGP-BPS2B battery life is short. Sony VGP-BPS2A claims you can get up to three hours of use out of it, but I think that would require sticking to low-power tasks.
Sony VGP-BPL2C ’s ultraportable Vaio VGN-P15G arrived at my desk last week. Measuring 245 by 20 by 120 mm, and weighing in at 599 grams, it resembles a slightly larger than normal pencil case. It would easily slip into your bag or even your pocket.
The tiny machine also has built-in wireless LAN 802.11b/g/Draft n and Bluetooth. It sports two USB ports, a SD card slot, a memory card slot and a display port.
On the downside, sacrificing the mouse pad to save space, to me, was a mistake – I found the stick pointer difficult and annoying to use. I also found the keyboard quite difficult to type on. Sure, it is not meant to be a power-user work machine, though for the occasional email or jotting numbers down while out in the field it may work just fine. But I felt like I spent more time trying to do things on the VGN-P15 and getting annoyed when it didn’t work, rather than actually using it.
The 1600x768 LED display is just over 7 inches wide. Sony VGP-BPL2A says it is an 8-inch screen and this is true if measured diagonally.In my opinion — as cute and light as it is — with a recommended retail price of $2,299.95, the VGN-P15G is quite expensive for what it offers.
To sum up its advantages, the VGN-P15 is cute and lightweight with a nice colour range. It also gets extra points for its surprisingly small charger.
2009年4月3日星期五
Applicants must show their products are technically feasible
The Zingareviches have vast interests in timber. In the early 1990s, they and Zakhar Smushkin began building what is now Ilim Holdings, based in St. Petersburg, Russia. In 2004, Forbes listed the brothers among the richest Russians. In the '90s, Ilim's legal director was Dmitry Medvedev. In 1999, Medvedev joined Putin's cabinet; last year, he become president. Ilim has prospered.
In 2007, it sold a 50% stake to International Paper (IP) for $620 million. Boris, Mikhail and Smushkin are on Ilim's board.
Attempts to reach Zingarevich through Ilim Group and through Bzinfin's attorney in Geneva were unsuccessful. However, in a statement, Ener1 blames the emergence of this issue on the efforts of a short seller to drive down its share price. It also notes that Boris Zingarevich has "indirect ownership of less than 40%" of its shares.
Gassenheimer says that Zingarevich joined the company "when the two founders ran into financial difficulties... If it were not for Boris, this company would not be alive today. He's been a tremendous partner, a patient investor. It's nice to have someone with this level of patience that is fully committed to the story." He adds that Zingarevich "as a matter of SEC rules...is deemed to 'beneficially own' a majority of our shares" but has no day-to-day role in the company.
And Gassenheimer says that, like many U.S. companies, its investors include Americans and foreigners.
Today, he adds, Ener1 has more than 90 customers (although he won't name them) and 15 programs for automotive or defense applications. Among potential customers: a large European auto maker now testing a laptopbattery pack for a hybrid; another big customer testing an electric-vehicle pack; and a national postal service considering converting vehicles to electric power.
"Dispositive and voting power" over the Ener1 shares held by Ener1 Group is exercised by a board that includes CEO Gassenheimer, Boris Zingarevich, Mikhail Zingarevich (Boris' brother) and Alexei Paramonov.
In any case, Ener1 has survived the first round of the DoE's loan process, which whittled the number of applicants to 25 from 75, and now must pass the DoE's due-diligence vetting.
Applicants must show that their products are technically feasible and their businesses are financially viable. The DOE requires that applicants have manufacturing facilities in the U.S., that engineering integration be done here, and that related costs be paid to American suppliers. The $480 million loan, it's hoped, will come through this year.
