If you put together battery packs yourself, mind the connections of the individual cells for the capacity and voltage
of the battery pack. Multiple-cell batteries can be connected in parallel or in series. When arranged in parallel, the
capacity is multiplied by the number of cells, but the voltage remains the same. With serial connection of the cells,
the voltage adds up and the capacity is the same. It is advisable to only connect lithium batteries in series.
d) general information about how to discharge
On the one hand, discharging is for determining the battery's residual capacity, and on the other, for discharging the
battery to a precisely defined value.
Monitor the discharging just as attentively as the charging. To prevent deep discharge, the residual voltage has to
be set correctly.
Lithium batteries must not be discharged below the minimum voltage indicated, as this can result in capacity loss or
total failure. In general, lithium batteries should not be deliberately discharged at all.
Some battery types display a memory effect when they are recharged after partial discharging. When only a part of
the available battery capacity is used, the battery „remembers" and also later only provides the recharged part of the
capacity.
NiCd and NiMH batteries should always be entirely discharged and not be charged for storage either, but rather be
allowed to discharge on their own. NiMH batteries display less of a memory effect than do NiCd batteries.
New NiCd batteries do not have maximum capacity until after approx ten charging/discharging cycles.
Lithium batteries should preferably be partially discharged. Frequent, complete discharging should be avoided.
Either charge the battery more frequently or a select a battery with higher capacity.
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