News
Tesla patent hints at more reliable batteries through ‘dynamic’ management system
It is no exaggeration to state that Tesla’s business hinges on its battery technology. Fortunately for the company, its batteries are among the best in the industry today. This is particularly notable in the case of Tesla’s electric cars, as well as its energy storage products. In terms of vehicles, Tesla’s battery tech has reached a point where it is capable of supporting the demands of closed circuit driving, as is the case with the Model 3 Performance’s Track Mode. In terms of battery storage, the quality and performance of Tesla’s batteries have been so impressive in South Australia that it appears to have started an energy storage movement.
Considering Tesla’s reputation for never staying still, though, it is almost certain that the company’s batteries will improve over time. This was mentioned by Tesla’s President of Automotive Jerome Guillen to CNBC last November, when he noted that the company’s technology consistently evolves. In his segment, the executive noted that “the design of the (battery) cell is not frozen,” indicating upcoming improvements in the near future.
A recently published patent points to one of these battery tech improvements. Titled “Multi-Channel and Bi-Directional Battery Management System,” the patent describes a way for Tesla to push the envelope on its battery management system even further. In the patent’s description, Tesla noted that the increasing demand for battery-based power is putting an emphasis on the performance demands of management systems, which ensure proper operation within a range of products like electric vehicles and energy storage units.
While battery management systems perform vital functions, the units themselves could be subject to various external factors. In the case of electric cars, the system could be subject to mechanical vibration and shock, varying environmental temperature, multiple power domains and a large number of interference sources that could deteriorate signals between the centralized management controller and multiple battery integrated circuits. Considering that batteries are the only power source for electric vehicles, instances involving a failure of the system could render an electric vehicle inoperable. With this in mind, Tesla notes that there is a need for a battery management system that is “more robust and dynamic.”
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- A diagram of Tesla’s battery management system. (Photo: US Patent Office)
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- A diagram of Tesla’s battery management system. (Photo: US Patent Office)
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- A diagram of Tesla’s battery management system. (Photo: US Patent Office)
Diagrams of Tesla’s battery management system. (Photo: US Patent Office)
Tesla’s patent describes what could be dubbed as a redundant battery management system, comprising a first client coupled within a multi-channel, bi-directional and daisy-chained communication loop. The electric car maker also outlined a method for identifying a failure location within a battery management system. Tesla describes these as follows.
“The battery management system may include a host (such as a microcontroller that manages at a system level) and clients (such as battery management integrated circuits that manage battery cells within the system). In embodiments, the host may be implemented in various structures including the previously mentioned microcontroller and manages the system by transmitting commands and receiving responses from one or more of the clients. Each client may monitor and control corresponding battery cells to measure the electrical and physical status of the cells, such as voltage, amount of remaining electrical charge and temperature of each cell. For instance, the client 120a may monitor the cells 130a. It is noted that each client may monitor a different number of battery cells. The client 120a may perform measurements (e.g., voltage, charge, temperature, etc.) as well as perform certain functions (e.g., bleed-off charge from a battery cell, etc).”
Tesla further discussed its rationale behind its use of daisy-chain loops for its battery management system.
“The host and each client may communicate commands and responses via a daisy-chain transmission path loop, where the daisy-chain loop may include a pair of wires that transmit electrical signals therethrough. In embodiments, the daisy-chain loop may connect the interface of the host to the interfaces of the clients in series so that communication may serially occur on one or multiple channels within the loop. “
“The battery management system is able to provide redundant communication paths because of its ability to bi-directionally communicate along the daisy-chain loop and because the two channels used on the daisy-chain loop each allow access to completely separate and redundant battery management systems. Specifically, the host is able to communicate in a clockwise direction around the serially connected clients as well as communicate in a counter-clockwise direction along the loop. This bi-directionality allows the host to communicate with each client in case there is a single failure within the daisy-chain loop. This redundancy applies to both channels.”
Ultimately, Tesla notes that these systems will result in what could only be described as “dynamic redundancy” across its battery management systems. This, of course, could foster a new generation of battery packs that are more reliable than the company’s already stellar batteries.