In theory, foreign control shouldn't matter to the Department of Energy. However, it wants to foster an American advanced-Toshiba PA3241U PA3241U-1ACA AC Adapter battery industry. The U.S. players now include A123 Systems, founded at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Johnson Controls (JCI), which has a joint venture with France's Saft Groupe (SAFT.France). Says Frank Gaffney, president of the Washington-based Center for Security Policy: "We desperately need to be establishing an industrial base in this country for a Toshiba PA3241U-1ACA AC Adapter battery technology... . [But] it's insanity to be building a national Toshiba PA3241U-2ACA AC Adapter battery infrastructure in the pockets of the oligarchs of the past and future Soviet Union." Kevin Kearns, president of the Washington-based U.S. Business & Industry Council, worries that Ener1's DOE-funded expertise could "be sucked out of the company and sent back to Russia." One factor behind such concerns: Advanced Toshiba PA3260E batteries are likely to have military, as well as civilian, uses.
The Ener1 CEO is clearly upset about the low stock price; he blames hedge funds having to sell HEV shares to meet redemptions. Ener1's prospects have never been brighter, he contends, and it has financing alternatives if the loan is denied. For example, it could seek a strategic partnership, like that of Toyota with Panasonic or Johnson Controls with Saft. Gassenheimer says he's been in talks about such deals since Ener1 bought out Delphi.
In 2007, it sold a 50% stake to International Paper (IP) for $620 million. Boris, Mikhail and Smushkin are on Ilim's board.
Attempts to reach Zingarevich through Ilim Group and through Bzinfin's attorney in Geneva were unsuccessful. However, in a statement, Ener1 blames the emergence of this issue on the efforts of a short seller to drive down its share price. It also notes that Boris Zingarevich has "indirect ownership of less than 40%" of its shares.
Gassenheimer says that Zingarevich joined the company "when the two founders ran into financial difficulties... If it were not for Boris, this company would not be alive today. He's been a tremendous partner, a patient investor. It's nice to have someone with this level of patience that is fully committed to the story." He adds that Zingarevich "as a matter of SEC rules...is deemed to 'beneficially own' a majority of our shares" but has no day-to-day role in the company.
And Gassenheimer says that, like many U.S. companies, its investors include Americans and foreigners.
Today, he adds, Ener1 has more than 90 customers (although he won't name them) and 15 programs for automotive or defense applications. Among potential customers: a large European auto maker now testing a laptopbattery pack for a hybrid; another big customer testing an electric-vehicle pack; and a national postal service considering converting vehicles to electric power.
"Dispositive and voting power" over the Ener1 shares held by Ener1 Group is exercised by a board that includes CEO Gassenheimer, Boris Zingarevich, Mikhail Zingarevich (Boris' brother) and Alexei Paramonov.
In any case, Ener1 has survived the first round of the DoE's loan process, which whittled the number of applicants to 25 from 75, and now must pass the DoE's due-diligence vetting.
Applicants must show that their products are technically feasible and their businesses are financially viable. The DOE requires that applicants have manufacturing facilities in the U.S., that engineering integration be done here, and that related costs be paid to American suppliers. The $480 million loan, it's hoped, will come through this year.
In theory, foreign control shouldn't matter to the Department of Energy. However, it wants to foster an American advanced-Toshiba PA3241U PA3241U-1ACA AC Adapter battery industry. The U.S. players now include A123 Systems, founded at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Johnson Controls (JCI), which has a joint venture with France's Saft Groupe (SAFT.France). Says Frank Gaffney, president of the Washington-based Center for Security Policy: "We desperately need to be establishing an industrial base in this country for a Toshiba PA3241U-1ACA AC Adapter battery technology... . [But] it's insanity to be building a national Toshiba PA3241U-2ACA AC Adapter battery infrastructure in the pockets of the oligarchs of the past and future Soviet Union." Kevin Kearns, president of the Washington-based U.S. Business & Industry Council, worries that Ener1's DOE-funded expertise could "be sucked out of the company and sent back to Russia." One factor behind such concerns: Advanced Toshiba PA3260E batteries are likely to have military, as well as civilian, uses.
The Ener1 CEO is clearly upset about the low stock price; he blames hedge funds having to sell HEV shares to meet redemptions. Ener1's prospects have never been brighter, he contends, and it has financing alternatives if the loan is denied. For example, it could seek a strategic partnership, like that of Toyota with Panasonic or Johnson Controls with Saft. Gassenheimer says he's been in talks about such deals since Ener1 bought out Delphi.
