LED lenser xeo 19r head lamp portable charging required.

[Echidna not]

Hello , I’m wondering if anyone else out there has an xeo 19r and wants to be able to recharge it while on the move or out in the bush ? Or has already made a device that charges there’s ?
I’ve contacted led lenser they don’t have any other options for charging this head lamp other than the plug into wall socket at home , so I’ve been scouring it the internet trying to find ways that it can be done by solar panel or car lighter socket, the best I could come up with was ..please see pic attachment,
I’m that someone can advise me whether this panel would work or if they have already rigged up a contraption to charge the xeo 19r battery that would be awesome .
Please help
Thankyou
Ps I’ve also gone to jaycar , the guy I spoke to there wasn’t any help .

[wazzawalkin]

I am not familiar with the head lamp, and assume from you photo the charging voltage is 18volts and the headlamp when being charger can draw up to 2.5Amps.
I doubt a 12v solar panel will give you much satisfactions.

Have a look at portable laptop chargers as some of them have a switchable output voltage which is generally much higher than 12v.

Wazza.

[Echidna not]

I am not familiar with the head lamp, and assume from you photo the charging voltage is 18volts and the headlamp when being charger can draw up to 2.5Amps.
I doubt a 12v solar panel will give you much satisfactions.

Have a look at portable laptop chargers as some of them have a switchable output voltage which is generally much higher than 12v.

Wazza.

Thanks wazza , I will check them out

[Mark F]

Can you open the battery box and check out the battery config in there? I expect you will find 2 Li cells in series giving 7.2v possibly 18560's which are very standard. If this is the situation and the cells do not have spot welded connections then there are chargers that will charge either in parallel using a 5v usb feed or in series at 12v using a camera type charger most probably modified.

[Echidna not]

Can you open the battery box and check out the battery config in there? .

Hi mark , I’ve checked the battery box, there is no way of me opening it without damaging the rubberised case as far is I can see, no screws or obvious exterior clips.
Thanks for replying

[Warin]

Power ...
18v x 2.5 a = 45 watts .. so something around 45 watts 18v solar panel ..
A 45w 12 v panel is a fair size 1meter by .75 meter .. say 2.5 kg.. ?

You can get inverters that will get you 240v then use the 240v charger to your lamp .. but figure losing 10% =on each so you would want something like 55 watts to start with .. to my way of thinking this is too much weight. If your car camping you have a 12v source form the car .. an inverter from that to power the standard charger.. If your worried about flatening the car battery .. start the car while your charging.

[michael_p]

I had a quick look at the xeo 19r specs and it lists the charge time as 8 hours. To top-up the battery in the field you are going to need some hours of direct sunlight. To do a full charge you will most likely need 8 hours of direct sunlight.

Output 1 of the battery pack is listed as being able to deliver 7.4v. An 18650 has a nominal voltage of 3.7v. So I would agree with mark that it is likely that they are using 18650 batteries in the power pack. This is not surprising as 18650s are commonly used in power packs. If you have a look on the label side (the side in the photo) you will see what looks like four plastic plugs. There is a good chance that under these plugs are some screws holding the unit together. Just note that opening a li-ion battery pack has risks and can go wrong quickly (I have first hand experience of it going wrong ).

Have you thought about getting a spare battery. It could be a lot easier than trying to find a workable field recharging system.

Cheers,
Michael.

[Echidna not]

Power ...
18v x 2.5 a = 45 watts .. so something around 45 watts 18v solar panel ..
A 45w 12 v panel is a fair size 1meter by .75 meter .. say 2.5 kg.. ?

You can get inverters that will get you 240v then use the 240v charger to your lamp .. but figure losing 10% =on each so you would want something like 55 watts to start with .. to my way of thinking this is too much weight. If your car camping you have a 12v source form the car .. an inverter from that to power the standard charger.. If your worried about flatening the car battery .. start the car while your charging.

Hi Warin ,
your right the inverters would be to much weight , I was hoping to rig up a small solar panel or charging jack from the car ,
I’m suppried that led lenser don’t manufacture car jack charger for this headlamp .
Thanks doing the maths for me and your reply Warin it’s appreciated.

[Echidna not]

I had a quick look at the xeo 19r specs and it lists the charge time as 8 hours. To top-up the battery in the field you are going to need some hours of direct sunlight. To do a full charge you will most likely need 8 hours of direct sunlight.

Output 1 of the battery pack is listed as being able to deliver 7.4v. An 18650 has a nominal voltage of 3.7v. So I would agree with mark that it is likely that they are using 18650 batteries in the power pack. This is not surprising as 18650s are commonly used in power packs. If you have a look on the label side (the side in the photo) you will see what looks like four plastic plugs. There is a good chance that under these plugs are some screws holding the unit together. Just note that opening a li-ion battery pack has risks and can go wrong quickly (I have first hand experience of it going wrong ).

Have you thought about getting a spare battery. It could be a lot easier than trying to find a workable field recharging system.

Cheers,
Michael.

G’day Michael ,
Thanks for taking the time to check out the specs of this headlamp .
I cant pull the power pack apart , I’m the sort that wouldn’t be able to put it back together without having pieces left over and it will void the warranty ,as you’ve stated about your first hand experience I’ve also heard that Li-on batteries are not to be messed with. Yes I have thought about just getting another battery,but the battery is pretty heavy , what I’ve also thought is if I use a smaller headlamp for around the campsite and just use the xeo 19r when I’m hiking at night ,
Thanks for your reply Michael

[Warin]

I'd not go near the output to charge the batteries .. stick with the charger inputs to keep any protection that it has.

Ebay has a number of responses to 18v 50w solar panel if you care to do a search. I'd cautious as the output voltage is not usually regulated and it may blow up things... but it is a start. As michael_p says - it will need a full 8 hours to full recharge the battery, so you go walking a t night and then have to stop in full daylight to charge the battery ... ummm I'd rather sleep at night and walk during the day myself.