A new generation of 100kW+ electric powertrains for electric and hybrid vehicles
What is ModulED?
CEA-Leti introduces a new generation of 100kW+ electric powertrains to support the performance and reliability needs of hybrid and electric vehicles, as part of their large-scale deployment. The ModulED (Modular Electric Drive) simultaneously offers high power density, leveraging a compact powertrain that is fully built into the engine block:
Energy efficiency is twice as high, and over a wide range of functions.
Kinetic energy is directly regenerated into electric energy—engine braking—in the battery, using the powertrain’s bidirectional.
Applications:
What's new?
To develop ModulED, CEA-Leti researchers relied on:
gallium nitride (GaN) wide-bandgap semiconductors with a much higher efficiency performance than traditional silicon components;
a high-speed synchronous motor in the range of 22,500 rpm (compared to 12,000 rpm currently, or BMW i3), resulting in a smaller size and improved weight/power ratio;
a rotor with an optimized arrangement of magnets injected directly into it, reducing the amount of rare earth that is used;
next generation transmission for reduced high-speed synchronous electric motors;
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resiliency, thanks to a six-phase structure.
Trends
With powers ranging from several hundred watts to hundreds of kW,
wide-bandgap technologies (GaN) are adapted to numerous applications,
such as electric vehicles, aeronautics, space, converters, multiple chargers,
or uninterruptible power supply (UPS, data centers). GaN allows a frequency
increase, and consequently, lowers the volume/weight of power converters. The spread of electric vehicles is driving exponential volumes, leading to lower
costs and to larger-scale deployments of wide-band gaps technologies across
all industry and consumer sectors. CEA-Leti offers optimal component implementations with customized
architectures, leading to several patents.
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