Facilitating the Removal of Lithium-Ion Batteries Powering Amazon’s Tablet Devices
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- The objective of this project is to improve the sustainability of Amazon’s battery-powered tablet devices through a battery removal solution that reduces e-waste. Every year, nearly half of the tablets and eReaders sent in to Amazon’s reverse logistics Organization for repair, refurbishing, and recycling are thrown out due to the difficulty of removing the battery without damage to the battery or the rest of the system. This waste is driven by the adhesives currently used to attach the battery to the tablet. Separating the battery from the tablet often leads to denting, puncturing, or leaving behind residual adhesive, each of which is enough to prevent the battery and tablet from being recycled or reused. Over the past 19 weeks, our team has worked closely with engineers from Amazon Lab126, Amazon’s research and development organization responsible for designing and engineering the company’s tablet devices, to tackle this problem. Through extensive engineering analysis, prototyping, and experimentation, our team has devised the “slide-in casing” solution, a novel design that changes the way batteries are attached to Amazon’s tablets. The “slide-in casing” is an enclosure designed to hold the battery inside of the tablet, in effect acting as an interface between the battery and adhesive. In avoiding the need to apply adhesive directly to the battery, we are able to eliminate the aforementioned damages associated with the battery removal process. In addition, added features such as the foam lining inside of the “slide-in casing” allow the battery to remain securely attached both during regular use and after drops. By successfully reducing the damage to both the battery and tablet during battery removal, and in satisfying our additional requirements, the “slide-in casing” helps make Amazon’s tablets more easily repairable and recyclable at end of life. The effective result is an increase in the yield of reusable batteries and tablets, a reduction in the number of batteries and tablets that end up in landfills, and an opportunity for Amazon to promote company sustainability.
Description
| Type of resource | text |
|---|---|
| Date created | 2021 |
Creators/Contributors
| Author | Herrera, Aiyanna Isabel |
|---|---|
| Author | Herkert, Jack Edward |
| Author | Armenta, Johnny Alfonso |
| Author | Davy, Alexa Ariel |
| Advisor | Horne, Steve |
| Advisor | Farmer, Catherine |
Subjects
| Subject | amazon |
|---|---|
| Subject | amazon lab126 |
| Genre | Student project report |
Bibliographic information
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- License
- This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC).
Preferred citation
- Preferred Citation
- Herrera, Aiyanna Isabel; Herkert, Jack; Armenta, Johnny; Davy, Alexa Ariel. (2021). Facilitating the Removal of Lithium-Ion Batteries Powering Amazon’s Tablet Devices. Stanford Digital Repository. Available at: https://purl.stanford.edu/rd522nx8414
Collection
ME170 Mechanical Engineering Design
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