Hero Electric to offer device with 3 alarms to prevent fire in e-scooters
Amid multiple incidents of electric scooters catching fire, Hero Electric is testing a device that would send three levels of alarm for the scooter user if the battery temperature increases beyond the safety limit. The preventive device has been developed by Maker Max, a Canadian start-up, and can be easily attached to the battery box, said a top executive at the company.
“We have all seen fire and smoke alarms installed in offices and many homes. The battery alarm works on the same principle. We have got the design of a miniature battery safety alarm from a Canadian start-up and we are testing the prototype and should be ready to offer it to our customers in a few weeks from now,” said Sohinder Gill, CEO Hero Electric.
The device is self -powered on a button cell and is integrated with a thermal. The battery alarm can be easily pasted on the battery box and it can forewarn the customer of any abnormal heating of a battery giving enough time to the customer to take any preventive action. This is particularly handy in case of scooters that have portable batteries that can be easily removed and inspected with ease.
According to Gill, this is one another step just to build a higher level of confidence among the buyers that the manufacturers can take even if they are using safest chemistries and best of the battery designs.
On whether the fire incidents have created fear among buyers and, in turn, impacted bookings and enquiries at Hero and other manufacturers, Gill, who also heads the EV makers lobby Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV), said while such incidents haven’t impacted the walk-in at the showrooms of Hero and others, buyers are spending half the time understanding the batteries and the technology.
“People continue to crave for our products and we have a 45-to-60 day waiting for our models,” he said.
India sold 330,000 units of e-two-wheelers in FY22, against 144,000 units in FY21.
Going by the current rate of bookings, Gill expects the numbers to swell up to 900,000 units by the end of FY23.
Stoking the concerns on the safety of electric vehicles further, a batch of 20 electric scooters from Jitendra EV caught fire on April 9; the container had 40 scooters in all. No casualties were reported. The incident took place, even as the memories of at least half a dozen e-scooter going up in flames over the last six months were fresh.
Amitabh Kant on Wednesday asked EV original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to voluntarily recall batches involved in the EV fire incidents. Speaking to CNBC, he said the time is ripe for the EV industry to instill a sense of confidence in consumers the way global automakers do by voluntarily recalling their vehicles over fire risks.
“Manufacturing of (battery) cells isn’t regulated. The battery management system needs to be strengthened. There has been a clear partnership between battery manufacturing and battery management,” he told the business news channel..
Gill welcomes the government’s idea of voluntarily recalling the bikes, however he says we should not expect the government to work like police. Perhaps the need of the hour is to relook at the certification standards factoring India specific climatic and driving conditions and responsibility of good brands to come out with innovations to ensure safe and optimally performing products, he said.
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