E-mobility Technology Summer 2020

V6
SUMMER | VOLUME 6 | www.e-motec.net
Driving
Toward the
BEV Tipping
Point
High-performance
coatings play a
critical role.
Page 60
Interview
Dr Akiro Yoshino Nobel
Prize Winner for his
development of the
lithium-ion battery (LIB).
Page 12
Virtualising
Durability
The Final Test of Zero
Prototype Vehicle
Development. P114
Ultimate
Connection
Maxime Flament CTO, 5G
Automotive Association
(5GAA).
Page 34

Editors Note
Copper and aluminium
wire splicing
Multi-conductor cables
Twisted wires
Electric car sales topped 2.1 million globally last year, an increase of
40% on 2018. As technological progress in the electrification of public
transportation advances and the market for EV’s grows, electric vehicle
usage is expanding significantly. Ambitious policy announcements have
been critical in stimulating the electric-vehicle rollout in major vehicle
markets in recent years. In 2019, indications of a continuing shift from
direct subsidies to policy approaches that rely more on regulatory and
other structural measures – including zero-emission vehicles mandates
and fuel economy standards – have set clear, long-term signals for
the auto industry and consumers that support the transition in an
economically sustainable manner.
The auto industry is responding with makers like VW who recently rolled
off their last ICE vehicle to concentrate solely on electrically powered
vehicles.
ULTRASONIC METAL WELDING
Supports e-Mobility and lightweight construction
Aluminium and copper
wire on 3D terminal
Battery foil and tab welding
Published by
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234 Whitechapel Road
London E11BJ UK
info@cmcorp.co.uk
www.e-motec.net
Editor
Mark Philips
Associate Publishers
Rachael McGahern
Ujjol Rahman
Marion Fairweather
Anthony Stewart
(ISSN) ISSN 2634-1654
Copyright
All rights reserved
With the advent of 5G the market for Driverless cars connected to 5G will
be constantly and instantly connected to traffic signals, and be capable
of monitoring the roads through "vehicle-to-vehicle" communication,
that lets them share data.
The increased network speed will mean less delay in information
transmissions and faster vehicle response times, and could eventually
make autonomous vehicles safer on the road than human-driven
vehicles.
The technology is also being utilised by auto-makers in the
manufacturing process as announced by Ford recently where they are
building their own private 5G network to speed up manufacturing at its
battery production plant in the UK.
The advance of Electrified transport has led to countless new innovative
solutions to address the challenges thrown up along the way, and within
the contents of these pages we have presented just a few.
This is an exciting time for the auto industry as they realise that
they have the technology to bring a really cool driving experience to
their customers while at the same time contribute to a much-needed
reduction of CO2 emissions.
Mark Philips - Editor
High current /-voltage cable on terminal
www.telsonic.com
THE POWERHOUSE OF ULTRASONICS

