LEV Chargers: How Infineon Products Enable Green Mobility

Upcoming Webinar

LEV Chargers: How Infineon Products Enable Green Mobility

This webinar gives an overview about LEV (Light Electric Vehicle) market with special focus on LEV chargers. The charger application and use topologies for different power ranges, starting from low power chargers for e-bikes up to high power forklift chargers will be described and mapped to suitable Infineon switches, diodes and drivers.

Overview

The LEV application, together with a market overview, market drivers and application trends are introduced in this presentation. Infineon Technologies offers a wide range of products for the LEV charger, motor control and battery management. While the Infineon offerings for motor control and battery management will be mentioned, the main focus of the presentation is on the LEV battery charger. Solutions and use topologies for different power classes of chargers will be described. Starting from below 200W and reaching up to 2kW and above, covering applications ranging from e-bikes, e-scooters and e-3 wheelers up to micro e-cars. Suitable CoolMOS™ switches and their benefits in the described charger solutions will be presented, together with the suitable CoolSiC™ diodes and EiceDRIVER™ gate driver ICs. Furthermore a 2kW high efficient natural convection cooled demonstrator design based on CoolMOSTM P7 will be presented which can be used for charging 48V lead-acid and Li-ion batteries.

Key Takeaways

Gain insight through an LEV market overview
Learn about the range of LEV battery charger applications for different power ranges
Understand the range of Infineon solutions for low, mid, and high power battery charger
Be introduced to Infineon demonstrator: 2kW high efficient natural convection cooled battery charger

Date: September 17, 2019

Time: 10 AM EDT (7 AM PDT / 4:00 PM CEST)

Duration: 1 hour

Presented by Infineon & Rutronik

Electrifying (the) Future

Fossil fuels and alarming emission levels? We can do better than that!

One out of many essential steps towards an energy-efficient world lies in growing the popularity - and consequently the use - of electrified two-, three- and four-wheel vehicles. New materials and technologies enable nowadays greater power efficiency, smaller size, lighter weight, and lower cost solutions. Consumers look for affordable, clean transportation alternatives to address congestion, poor air quality, and lack of mobility.

Want to play a key role in accelerating the transition to e-mobility with your products? Then turn to a true expert, a leader in power, sensing and security solutions: Infineon.

LEVs: an Increasingly Important EV Sub-Category

Three-hurdles Slowing Mass Deployment

When focusing on the mass deployment of all-electric vehicles and gasoline-electric hybrids the challenges currently recognized can be summarized in three main hurdles:

The high initial investment,
The limited charging infrastructure available,
And consumer misperceptions about their operation.

In other words, battery system cost, battery density, range limitations and charging constraints continue to be impediments to the adoption.

The Rise of LEVs

The named obstacles have become a trigger for the evolvement of another segment in the EV market: light electric vehicles (LEVs). Compared with other EVs as well as with conventional gasoline-powered vehicles, they are extremely low-priced what makes them affordable even to the financially underprivileged! They can be charged from the grid (e.g. power plugs in private homes) and do not necessarily require installation of a specific charging infrastructure. And due to an extremely simple configuration both - their functioning and handling - are easy to understand. Targets are clearly those driving short distances at lower speed not holding a driving license as for LEVs no certification - neither for the vehicle, nor for the driver - is legally stipulated until today. Depending on the purpose of use there are variants with and without space for carry-on items. And most importantly, they fulfill the zero emissions mandate.

Currently, the LEV market in units is six to ten times larger than the one for plug-in EVs. Already in the near future, LEVs are expected to be highly integrated with automated vehicle technology, i.e. sensors. The industry has seen an incredibly fast rate of conversion from internal combustion engines to full electrical drives (e.g. approximately 62% of the number of forklift units sold in 2018 have already been electrical).

