How active balancing works
The manufacturer's description of active balance — also called lossless balance — is that it transfers the high energy to the low energy cells, or uses the whole pack's energy to supplement the lowest battery, through an energy storage link that redistributes energy where it is needed. The contrast is passive equalisation, where each cell is paralleled with a resistor shunt and the excess energy of fuller cells is consumed as heat to bring the pack to voltage balance.
The practical difference: active balancing recovers energy instead of wasting it, works at a meaningful current (2 A on this platform, against the milliamp-level bleed of typical passive boards), and keeps high- and low-capacity cells working together longer, which protects the usable capacity of the whole pack.
The platform
The active balance BMS shares the PCS BMS datasheet reproduced on the battery management system page: DC 36 to 72V working voltage, 16 cells per BMS, cell voltage measurement from 1.0 to 5.0V with plus or minus 0.2% error, current measurement error of plus or minus 0.5%, six temperature points from -20 to 85 C, three CAN buses and one RS485, and 2 A active balancing. Intelligent, efficient cell-by-cell balancing is the feature that maximises the usable range of the battery.
Where active balancing earns its cost
Large storage packs and high-cycle motive packs drift furthest apart between cells, and they are exactly the packs on this platform — 51.2V storage systems and forklift traction batteries. Send your pack configuration — cell count, voltage, capacity and communication needs — for a specified quote. Minimum order quantities and lead times are confirmed on quotation.
Active versus passive, in operating terms
The passive method equalises by wasting: each cell is paralleled with a resistor shunt, and the fuller cells' excess energy is consumed as heat until voltages match. That works, slowly, on small packs. On a 16-cell storage pack cycled daily, the active method's advantage compounds: balancing happens at 2 A during normal operation rather than as a trickle at full charge, less energy leaves the system as heat, and the pack spends its life with cells working together instead of the weakest cell dictating every cycle's end. For high-cycle packs, balancing method is a lifespan decision, not a component preference.