ABSTRACT:
This Generic Requirements document (GR) presents proposed generic criteria for Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) batteries intended to function seamlessly with DC power plants and provide reliable backup power to load equipment located in a network environment of a typical telecommunications service provider.

NiMH batteries compliant with the criteria in this document are recommended for deployment in the Central Office (CO), Outside Plant (OSP), and at locations such as Controlled Environmental Vaults (CEVs), Electronic Equipment Enclosures (EEEs), and huts, and in uncontrolled structures such as cabinets.

The objectives of GR-3168 are to:

• Simplify the complexities associated with product introduction, qualification, and deployment by providing a common framework for evaluating and qualifying various NiMH battery technologies.
• Help ensure robust battery design and manufacturing early in the product's life cycle.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of protection circuitry.
• Provide functional design and technical guidelines for this new technology.
• Present commentaries that address the complexities of assessing NiMH battery service life.

• NiMH battery subsystem design and specification (i.e., the design and specification of component cell(s), protection switches, fuses, separators, rupture disks, etc.).
• Recommended practices for the installation, maintenance, and replacement of NiMH batteries.
• NiMH flooded battery systems.