Complete System Solutions for LEVs

Infineon specializes in offering complete system solutions encompassing all fundamentals, namely power electronics, controllers, security, and authentication. And of course our advanced sensor technologies add value, too. With our pioneering spirit sustained by technical know-how, highest quality standards and preeminent manufacturing expertise throughout the entire supply chain we strive to be benchmark in addressing a broad range of light electrical vehicles. With our portfolio we already cater for e-skateboards, e-scooters, pedal electric cycles (i.e. pedelecs), low speed electric cars, e-forklifts, e-rickshaws, three-wheelers in general and many others. Multiple functional blocks are thereby considered (e.g. motor control, battery chargers, air conditioning systems, hydraulic control). Power management and consumption and voltage regulation are covered by an exceptional selection of power components (high voltage CoolMOS™, low voltage OptiMOS™, StrongIRFET™, SiC and GaN based products), XMC™ and AURIX™ microcontrollers, and EiceDRIVER™ gate driver ICs - amongst others. In other words, Infineon offers all components that are needed for the compact, cost-effective designs of today, and for the innovative vehicles of tomorrow.

Features and Benefits:

Most robust silicon solutions in the market
Ideal for both - low and high power density application
Industry-leading performance with the best figure of merit (FOM) enabling rugged and reliable system designs with reduced BOM count and consequently at an attractive overall system cost level
Enabling various levels of integration and space saving (depending on the application)
Application based qualification procedure (beyond JEDEC) according to stringent industrial and automotive (if applicable) standards
Perfect choice for multiple functional blocks in LEVs (e.g. battery charging, motor control, battery management system, etc.)

LEV Industry Characteristics

Infineon is aware of its customers' major challenges and the impactful characteristics of the LEV industry:

strong price erosion what makes it a cost driven segment
time-to-market pressure
small form factors
relaxed lifetime expectations
growing demand for easy-to-use system level solutions (plug and play, turnkey) comprising the technology, soft- and hardware as well as services (e.g. software design) due to increasing system complexity

Download Whitepaper Download Application Brochure

Why Infineon is the Right Partner for your LEV Projects

Most reliable, industry-leading solutions, delivering either best-in-class performance or price competitive (cost-optimized) solutions for the widest range of LEV applications
Mastering all leading power technologies (Si, SiC, GaN)
Most comprehensive packaging portfolio in Si MOSFET technologies (THT, SMD)
Number one in in the low voltage MOSFET market
Extensive application system understanding and manufacturing expertise throughout the entire supply chain
High quality volume supply that results in faster time to market
Global application design support via a worldwide network of field application engineers and trusted distributors
Broad portfolio - all out of one expert's hand
Line-up for ease-of-use: combination of complementary switches, gate driver ICs, and controllers

Our Service is Your Success in the Highly Competitive LEV Industry

Critical success factors	Infineon’s offering
Complete solutions backed by broad portfolio of reliable components Low maintenance	Products and solutions for all design specifications - tailored to customer needs, especially for the growing number of solution buyers looking for plug and play / turnkey options All components are available for the following functional blocks: motor control / inverter air conditioning battery charger battery management system sensing security/authentication solutions Covering the entire value chain from low voltage MOSFETs (Infineon is the leader in power semiconductors), to gate drivers and controllers Highest quality power MOSFETs from 40V to 950V in industry-leading THT and SMD packages / footprints Scalable motor control solutions from a few kW to 20+kW and from 24V up to 169V Easy-to-use (plug and play) drive solutions
Extended battery life and operating time -> reliable operation in harsh environments and avoidance of system down-time Extended product life spans	Best-in-class MOSFETs e.g. OptiMOS™ and StrongIRFET™ extend battery life time and reduce chances for control failure; excellent component reliability results in longer product life spans Extensive choice ranging from 20V to 300V
Securing productive capability	Low voltage MOSFETs with SMD packaging improve productive capabilities by automatic production, thereby increasing reliability and saving assembly cost
Overall system size and cost reduction	Components supporting smallest area and compact design as prerequisite for highest power density and BOM cost reduction due to lowest R_DS(on) TO-Leadless (TOLL) package -> a replacement for D²PAK 7pin with 60% space reduction
Security, quality and safety	Market leadership in security solutions with a proven track record and outstanding partner network for embedded security Trustworthy hardware-based security Functional safety embedded in selected products Highest quality standards and a safety certified development processes
Authentication	OPTIGA™ Trust enabling authentication of components connected to the system (e.g. battery pack recognition to avoid damages from using non-authorized third party batteries / chargers)
Fast time to market Reduction of development cost	Evaluation and demo boards plus reference designs for fast and easy prototyping Simulations, documentation, and global system support that reduce development time and cost Secured supply chain

