Advancing Battery Management

Welcome to Midtronics

Thank you for your interest in Midtronics and for visiting our website. Focused entirely on Battery Management Innovation, Midtronics is committed to using our patented technologies to satisfy our many customers. Our website is designed to offer information on Midtronics products, technologies and capabilities, and provide an opportunity for us to receive feedback to address your battery management needs.

Midtronics is a fast-growing company with an energetic, passionate and innovative leadership team. Our products are carefully crafted and easy-to-use, which provides our customers with compelling value propositions. Our impressive growth and success in worldwide transportation and stationary power markets is rooted in entrepreneurial spirit and the hard work and dedication of all associates. Midtronics people are expected to uphold the principles of personal integrity, responsiveness and professional excellence, each of which has made us so successful.

We pride ourselves in the quality of our products and services, the depth of our research, and the strength of our engineering and product development capabilities. Our highly motivated management and technical staff are dedicated to profitable growth by meeting and exceeding the expectations of our diverse global customers.

I hope you find this web site informative and give us the opportunity to satisfy your needs.

Sincerely,

Steve McShane
President, C.E.O.

Transforming the Industry in Ways that Challenge Expectations

Every day, battery power becomes more crucial to businesses, to infrastructure, to our daily lives. That’s why Midtronics believes in better battery management. We’ve built our global business on helping customers manage their vital battery resources reliably and efficiently.

Customers count on Midtronics to apply our extensive technical expertise and deliver customized battery management solutions to:

Reduce risk
Improve reliability
Minimize downtime
Maximize return on investment

Serving the Transportation and Stationary Power Markets

Industry-leading companies in the Transportation and Stationary Power markets turn to us because we’re committed to the continuous improvement of our products and services to make them:

More accurate
More reliable
Easier to use

With battery technology and customer needs constantly advancing, Midtronics continues to dedicate our experience, expertise and technical talent to advancing battery management. Midtronics introduced modern battery testing technology and we have the dedicated drive and unique know-how to innovate for the future.

The Midtronics tradition of industry-leading innovation continues, building on more than 25 years of collective knowledge in battery management. Every day, we’re applying that knowledge to make valuable improvements in battery and electrical service, warranty management, preventative maintenance, customer service and more.

Here’s the history of battery management advancements at Midtronics:

1984

Midtronics founded by Steve McShane

1986

Introduction of PowerSensor line of conductance testers for SLI batteries

1989

Introduced first battery tester designed for stationary batteries

1990

Midtronics b.v. established

1992

Introduction of PowerSensor OC612A – the first conductance tester able to test discharged batteries before charging

1996

Introduction of PowerSensor Plus – the first conductance tester with automatic state of charge compensation for testing discharged batteries

1994

First OEM essential tool – Ford USA PowerSensor Plus

1996

Micro390 – essential tool order from Ford Europe – invention of the warranty test code

1996

Micro400 – first digital battery conductance analyzer

1998

Introduced MicroCelltron Stationary Power Analyzer in partnership with British Telecom – first stationary power product required for battery testing across the entire BT network

1998

Micro500 – first hand-held battery and electrical system analyzer, including no amps required electrical testing

1999

PowerLogic – first diagnostic charger for aftermarket retail use in partnership with Johnson Controls, Inc.

2001

GR-1 – first diagnostic charger platform for service garage applications

2002

FGuard battery created in partnership with Furukawa batteries of Japan – first built-in conductance tester for an automotive battery

2002

ED-18 Early Detection Analyzer released in partnership with Interstate Battery Systems of America – first battery preventative maintenance tool

2003

Midtronics Celltron Advanced Analyzer introduced, making effective analysis of large format telecom batteries quick and easy

2004

Enhanced conductance technology developed and released in the Celltron Ultra, the first highly noise immune battery analyzer for UPS application testing

2005

EXP-1000 Expandable Electrical Diagnostic platform – innovations include dynamic conductance technology with deep scan, DSP alternator diagnostics, and conductance cable drop technology

