Can someone who knows more about this explain to me how SRAM was even granted this patent. A patent has to have a novel characteristic to it that is unique to the use of the item it applies to. Interchangable batteries are neither novel nor unique. Almost every cordless power tool has an interchangeable battery system. Coin cell batteries and all batteries are interchangeable. The DTSwiss ratchet was a unique and very effective design to solve a specific mechanical function. Having a single battery size that plugs into a slot is not unique. If I was Shimano I would just take SRAM head on with this. Campagnolo is far too small a company to do it, but Shimano is massive. Just put the same battery pack on each derailleur and eff Sram.
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This might be mind blowing, I know, but there is a solution out there that completely removes any risk of any drivetrain battery ever running out of power.
I think some perspective is needed here. Patents getting in the way of companies making ‘sensible’ design choices for there ridiculously expensive and ultimately unnecessary products is not, I would suggest, something that people should be prioritising getting worked up about or putting any significant effort into solving.
Also, without the ability to patent, and thus protect IP, innovation is stifled, or you end up with innovation as you see from the Chinese brands who have to roll products out quickly, before they are ready, turning consumers into paying tester, because there is little or no chance of any longer term revenue and therefore limited time and resources to properly develop and test.
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Each to their own, but i’d personally much rather have a battery hidden away (like in a seat post), doesn’t make the groupset a little ugly, has the abilty to warn a head unit if low and lasts for a few weeks between charges. I do think that the patent seems very broad, but i think we are ok. Nothing to see here, we can all move along.
Simon
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My SRAM batteries warn me when low and last weeks-months. I work on bikes and the internal battery is not the better solution.
I guess the patent is effective; I’ll avoid a two-different battery Shimano drivetrain until it’s interchangeable.
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You said it better than me, thanks 
Patents have long worked like that. IMHO patents have become a net negative, but for as long as they exist, you need to play the game. Given how e. g. Shimano has enforced its patents in the past, SRAM was/is right to do the same.
Engineering these days is often about engineering around patents, coming up with creative solutions that work around limitations. Very often you cannot use “the simplest/cleanest/best” engineering solution.
Well, then enjoy the current generation of Di2 for the next version will be wireless. Shimano will also adopt a 10-tooth cog. This will simplify frame design as you only need to route a single hose (for the rear brake). Shimano is simply very late to the game.
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make good derailleurs. batteries they of course cannot thanks to sram
Kind of a weird rant for all the reasons others have mentioned but also more simply that Shimano doesn’t even have an external, removable battery, let alone two that could be one. But I’m here for it, fun thread!
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good arguments here. sram got the 1x game going just by not being able to make a good front derailleur.
technically and, most importantly, in sustainably campa beats both other major players always by length. stuff is produced in EU (meaning tight social and ecological regulation are most probably met. maybe even labour unions in place), things are brought to market when they are technically totally sound, not every year a new model of stuff which is not compatible with the last seasons gear and looooong-time availability of replacement parts. how’s that for reasons to get into the campa game? oh and things are simply beautiful. only problem: sram has the patent for interchangeable batteries. how is that even patantable?
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Campagnolo is probably the biggest offender with changing chainring patterns, very few of which have been interchangeable with anything else. As Campag have less market share, there are fewer aftermarket chainrings, fewer hubs to fit Campag cassettes, etc. That wouldn’t be so bad if their rings weren’t often exorbitantly expensive, and ditto for recent cassettes.
Until the early 1980s Campag led the way in materials, finish and spare parts availability, and their shifting was much the same as everyone elses, but then Dura-Ace 7400 and MTBs happened., and they’ve never recovered. (I say this as someone who worked for a Campag importer BITD.)
That’s not to say that Shimano (or more recently SRAM) have been blameless, with Dura-Ace and XTR rings often being changed so as to be non-interchangeable between generations, and SRAM seemingly doing their utmost to prevent choice.
There’s an old saw: “The good thing about standards is that there are so many to choose from.”
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There are a lot of questionable patents out there. Amazon was granted a patent on one-click ordering, and the dot-com era saw a huge number of patents on normal business processes “but with internet.”
Gary Klein was basically granted a patent for stiff bicycle frames (I’m oversimplifying, but not by a lot). And, fun fact, Cannondale successfully challenged that patent by hunting down a frame that Sheldon Brown’s wife, Harriet Fell, had made (in the same MIT class that Gary Klein took), and had left in France.
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Please tell me which cordless power tools have interchangeable batteries. To the best of my knowledge, none are interchangeable between manufacturers and darned few are interchangeable within the same manufacturer.
“If I was Shimano I would just take SRAM head on with this”
Your idea seems brave considering it isn’t your money at risk.
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I’m not a patent attorney, but one redeeming feature of patents is that they expire. Not sure when this one does, but I’m under the impression that they tend to last 15 years in the relevant countries for SRAM/Shimano. Given SRAM eTap wireless was first released in 2015, we shouldn’t have long to wait.
Someone who cares more than me could look up the actual patent date…
Unfortunately this patent is valid for 20 years, so the anticipated expiration date is September 25th, 2033.
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The issue isn’t that the batteries are interchangeable between brands, they’re attempting to block any interchangeability even within the brand.
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I am very confused by this thread. Shimano has fully wireless group sets with replaceable batteries.
Am I missing something?
The topic starter wants interchangeable front/rear batteries and that is part of a patent that SRAM holds.
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Dewalt, Makita, Ryobi and Worx are four of many that have had battery ecosystems for more than a decade, where their batteries are interchangeable across their own tools. It’s a key way to get someone to buy into and then stick to a single brand (cheap starter packs, and then sell other tools without batteries).
It’s not possible to change batteries between brands officially, but there are adapters (use at owners risk).
Frankly, I don’t see why the OP is so worked up. I can see the benefit of interchangeable batteries on front/rear mechs in terms of a little extra simplicity but the scenario of moving a battery mid ride due to one dying is a once in a blue moon requirement that is easily avoided by simply keeping the things topped up, or even better, keep electronic usage and thus waste to a minimum and stick to mechanical instead.
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If you want to get worked up about batteries, check out the price of a Super Record 13 batteries https://www.excelsports.com/campagnolo-super-record-13-derailleur-battery?srsltid=AfmBOorpFG9S5G0gwMvAeqIvHiaDd2TErmzI3QjOOqe-vlutuOuEu6s4
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Super Record batteries are so expensive in no small part because they are not interchangeable, so Campagnolo has to produce two different batteries.