TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - ELECTRICAL POWER AND ENERGY - Preferred Components: The battery cell (A1) further comprises: many localized measurement regions, where the sensing platform comprises at least one of the sensing elements for each of the localized measurement regions; and a cell wall in surrounding relation to the first electrode and the second electrode, where the cell wall comprises an outer surface and an inner surface forming a cell volume, and the localized measurement region is enclosed inside of the cell volume. In battery cell (A1), the localized measurement region is proximate to at least one of the first electrode and the second electrode. In the battery cell (A2), the sensing platform comprises: many sensing elements, where each of the sensing elements is spaced from each other to form a sensing array that substantially covers the active region; many material layers comprising a sensing layer responsive to the cell property, where the cell property comprises at least one of temperature, pressure, strain, pH, conductivity, electrical impedance, or properties related to the electrochemical activity; and a polymer film, where the many layers are disposed on the polymer film, and the polymer film is bonded to the inner surface. In battery cell (A2), the material layers comprise a first layer disposed on the inner surface. The battery cells (A2) and (A3) further comprise a data transmitting device coupled to the sensing element, where the data transmitting device transmits data from the sensing elements to the outside of the cell wall. The data transmitting structure comprises a wireless device for transmitting data to the outside of the cell wall. In battery cell (A3): the sensing element comprises a sensing layer responsive to the cell property, where the cell property comprises at least one of temperature, pressure, strain, pH, conductivity, electrical impedance, or properties related to the electrochemical processes; the sensing platform comprises many material layers, where the many layers comprise a polymer film bonded to the outer surface, and a conductive layer for interconnecting the sensing elements; and the material layers have a first layer of material disposed on the outer surface. In battery cell (A3), the sensing platform comprises many sensing elements, where the sensing elements are spaced from each other to form a sensing array that substantially covers the measurement region. In battery cell (A3), the localized measurement region comprises the cell wall.