Page 33 - Jan 20 TNT

voltage. These units can provide variable output power 5-20VDC and 3 amps to accommodate a wider array of portable devices.
Expanding Lithium-Ion Batteries
True Blue Power has been manufacturing lithium-ion batteries for aircraft for many years. The TB17 (17 amp- hour) is used in lighter aircraft such as the Cirrus G2 Vision Jet, Bell 505 Jet Ranger X, Robinson Helicopter R66 Turbine, Tecnam P2012 Traveller, Airbus Helicopter H130, Robinson R44 and Bonanza A36. In larger aircraft, such as the Bombardier DHC-8, Cessna Caravan 208 and Beechcraft King Air 350, the 44 amp-hour TB44 is utilized. The TB44 is also powering Textron Aviation’s newly certi- fied Cessna Citation Longitude. Last February, I flew the Cirrus Vision Jet G2 with the True Blue Power batteries and noticed the start performance was impressive, of- fering a quick engine acceleration and resulting low ITT.
Building upon their existing TB17 and TB44 products, True Blue Power recently released the Gen5 battery fam- ily, starting with three offerings: TB20 (20 amp-hour), TB30 (30 amp-hour) and TB40 (40 amp-hour). The new series has a different form factor than their original line of batteries. The Gen5 is also certified to the FAA’s most stringent C179B Class A-4B rating.
Todd Winter, president and CEO of Mid-Continent Instruments and Avionics and True Blue Power, met
True Blue Power's latest TA360 series.
with us at NBAA-BACE in Las Vegas regarding the design of their latest batteries. Listening to Todd describe the products, using the term “battery” for these devices is an over-simplification. It is probably more accurate to refer to them as “power systems.” When we think of conventional aircraft batteries, it invokes a visualization of a plastic or composite case, holding plates, separators, electrolyte and terminals. Yet, True Blue Power’s lithium-ion batteries are sophisticated devices with integrated management and monitoring capability.
True Blue Power Technology
True Blue Power batteries contain a large number of small lithium-iron Nanophosphate (LiFePO4) cells, wired in a combination of series and parallel circuits, to not
Paul Bowen Photography Aeromania
January 2020 / TWIN & TURBINE • 31