“One skilled in the art will recognize the use of a multi-channel signaling system as well as a bi-directional signaling architecture within the battery management system results in dynamic redundancy across the system itself. For example, if a primary or secondary circuit should fail on a client, the host may communicate a redundant command to the client using a different and fully operational channel. The multiple channel architecture ensures that even egregious malfunction of a sub-system, such as the transmission of spurious data, will not be able to interfere with normal operation of a complementary subsystem operating on a different channel. In addition, the bi-directionality of the system allows for compensation to occur in the event of a complete path failure somewhere within the loop.”
The past months have seen an influx of published patents for Tesla. Among these include an automatic tire inflation system patent that can pave the way for off-road capabilities for the company’s vehicles, a clever patent that would allow Tesla to address panel gaps during vehicle assembly, a patent that describes colored solar roof tiles, and even a system that uses electric cars as a way to improve vehicle positioning.
Tesla’s recently published patent on its Multi-Channel and Bi-Directional Battery Management System could be accessed in full here.
Elon Musk
Trump’s invite for Elon just reshuffled Tesla’s big Signature Delivery Event
Tesla rescheduled its final Model S farewell to May 20 after Musk joined Trump in China.
Tesla has rescheduled its Model S and Model X Signature Edition delivery event to Wednesday, May 20, 2026, after abruptly calling off the original May 12 celebration. The event will take place at Tesla’s factory at 45500 Fremont Boulevard in Fremont, California, the same location where the Model S first rolled off the line in 2012. Invitees received a follow-up email asking them to reconfirm attendance and download a new QR code ticket, with Tesla noting that all travel and accommodation expenses remain the buyer’s responsibility.
The reason behind the original cancellation came into focus the same day it was announced. President Trump invited Elon Musk, Apple’s Tim Cook, BlackRock’s Larry Fink, Boeing’s Kelly Ortberg, and executives from Goldman Sachs, Blackstone, Citigroup, and Meta to join his trip to China this week for a summit with President Xi Jinping. The agenda covers trade, artificial intelligence, export controls, Taiwan, and the Iran war, following weeks of escalating friction between Washington and Beijing over AI technology, sanctions, and rare earth exports. Trump wrote on Truth Social, “I am very much looking forward to my trip to China, an amazing Country, with a Leader, President Xi, respected by all.”
Tesla launches 200mph Model S “Gold” Signature in invite-only purchase
The vehicles at the center of all this are the last Model S and Model X units Tesla will ever build. Priced at $159,420 each, the 250 Model S and 100 Model X Signature Edition units come finished in Garnet Red with a one-year no-resale agreement, giving Tesla right of first refusal if the owner decides to sell. As Teslarati reported, the Model S defined Tesla’s early identity as a serious luxury automaker, and the Fremont factory line that built it is now being converted to manufacture Optimus humanoid robots.
Musk’s inclusion in the China delegation drew attention given his very public relationship with Trump, and the invitation signals the two have moved past and past grievances. Trump originally brought Musk on to lead the Department of Government Efficiency following his inauguration, and despite a sharp public dispute in mid-2025, the two have appeared together repeatedly in recent months. A seat on the China trip, the most diplomatically consequential visit of Trump’s current term, puts Musk back at the table on U.S. economic policy at a moment when Tesla’s China revenue remains one of the company’s most important financial pillars.
Tesla has launched a new solution to a rare but relevant Supercharger problem with a new Virtual Waitlist, a remedy that will solve sequencing confusion when there is a line to charge at one of the company’s locations.
Teslarati reported on what we called the Virtual Queue last month. In rare occurrences, there were physical altercations at Superchargers when someone might have cut in line to charge. Tesla started to develop some sort of system that would resolve this issue, and now it is finally rolling it out.
Tesla launches solution to end Supercharger fights once and for all
It will start with a Pilot Program, and Tesla is calling it the ‘Waitlist.’
Announced on May 11 on the official TeslaCharging X account, the pilot program is currently active at sites in Los Gatos, Mountain View, and San Francisco in California, as well as San Jose, CA, and the Bronx, NY (East Gun Hill Road). Drivers are encouraged to share feedback directly through the Tesla app to refine the system before a potential broader rollout.
We’re now testing a new waitlist feature at 5 Supercharger sites. Share feedback through the Tesla app to help us make it better.
