Power Electronics

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NXP intelligent gate drivers for traction inverters

Long-established IC-engined vehicle OEMs and new EV specialists are competing to get EVs to market rapidly while being faced with rising costs and the desire to maintain control of the intellectual property embodied in their vehicles (writes Peter Donaldson). Under this pressure, many are responding by building up their abilities to design, develop and manufacture […]

Dossier

Lightyear One

Rory Jackson explains how this aerodynamic five-seater has been designed for daily trips purely on solar power While EV technology has come a long way over the past decade, the main concerns being raised by engineers

New Products

DC-DC converters for EVs with IP67 option

Green Watt Power, a division of Powerland Technology, has launched its EVD3000 series of fully encapsulated, ruggedised DC-DC converters for EVs. They have an input range of 280 to 880 V, with output voltages of 27.5 or 48 V DC to power auxiliary EV functions such as air conditioning, lights, instruments, accessories, or to provide […]

Deep Insight

Switching

Nick Flaherty examines how new technologies are boosting the performance of inverters and onboard chargers Switching is at the heart of the electrical systems for e-mobility platforms. The performance of the switching devices – the transistors – determines the

Grid

Cool SiC inverters move

Researchers at the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have been working with heavy-duty equipment maker John Deere on a new thermal management system for SiC inverters (writes Nick Flaherty). Equipment such as trucks and construction machines account for 39% of greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation sector, so there has been a focus on […]

Grid

Inverter integration cuts size, weight

Texas Instruments has integrated a transformer into a gate driver to enable distributed switch architectures for inverters (writes Nick Flaherty). The UCC14240-Q1 isolated DC-DC bias supply module integrates the transformer and components with 3.5 mm-high planar magnetics to reduce the size, height and weight of a distributed power system in an inverter. The integration of […]

Focus on...

48 V systems

Moving to power distribution networks running on 48 V looks set to confer a range of benefits to battery-electric vehicles. Nick Flaherty reports Technology based on 48 V has been adopted for

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Schaltbau launches arc-quenching high-current DC contactors

Switching large direct currents safely and responsively is a critical task in EV drive systems, requiring electromagnetically controlled contactors that extinguish the unwanted arcs that inevitably form between the main contacts when they open (writes Peter Donaldson). Drawing on almost a century’s experience in the railway industry, German company Schaltbau is addressing this issue by […]

Grid

Inverter sintering set to boost range

MacDermid Alpha Electronics Solutions is working with STMicroelectronics on improved sinter technology for EV inverter assemblies. The process, known as pressure sintering, can significantly increase vehicle efficiency and range as well as lowering production costs (writes Nick Flaherty). Pressure sintering provides much lower thermal resistance in an inverter, which leads to better power cycling and […]

Grid

Reducing models of EV behaviour

The development of e-mobility platforms requires a complex interplay between different engineering teams for the mechanical, thermal, electrical, control and software design. ROMs from 3D design tools can be substituted for 1D system simulation models to provide more accurate and detailed results, so teams can make an informed and correct design choice earlier.
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