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Batteries
CTIA Certification

CTIA Certification

Exponent offers comprehensive regulatory compliance testing and consulting services for a variety of energy storage products, one of which is CTIA battery certification program.

What is CTIA Certification?

With the increasing use of portal devices powered by Li-Ion or Li-Ion polymer batteries, the safety concerns of the Li-ion technology need to be addressed. Traditional cell and battery standards address some aspects such as environmental, electrical, mechanical or transportation safety. They are not intended to encompass all reasonably foreseeable use and abuse conditions in battery applications, nor specifically designed for mobile phone applications, which has raised concerns surrounding the robustness of cell phone battery. This concern is heightened by recent several incidences where cell phone batteries burst. In response to such concerns as well as operator demands, the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association (CTIA), in partnership with leading cellular network operators, has developed “battery safety certification program” to verify conformance of applicable products to IEEE Standard 1725-2006, to help cell / battery pack and handset manufacturers raise safety and quality levels and to ensure reliable user experience.

CTIA Certification Process

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Elements of CTIA Certification

The battery safety certification program consists of the following elements:

  1. "Battery cell manufacturing site authorization based on on-site audit and analysis by a CTIA Authorized Test Lab (CATL) of management controls, process controls, quality systems and technical competence;
  2. Battery cell product recognition based on testing and analysis by a CATL, and cell vendor declaration of compliance;
  3. Battery pack product recognition based on testing and analysis by a CATL, and pack vendor declaration of compliance;
  4. Adapter product recognition based on testing and analysis by a CATL, and adapter vendor declaration of compliance;
  5. System certification based on use of recognized subsystems, System test and analysis by a CATL, and a System Vendor declaration of compliance."¹

For more information on the CTIA battery registration program requirements, procedures, and a listing of CTIA Authorized Testing Laboratories (CATLs) please refer to www.ctia.org.

IEEE 1725-2006 Standard

The IEEE 1725-2006 Standard, Standard for Rechargeable Batteries for Cellular Telephone, is created by IEEE in April 2006 to establish criteria for manufacturers/suppliers in planning and implementing the control for the design and manufacture of Li-ion and Li-Ion polymer rechargeable battery pack used for mobile phones. It encompasses the design, process, manufacturing and assembly considerations for battery cell, and battery pack short-circuit, thermal, overcharge, overdischarge, overcurrent, mechanical, terminal/connector and assembly considerations, as well as considerations for host and auxiliary devices including AC/DC, DC/DC adapters. Compliance to IEEE 1725-2006 Standard is granted on a system basis so all subsystem components including cell, battery pack, charger, or phone must be compliant to this standard before the integrated system is certified², ³. For more information, please refer to grouper.ieee.org/groups/1725/.

References:

  1. CTIA Battery Program Management Document, Revision 2.3, October 2008.
  2. IEEE Std 1725 - 2006 IEEE Standard for Rechargeable Batteries for Cellular Telephones
  3. Tyco Electronics, “IEEE 1725-2006: Standard for Rechargeable Batteries in Cellular Telephones”