2006

GR8 Battery and Electrical Diagnostic Station – first created in partnership with Toyota USA; Now an essential service tool at nearly every North American automotive dealership

2007

Midtronics enters the automated remote monitoring market with the first in its class CellGuard wireless battery monitoring system

2008

Celltraq Enterprise Battery Asset Management System becomes the first monitoring/portable testing integrated data management tool for large battery deployments

2009

Midtronics first multi-frequency analyzer, the Celltron Max, introduced to stationary power operators as a tool for managing reserve batteries as well as generator starting batteries

2010

HYB Hybrid Battery System Analyzer – First battery tester for Hybrid vehicles

2010

ED-18V3 launched in partnership with Interstate Battery System of America; First use of cellular communications technology in a hand-held electrical system analyzer

2010

Midtronics acquires the assets of Lynai Data Inc. and its BatteryNet and FacilityWare products, pioneering service offerings in the battery data/field operations automation area

Innovative Technologies

Midtronics is founded on innovation and technical expertise. The company's more then 25-year history has resulted in a significant portfolio of patents and other intellectual property that are at the heart of new products and technologies for effective battery management. Further, the Midtronics engineering staff continually seeks to expand the technology related to battery testing and charging.

As an organization rooted in innovation and technological development, Midtronics has amassed a significant portfolio of patents and technologies. This continued creativity and diligence in creating and improving our core technology will help to maintain our leadership position in battery testing. Following is our list of U.S. patents. Many of these are also covered in patents and patent applications globally.

6,933,727
Electronic battery tester cable
Claims: 23
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,941,234
Query based electronic battery tester
Claims: 27
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

7,081,755
Battery tester capable of predicting a discharge voltage/discharge current of a battery
Claims: 20
Inventors: James K. Klang, Gregory P. Fang

7,106,070
Broad-band low conductance cables for making kelvin connections to electrochemical cells and batteries
Claims: 26
Inventors: Kevin I. Bertness, Keith S. Champlin

7,154,276 (pdf)
Method and Apparatus for Measuring a Parameter of a Vehicle Electrical System
Claims: 24
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

3,873,911
Electronic battery testing device
Claims: 25
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

3,909,708
Electronic battery testing device
Claims: 23
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

4,322,685
Automatic battery analyzer including apparatus for determining presence of single bad cell
Claims: 50
Inventors: Charles E. Frailing, Thomas Dougherty, Richard Johnson

4,816,768
Electronic battery testing device
Claims: 40
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

4,825,170
Electronic battery testing device with automatic voltage scaling
Claims: 19
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

4,881,038
Electronic battery testing device with automotive voltage scaling to determine dynamic conductance
Claims: 19
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

4,912,416
Electronic battery testing device with state-of-charge compensation
Claims: 10
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

5,140,269
Electronic tester for assessing battery / cell capacity
Claims: 45
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

5,343,380
Method and apparatus for suppressing time-varying signals in batteries undergoing charging or discharging
Claims: 8
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

5,469,043
Method for optimizing the charging of lead-acid batteries and an interactive charger
Claims: 9
Inventors: Jing-Yih Cherng, James K. Klang

5,572,136
Electronic battery testing device
Claims: 11
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

5,574,355
Method and apparatus for detection and control of thermal runaway in a battery under charged
Claims: 20
Inventors: Stephen J. McShane , Mark Hlavac, Kevin I. Bertness

5,583,416
Apparatus and method for step-charging batteries to optimize charge acceptance
Claims: 21
Inventor: James K. Klang

5,585,728
Electronic battery tester with automatic compensation for low state-of-charge
Claims: 26
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

5,589,757
Apparatus and method for step-charging batteries to optimize charge acceptance
Claims: 45
Inventor: James K. Klang

5,592,093
Electronic battery testing device loose terminal connection detection via a comparison circuit
Claims: 11
Inventor: August G. Klingbiel

5,598,098
Electronic battery tester with very high noise immunity
Claims: 12
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