2009年4月1日星期三
Dell lays off workers
SAP is teaming with Sybase to offer its business applications on mobile devices, including the iPhone, Windows Mobile, BlackBerry, Symbian and Palm devices. The long-term partnership will leverage Sybase's Unwired Platform to make business processes from SAP Business Suite 7's available on every mobile device in the world. By the second half of the year, mobile device users should be able to access certain business processes, beginning with functionality from SAP's CRM application. The suite includes CRM as well as a range of ERP applications, such as human-resources, supply-chain and accounting applications.
Dell WR050 on Wednesday said it had laid off staff at different sites worldwide in an effort to cut costs and streamline operations. The company did not provide an exact number of employees it had laid off. However a company spokesman said that jobs were cut globally, including sites in Texas and North Carolina. The layoffs are the latest step by Dell TT485 to cut operating costs as it implements belt-tightening measures to fight the recession. Dell in February announced it would increasing its cost-cutting goal to US$4 billion by the end of fiscal 2011, a change from the original target of $3 billion announced in May last year.
And those are the top stories from the IDG Global IT News Update, brought to you by the IDG News Service. I'm Sumner Lemon in Singapore. Join us again later for more news from the world of technology.
One Laptop Battery Dell 56WH Per Child is set to dump x86 processors, instead opting to put low-power Arm-based processors in its next-generation XO-2 laptop with the aim of improving Dell FM332 battery life. The nonprofit is "almost" committed to putting the Arm-based chip in the next-generation XO-2 laptop, which is due for release in 18 months, said Nicholas Negroponte, chairman of OLPC. The XO-1 laptop currently ships with Advanced Micro Devices' aging Geode chip, which is based on an x86 design. OLPC's goal is to extend the battery life of the XO-2 laptop while building in more functionality than is in the XO-1.
America Online will close a research and development base in Beijing but keep trying to break into China's market amid the sliding global economy. The Beijing office, which opened in 2007 and has 56 staff, will be shut down by midyear given poor economic circumstances and reorganization plans. But AOL's Web portal for mainland China, launched last year, will continue to operate from the company's Hong Kong regional base. So will AOL sites that are separate from the portal, such as the Chinese version of technology blog Engadget. AOL also launched Web portals in Taiwan and Hong Kong last year, both of which will keep going.
Dell WR050 on Wednesday said it had laid off staff at different sites worldwide in an effort to cut costs and streamline operations. The company did not provide an exact number of employees it had laid off. However a company spokesman said that jobs were cut globally, including sites in Texas and North Carolina. The layoffs are the latest step by Dell TT485 to cut operating costs as it implements belt-tightening measures to fight the recession. Dell in February announced it would increasing its cost-cutting goal to US$4 billion by the end of fiscal 2011, a change from the original target of $3 billion announced in May last year.
And those are the top stories from the IDG Global IT News Update, brought to you by the IDG News Service. I'm Sumner Lemon in Singapore. Join us again later for more news from the world of technology.
One Laptop Battery Dell 56WH Per Child is set to dump x86 processors, instead opting to put low-power Arm-based processors in its next-generation XO-2 laptop with the aim of improving Dell FM332 battery life. The nonprofit is "almost" committed to putting the Arm-based chip in the next-generation XO-2 laptop, which is due for release in 18 months, said Nicholas Negroponte, chairman of OLPC. The XO-1 laptop currently ships with Advanced Micro Devices' aging Geode chip, which is based on an x86 design. OLPC's goal is to extend the battery life of the XO-2 laptop while building in more functionality than is in the XO-1.
America Online will close a research and development base in Beijing but keep trying to break into China's market amid the sliding global economy. The Beijing office, which opened in 2007 and has 56 staff, will be shut down by midyear given poor economic circumstances and reorganization plans. But AOL's Web portal for mainland China, launched last year, will continue to operate from the company's Hong Kong regional base. So will AOL sites that are separate from the portal, such as the Chinese version of technology blog Engadget. AOL also launched Web portals in Taiwan and Hong Kong last year, both of which will keep going.
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