EBME Forums Forums Maintenance Technical Assistance BBraun perfusor / infusomat batteries

Has anyone else experienced problems with BBraun batteries, whereby a pump can show a fully charged battery when in its docking station, but gives a battery depleted message if its removed from being charged and then the syringe drive is activated when its switched on. To me this message is misleading, in that it cannot be fully charged one minute and flat the next. I have reported this to the MHRA and to BBraun.
Anyone else seen the same thing? Did you replace the batteries?
What do others do regarding battery replacement on these pumps? BBraun dont actually give a reccomended replacement interval.
Richard Chelsea & Westminster 0208 746 8140

I think you will find these batteries are "smart batteries ". This means they have 5 contact pads on them, 2 give the actual power to the unit and the other 3 give various comms with the on board pic in the battery.

So a fully charged battery, giving the volts on 2 pads will lose contact on one of the comms and the pump will not see a battery and be able to report its status, so it says "no battery inside".

B Braun have "battery fixation kits" to stop the batteries bouncing inside the units and causing connection issues.

If you buy a newer battery contact or motherboard you will see they have beefed up the contact size.

In the short term, clean the contacts on the battery, you will see pitting and little bits of black residue.

It seems to solve the problem.

Please note sarcasm follows

B Braun will tell you, no one else has this problem.

This is why they have all these fixes in place and I know what the problem is........

Another problem is that somehow the battery data gets corrupted, probably due to the bad contacts. To cure this, use the service software and select battery test. The test can be cancelled as soon as its started and what appeared to be an empty battery, suddenly becomes fully charged!!!

Yet another sorry saga concerning so-called "smart batteries".

Is it only me who has become fed up with manufacturers "developing" equipment whilst it is in service? Or (in other words):- making it up as they go along.

Far better (I would suggest, and argue) to design the kit properly in the first place. That is, to implement designs incorporating proven technology, and with due consideration to where (and how, and under what conditions) it will be used. What is needed is functional, rugged, easily maintained and (probably above all) reliable equipment - not the latest gee whiz "advances".

If we must have Guinea Pigs ... let's have them in consumer electronics, rather than the medical field. We are, after all, talking about medical equipment here, not toys!

On the other hand (and as I may have asked before), can someone remind us what benefits we are supposed to be enjoying from the imposition of such wonderful New Technology?

Have you done the in-built battery maintenance it is supposed to fix these sort of problems.
Robert

Perfusor compact / S .... if the battery is old, it is necessary to replace an original B.Braun, each other is not original replacement parts and can not be used

Perfusor SPACE - sometimes it happens that in the space station, the battery discharges. The first option to restore its condition is to run the battery maintenance. The second option is to revive the battery out of the space station on an external source for B.Braun SPACE. If none of the above options do not work, it is necessary to replace the battery, it is a smart battery, when, after the reduction in capacity below a certain value, and the battery does not recharge the device battery has an error

"Smart" technology? I can't see what's smart about a technology that inhibits the use of the equipment it sits in.

Again I'm wondering what we are supposed to be gaining by all this [censored] about?