German sport vehicle maker Porsche has developed a new ‘AC battery’ for electric vehicles that brings all the numerous parts in one.
The company in a press release on 19 March said the system was developed as part of a feasibility study, tested on the test bench, and demonstrated in a vehicle.
Simplifying electric vehicles
The drive system in electric vehicles usually consists of several components, such as a high-voltage battery with battery management system, power electronics for controlling the electric motor, and an on-board charger for charging with AC power.
While the system works well for vehicles currently, it can be improved upon to make the electric car setup less complex. Thomas Wenka, Specialist Project Manager at Porsche Engineering said:
“The trend in the automotive industry is toward highly integrated components. This opens up new possibilities in terms of housing size, weight and cost reduction, reliability and efficiency. The development team at Porsche Engineering used the high integration level of components to develop an AC battery system as part of a feasibility study. It integrates the normally separate functions of the battery management system, pulse inverter, low-voltage DCDC, and on-board charger into one single component.”
Such battery setup has numerous advantages, including easier scalability to various drivetrain variants as well as safer handling of current-carrying components during servicing or in the event of an accident.
Together with the AC battery system, Porsche has developed a control unit with a particularly powerful real-time, uniform, and highly integrated computing platform upon which the motor and battery management, as well as the charging function run.
The concept has been implemented in various prototypes and successfully tested on the test bench.
The system was also integrated into a test vehicle to demonstrate its basic functionality. With its adaptability, it can be used in different scenarios for different vehicles.
Leading innovation in automotives
Porsche has been building innovation to improve on its b=vehicles and drive growth in the automotive industry in general.
Last month, the company announced the expansion of driving simulators to pre-validate vehicle designs before implementation.
The new AC battery system is another major contribution to electric vehicle design that will generally enhance design and performance.
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