– Los Gatos, CA – Los Gatos Boulevard
– Mountain View, CA – El Monte Avenue
– San Francisco, CA – Lombard Street
– San Jose, CA – Saratoga Avenue
-… pic.twitter.com/epTVzpJxgW— Tesla Charging (@TeslaCharging) May 11, 2026
Tesla released the video above to showcase the feature, which automatically joins the waitlist when your vehicle has the Supercharger with the wait as the destination in the navigation. There is also a notification that lets you know your place in line.
In this specific example, the video shows that the wait is less than five minutes, and that there are two cars ahead of the one in the video:
Credit: Tesla
Having a wait at a Supercharger is relatively rare, but it does happen. It is even more frequent now that there are more EVs allowed to use the Supercharger Network. Those non-Tesla EVs can also join the queue, as Tesla added in its social media release of the pilot program that they can join the waitlist using the Tesla app.
The release of this program should help alleviate the rare risk of incidents at Superchargers. Tesla will expand this program as it sees fit, and it gathers valuable data and reviews from users.
Investor's Corner
Tesla Optimus is already benefiting investors, top Wall Street firm says
Piper Sandler has updated its detailed valuation model for Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA), concluding that at recent share prices around $400–$420, investors are essentially acquiring the company’s ambitious Optimus humanoid robot project at no extra cost.
Tesla Optimus is already benefiting investors from a fiscal standpoint, at least that is what Alexander Potter at Piper Sandler, a top Wall Street firm covering the company, says.
Piper Sandler has updated its detailed valuation model for Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA), concluding that at recent share prices around $400–$420, investors are essentially acquiring the company’s ambitious Optimus humanoid robot project at no extra cost.
Analyst Alexander Potter, in the firm’s latest “Definitive Guide to Investing in Tesla,” built a comprehensive framework covering 17 separate product lines.
This granular approach values Tesla’s core businesses—including electric vehicles, energy storage, Full Self-Driving (FSD) software, in-house insurance, Supercharging network, and a standalone robotaxi operation—at approximately $400 per share, without assigning any value to Optimus or related inference-as-a-service opportunities.
“At $400/share, we think investors can buy Optimus for ‘free,’” Potter stated in the note. Piper Sandler maintained its Overweight rating on Tesla shares and a $500 price target, which implicitly attributes roughly $100 per share to the robot-related businesses— a figure the analyst views as potentially conservative.
The updated model incorporates elements often overlooked by other sell-side analysts, such as detailed forecasts for Tesla’s insurance operations, Supercharger revenue, and a distinct valuation for the robotaxi business separate from FSD software licensing. It also accounts for Tesla’s 2025 CEO compensation plan for the first time.
Potter acknowledged that his estimates for 2026 and 2027 fall below Wall Street consensus, citing factors like declining deliveries from certain discontinued models and reduced regulatory credit income.
However, he expressed limited concern, noting that traditional vehicle delivery metrics are expected to matter less over time as FSD subscriber growth and robotaxi deployment metrics gain prominence. On Optimus specifically, Potter suggested the humanoid robot program, combined with inference services, “arguably will be worth more than Tesla’s other businesses combined,” though the firm has not yet produced formal long-term forecasts for these segments.
Tesla shares have traded near the $400 range in recent sessions, reflecting ongoing investor focus on the company’s autonomous driving progress and expansion into robotics and AI. The Optimus project remains in early development stages, with Tesla aiming to deploy the robots initially for internal factory tasks before broader commercial applications.
This Piper Sandler analysis highlights the growing emphasis among some investors and analysts on Tesla’s long-term technology platform potential beyond its current automotive and energy businesses.
As with any forward-looking valuation, outcomes will depend on execution timelines, technological breakthroughs, regulatory approvals for autonomous systems, and market adoption of humanoid robotics—areas that carry significant uncertainty and execution risk.
The note underscores a common theme in Tesla coverage: differing views on how to quantify emerging high-growth opportunities like robotics within the company’s overall enterprise value. Investors are advised to consider their own risk tolerance and conduct thorough due diligence regarding these speculative elements.
Trump’s invite for Elon just reshuffled Tesla’s big Signature Delivery Event
Tesla launches its solution to rare but relevant Supercharger problem