5,656,920
Method and apparatus for charging a lead-acid battery
Claims: 34
Inventors: Jing-Yih Cherng, James K. Klang

5,757,192
Method and apparatus for detecting a bad cell in a storage battery
Claims: 12
Inventors: Stephen J. McShane, Kevin I. Bertness

5,821,756
Electronic battery tester with tailored compensation for low state-of-change
Claims: 12
Inventors: Stephen J. McShane, Kevin I. Bertness, Keith S. Champlin

5,831,435
Battery tester for JIS standard
Claims: 6
Inventor: Michael E. Troy

5,871,858
Anti-theft battery
Claims: 26
Inventors: Jes Thomsen, Tore Rehnberg

5,914,605
Electronic battery tester
Claims: 11
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

5,945,829
Midpoint battery monitoring
Claims: 9
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,002,238
Method and apparatus for measuring complex impedance of cells and batteries
Claims: 42
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

6,037,751
Method and apparatus for charging batteries
Claims: 33
Inventor: James K. Klang

6,037,777
Method and apparatus for determining battery properties from complex impedence / admittance
Claims: 21
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

6,051,976
Method and apparatus for auditing a battery test
Claims: 54
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,081,098
Method and apparatus for charging a battery
Claims: 101
Inventors: Kevin I. Bertness, Stephen J. McShane

6,091,245
Method and apparatus for auditing a battery test
Claims: 29
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,104,167
Method and apparatus for charging a battery
Claims: 34
Inventors: Kevin I. Bertness, Stephen J. McShane

6,137,269
Method and apparatus for electronically evaluating the internal temperature of an electrochemical cell or battery
Claims: 11
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

6,163,156
Electrical connection for electronic battery tester
Claims: 20
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,172,483 B1
Method and apparatus for measuring complex imedance of cells and batteries
Claims: 52
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

6,172,505 B1
Electronic battery tester
Claims: 42
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,222,369 B1
Method and apparatus for determining battery properties from complex impedance / admittance
Claims: 25
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

6,225,808 B1
Test counter for electronic battery tester
Claims: 25
Inventors: Philip Varghese, Michael Cable, Michael E. Troy, David Lewis

6,249,124
Electronic battery tester with internal battery
Claims: 56
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,259,254
Apparatus and method for carrying out diagnostic tests on batteries and for rapidly charging batteries
Claims: 20
Inventor: James K. Klang

6,262,563
Method and apparatus for measuring complex admittance of cells and batteries
Claims: 94
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

6,294,896
Method and apparatus for measuring complex self-immitance of a general electrical element
Claims: 100
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

6,294,897
Method and apparatus for electronically evaluating the internal temperature of an electrochemical cell or battery
Claims: 37
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

6,304,087
Apparatus for calibrating electronic battery tester
Claims: 20
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,310,481
Electronic battery tester
Claims: 14
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,313,607
Method and apparatus for evaluating stored charge in an electrochemical cell or battery
Claims: 19
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

6,313,608
Method and apparatus for charging a battery
Claims: 120
Inventors: Phillip Varghese, Kevin I. Bertness, Stephen J. McShane

6,316,914
Testing parallel strings of storage batteries
Claims: 32
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,323,650 B1
Electronic battery tester
Claims:40
Inventors: Kevin I. Bertness, Jamey L. Butteris

6,329,793
Method and apparatus for charging a battery
Claims: 78
Inventors: Kevin I. Bertness, Stephen J. McShane

6,331,762
Energy management system for automotive vehicle
Claims: 299
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,332,113
Electronic battery tester
Claims: 47
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,351,102
Automotive battery charging system tester
Claims: 123
Inventor: Michael E. Troy

6,359,441
Electronic battery tester
Claims: 22
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,363,303
Electronic battery tester
Claims: 67
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,377,031
Intelligent switch for power management
Claims: 25
Inventors: Samy Karuppana, Aly Jetha, Jes Thomsen

