LiPo or Lithium Polymer batteries (more correctly lithium-ion polymer) are a type of rechargeable battery used in multiple applications where power to weight ratios are critical.
One important differentiator of LiPo cells is their physical layout. While lithium-ion cells are typically in cylindrical or prismatic rigid metal cases, LiPo batteries have a flexible, foil type case that come in many shapes and sizes to suit different applications. And each LiPo package can be tailored for different number of cells in series, power held, and maximum discharge current supported. This adds immense flexibility to their use, and also their charging requirements.
Typical applications of LiPo batteries include:
- Modelling applications – including hobby and commercial drones, radio controlled cars, boats and aircraft, and larger scale model trains.
- Personal electronics – including mobile devices, power banks, thin laptops and portable media players through to PC peripherals and electronic cigarettes.
- Other home and office uses like Uninterruptible Power Supplies, jump starters for cars and some electric vehicles.
We should also note that in the modelling world there is an added degree of complexity with many chargers capable of charging different sizes of batteries provided the details are entered correctly (number of cells, size of battery, maximum charging current). So the one-to-one mapping of charger to battery/device type (say a cordless power tool) doesn’t always apply. This opens up additional needs for rigorous procedures to avoid inappropriate settings.