Low Power Light Electric Vehicles (Power Level: 1kW - 10kW; Value Drivers: System Cost, Power Density)

Low Power LEVs can be separated from the rest of higher power LEVs by the following characteristics:

power level: 1kW - 10kW
voltage range: 24V - 72V
two- and three-wheelers
main purpose: short distance passenger transport
value drivers: system cost, power density

Target Applications:

E-scooters (standing / self-balancing and folding types)
E-bikes
E-three-wheelers

In contrast to the relatively small volumes of EVs, millions of electrified two-wheelers have already been sold worldwide. The environmentally friendly vehicles offer a very high degree of mobility combined with convenience and other fun factors. All that at much lower initial and operational costs compared to a typical EV. Emission-free driving versus congested city traffic - governments around the globe are alerted that it is time for greener politics in favor of light e-mobility (e.g. supporting innovative concepts such as dockless e-scooter sharing services or downtown traffic area accessible only via e-two-wheelers).

Top Performance versus Cost Optimization

When it comes to high volume production, the range and speed of low power LEV applications are distinguishing factors. No matter if customers work on designs with either top performance targets or rather concentrate on cost optimization, Infineon is prepared to deliver the products they require. With best-in-class solutions for motor control, our customers are maximizing levels of space and/or volume savings (e.g. essential for two-wheelers). StrongIRFET™ MOSFETs, to the contrary, are to be chosen for the development of cost optimized solutions whenever space and weight do not form limiting parameters (e.g. for three-wheelers).

Electrical Two-Wheelers – Skyrocketing Sales Worldwide

Even industry insight professionals did not anticipate the speed at which the Western European e-bike market has been growing over the past years. The share of e-bikes of the total bicycle market has become substantial - and is expected to rise up to 30-40 % in many countries. Instead of being a specialty recreational device as it was a couple of years ago e-bikes in Europe are evolving to a standard bicycle product, especially for work commuters who do not want to show up to work sweating all over. The popularity of these two-wheelers has grown with the significant reduction of weight and some variants are even foldable. Another influencing factor has been the price drop due to the lower cost of lithium ion batteries which are more and more replacing the former standard being lead acid ones. The switch in battery type does also open up new markets in countries where the saturation level had already been reached. With the lithium technology batteries are getting smaller and higher voltages are possible. Last but not least, people are more prone to replace a car with an e-bike than with a regular bicycle.

Fluctuating fuel prices have led to a decrease in the sales of fuel-powered vehicles and continue spurring sales of e-scooters (two- and three-wheeled). The latter are also supported by government subsidies in European and Asian regions. Moreover, OEMs enhancing their product portfolios are fostering global market growth. Same as for e-bikes, declining battery costs will have a positive effect on opportunities for market players. And not to forget about increasing product demand as consequence of introducing more and more e-scooter sharing services - one of many aspects of the sustainable urban mobility trend.

At this moment in time there are only two dissuasive concerns users have: slow charging time and limited range. Manufacturers are intensively working on solutions to overcome any existing barriers of adoption of e-scooters. Different battery technologies, solar power, battery swapping stations plus the development of a supercharger network are only few examples - anything that provides more convenience to the consumer.

iMOTION™ - Digital motor Control for E-bikes and E-scooters (See also Recommended Products)

One particular set of products suitable for low power two-wheelers such as e-bikes and folding e-scooters are Infineon's iMOTION™ motor control ICs. Integrated into these ICs are all the control and analog interface functions required for sensor-less, field-oriented control (FOC) of PM motors using DC link or leg shunt current measurements. In addition, they feature Infineon's patented and field-proven motor control engine (MCE) that eliminates software coding from the motor control algorithm development process. Implementing a variable speed drive is reduced to configuring the MCE for the respective motor. Assisted by powerful tools like MCEWizard and MCEDesigner it is possible to have the motor up and running in less than an hour. By comprising both, the required hardware and software to perform sensor-less control of a permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM), iMOTION™ ICs provide the highest energy efficient motor system with the lowest system cost for the named applications.