6,392,414
Electronic battery tester
Claims: 19
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,417,669
Suppressing interference in AC measurements of cells, batteries and other electrochemical measurements
Claims: 98
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

6,424,158
Apparatus and method for carrying out diagnostic tests on batteries and for rapidly charging batteries
Claims: 40
Inventor: James K. Klang

6,437,957
System and method for providing surge, short and reverse polarity connection protection
Claims: 27
Inventors: Samy Karuppana, Aly Jetha, Jes Thomsen

6,441,585
Apparatus and method for testing rechargeable energy storage batteries
Claims:34
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,445,158
Vehicle electrical system tester with encoded output
Claims: 118
Inventors: Kevin I. Bertness, Michael E. Troy

6,456,045
Integrated conductance and load test based electronic battery tester
Claims: 36
Inventors: Michael E. Troy, Kevin I. Bertness

6,465,908
Intelligent power management system & head lamp life extender with daytime running light control
Claims: 33
Inventors: Samy Karuppana, Aly Jetha, Jes Thomsen

6,466,025
Alternator tester
Claims: 31
Inventor: James K. Klang

6,466,026
Programmable current exciter for measuring AC immitance of cells and batteries
Claims: 11
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

6,469,511
Battery clamp with embedded environment sensor
Claims: 33
Inventors: David J. Vonderhaar, Kevin I. Bertness

6,495,990
Method and apparatus for evaluating stored charge in an electrochemical cell or battery
Claims: 25
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

6,497,209
System and method for protecting a cranking subsystem
Claims: 22
Inventors: Samy Karuppana, Aly Jetha, Jes Thomsen

6,507,196
Battery charge indicator
Claims: 9
Inventors: Jes Thomsen, Tore Rehnberg

6,534,993
Electronic battery tester
Claims: 28
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,544,078
Battery clamp with integrated current sensor
Claims: 36
Inventors: A.J. Palmisano, Kevin I. Bertness

6,556,019
Electronic battery tester
Claims: 17
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,566,883
Electronic battery tester
Claims: 22
Inventors: Kevin I. Bertness, David J. Vonderhaar

6,586,941
Battery tester with databus
Claims: 15
Inventors: Kevin I. Bertness, Stephen J. McShane

6,597,150
Method of distributing jump start booster packs
Claims: 14
Inventors: Kevin I. Bertness, Ronald J. Ortiz

6,621,272
Programmable current exciter for measuring AC immitance of cells and batteries
Claims: 35
Inventor: Keith S. Champlin

6,621,314
Kelvin clamp for electrically coupling to a battery contact
Claims: 23
Inventors: Kevin I. Bertness, Jamey L. Butteris, Daniel C. Cox

6,633,165
In-vehicle battery monitor
Claims:130
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,635,974
Self-learning power management system and method
Claims: 38
Inventors: Aly Jetha, Samy Karuppana, Jes Thomsen

6,696,819
Battery charge control device
Claims: 13
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,707,303
Electronic battery tester
Claims: 33
Inventors: Kevin I. Bertness, Jamey L. Butteris

6,871,151
Electronic battery tester with network communication
Claims: 43
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,885,195
Method and apparatus for auditing a bettery test
Claims: 34
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,906,522
Battery tester with battery replacement output
Claims: 59
Inventors: Kevin I. Bertness, William G. Sampson

6,906,523
Method and apparatus for testing cells and batteries embedded in series / parallel systems.
Claims: 70
Inventors: Kevine I. Bertness, Keith S. Champlin

6,909,287
Energy management system for automotive vehicle
Claims: 15
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

6,913,483
Cable for electronic battery tester
Claims: 15
Inventors: Harvey A. Restaino, Edward J. Amato

6,914,413
Alternator tester with encoded output
Claims: 43
Inventors: Kevin I. Bertness, Michael E. Troy

6,930,485
Electronic battery tester with battery failure temperature determination
Claims: 24
Inventor: Kevin I. Bertness

Claims: 22
Inventors: Kevin I. Bertness, David J. Vonderhaar