Can ‘True Balancing’ Bring EV Batteries Back from the Dead?Can ‘True Balancing’ Bring EV Batteries Back from the Dead?
At DesignCon, the answer is ‘yes,’ using this unique battery management system add-on that monitors and moves energy between cells in a battery pack.

A session at DesignCon 2025 event caught my attention this week: On January 30th, Clint O’Conner, a co-founder of True Balancing LLC, promises to explain ‘Resurrecting “Dead” Tesla Batteries with Advanced Battery Management Technology,' a task that sounds like it would require something beyond the realm of science.
But neither theology nor literary characters (sorry, Dr. Frankenstein) turns out to be required: Instead, O’Conner presents the results of a joint research project by True Balancing LLC and the Center for Energy Research (CER) at UC San Diego, in which a set of used Tesla Model Y battery modules with states of health ranging from “pretty good” to “dead” are resuscitated and given extended life through the use of the LLC’s eponymous battery management system add-on.
How True Balancing (the product) works
True Balancing is a groundbreaking active balancing technology that optimizes battery performance by addressing inherent inefficiencies in traditional battery management systems (BMS).
At its core, True Balancing moves energy between individual cells within a battery to ensure consistent state of charge (SOC) across all cells. This is achieved through switch mode dividers (SMDs)—highly efficient, widely used circuits that transfer energy between cells via "balancing legs." Each balancing leg includes a current sensor that monitors current flow for safety and precision. By continuously measuring both voltage and current at each cell, True Balancing calculates internal impedance (resistance) on a cell-by-cell basis. This real-time data enables unparalleled control over energy distribution, allowing batteries to operate more efficiently and extend their usable lifespan.

True Balancing LLC co-founder and business-development lead Clint O'Conner Credit: DesignCon 2025
Benefits for battery and EV manufacturers
True Balancing delivers several advantages to battery manufacturers. By improving cell balance, it increases battery capacity by 5%-10% and extends battery life by approximately 20% for tier-1 batteries, all without requiring changes to manufacturing processes. Battery manufacturers gain access to detailed, real-time data on cell health and aging, including measurements of DC resistance and AC impedance. Additionally, True Balancing compensates for differences in cell characteristics, reducing the need for tightly matched cells and lowering manufacturing costs. Batteries equipped with True Balancing can achieve tier-1 performance levels, even when starting with tier-2 cells.
For EV manufacturers, True Balancing delivers significant cost reductions and performance improvements. By increasing available battery capacity by 5% in new batteries and 10%-15% (or more) in aging batteries, manufacturers can use smaller, less expensive batteries without sacrificing range or enhance driving range with the same battery size. With True Balancing, tier-2 batteries can perform comparably to tier-1 batteries with traditional balancing technology, enabling cost savings. True Balancing also extends battery life, detects failing cells early, and compensates for thermal gradients within battery packs, improving overall reliability and safety.
At DesignCon, O’Conner explains how applying an advanced battery management technology to the Tesla modules increased the state of health (SOH) of the modules and, most notably, resurrected the “dead” modules—bringing them back to a viable SOH and significantly extending their life. (I’m sorry I’m not there in person to see if anyone yells, in their best Colin Clive or Gene Wilder voice, “They Live!”)
It's not too late to register for DesignCon 2025.
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