News

Fantom Technologies Achieves Battery Reasearch Breakthrough with Omachron Technologies

April 25, 2000 by Jeff Shepard

Fantom Technologies Inc. (Toronto, Ontario) has had a breakthrough in its collaborative battery research with Omachron Technologies Inc. The two companies have identified a new physical concept, capable of extending battery output by 40 percent and allowing batteries to be recharged in only minutes instead of hours. The concept has also reduced electricity use by many appliances by as much as 50 percent, according to Fantom.

The new technology transfers energy between devices in the form of a specifically tuned electronic signal, called a pulse train, which is neither alternating or a direct current. The pulse train is delivered by a programmed circuit board.

This technology, which has several patent applications pending, is applicable to discharging batteries by optimizing the conversion of chemical to electrical energy, thereby increasing their capacity; charging batteries by minimizing heat produced and maximizing total capacity; accurately determining the remaining capacity of batteries (a problem with most modern batteries); and improving the overall electromechanical efficiency of a system in which electric motors drive fluids or mechanical systems.

Fantom has acquired exclusive rights to the power-control technology for a wide range of consumer products and plans to offer licenses for the technology use in other companies.

"We anticipate that this technology will allow many cord-free products to finally deliver on the promise of performance equivalent to traditional plug-ins," said Allan Millman, Fantom Technologies' president and CEO. "It's a leap forward we will first apply to a new line of floor-care products we plan to launch in late fall 2000."