03 | AVERE - Electromobility Has
Withstood the Coronavirus Crisis
By Philippe Vangeel, Secretary General.
Page 14
Materials Research
11| Pure Steel, Curing And Bonding Of Electric
Motors’ Magnetic Steel Cores
Contents
Dr Christoph Lomoschitz, Axalta’s Global Product
Manager for its Energy Solutions business and Filippo
Veglia, Chief Commercial Officer, Tau. Page 46
24| A Key You Cannot Pick Up
Batteries + Charging
Infrastructure
18| Safe, Modular And Customizable
Battery Assemblies
Welcome to the latest development in the
battery assembly process, Dr. Jean-Francois de
Palma Head of R&D and Innovation for Mersen.
Page 82
03 12
PAGE 56 10
Power Electronics
14
PAGE 64
Lubricant technology plays a key role in unlocking
performance for new electrified drivetrain hardware.
Adam Banks, eMobility Market Manager at Afton
Chemical. Page 108
14| Driving Toward the BEV Tipping Point
High-performance coatings play a critical role
Dave Malobicky, General Manager, Mobility PPG.
Page 60
02| Beyond Infinity
The Rise of the Artificial Intelligence Electric Vehicle.
Attention is shifting towards the interior design of cars
insights from Dr. Yoshino. Page 10
01| Electric Mobility – The
Infrastructure Perspective
Presented by Richard Gould at INTIS with guest
commentary from the University of Duisburg
Essen and Connected Kerb. Page 04
07| Electrical Safety in Electric
Vehicles (EVs)
Different applications have different grounding
strategies. Page 30
21| Ultrasonics And Electromobility -
A Powerful combination, efficient, powerful, reliable,
connected and eco-friendly, Andreas Hutterli Product
Manager at Telsonic AG. Page 96
12| Reducing Capex and Opex in zero
emission bus operations is as easy as CYB
CYB a project to facilitate operational excellence in
zero-emission public transport. Page 52
17| V2X Early Benefits
It all comes together now Robert Gee, Innovation
Manager, V2X and Future Connectivity, at Continental.
Page 76
Interviews
14| A Leap Into The Modern Automobile Age
Interview with Tino Fuhrmann the head of the MEB
project who describes here the concept and design
of the Modular Electric Drive Matrix, or MEB, platform.
Page 64
02| The past present and future of the Li-on,
inventor’s opinion.
Interview with Dr. Akira Yoshino, Nobel Prize Winner in
Chemistry in 2019, Asahi Kasei Honorary Fellow and a
professor at Meijo University in Nagoya. Page 12
10| What Can the E-Mobility Market
Learn From the Smartphone
Industry?
Why e-mobility is moving towards a full
DC charging ecosystem. Page 42
19| Europe’s bus market charges
towards sustainability
E-mobility solutions are enabling European
nations to address their growing need
for transport without compromising
the environment, Frank Muehlon,
Head of ABB’s global business for EV
Charging Infrastructure. Page 86
04| ISO 26262 Challenges
Certified BMS are sparse on the market Claus
Friis Pedersen, R&D Director at Lithium Balance,
breaks down the certification process. Page16
26| Sintered Silver Interconnects For
Traction Inverter Assembly
Gyan Dutt, MacDermid Alpha discusses silver sintering as
a key technology enabling the EV revolution. Page 118
Telematics + Connectivity
08| Vehicle connectivity, Ultimate Connection
Maxime Flament CTO, 5G Automotive Association (5GAA).
Page 34
27| Virtual Driving
Testing telematics services over cellular networks.
Jonathan Borrill, Francois Ortolan – Anritsu Corporation.
Page 122
20| 5G Is Critical To Achieve The Potential Of
Digital Roads
Luke Ibbetson, Head of Research and Development,
Vodafone Group and 5GAA Board member. Page 90
Thermal Management
09| Next-gen Thermal Management
Ultra-low viscosity Gap Filler Liquids Wolfgang Höfer
Market Manager KERAFOL GmbH. Page 38
13| Journey to Thermal Effiency
Silicone-Based Thermal Interface Materials for
Electric Vehicles Peter Walter, Senior Market Manager
E-Mobility at WACKER SILICONES. Page 54
06| Thermal Management for Electric
Vehicles and their Infrastructure
With the electric vehicle’s characteristic need for
performance and efficiency, it is worth considering
a direct refrigerant cooling approach Jim Burnett
Director-Aspen Systems Inc. Page 24
Thermal Management Solutions for Electric and Hybrid
Vehicles. The MEDINA concept. Page 20
22| Roadside Charging at 500Amps,
Max Göldi, Market Manager Automotive Industry at
HUBER+SUHNER. explains the world’s first cooled
charging cable system that allows continuous charging
at 500 Amperes. Page 98
Powertrains
14| Electric drives of Tomorrow.
Drivetrain Components will Evolve due to Vehicle
Electrification Dr. Stephan Demmerer Head of
Advanced Engineering ZF Friedrichshafen AG,
Germany. Page 68
23| The E-Mobility Offensive Of A Turnkey
Supplier Mastering the challenges of the transition
from combustion to electric drive technologies
- insights from GROB-WERKE, an award-winning
electromobility supplier. Page 104
25| Virtualising Durability
The Final Test of Zero Prototype Vehicle
Development David Briant, Project Engineer, Claytex.
Page 114

Electrically
Mobile
01
CHARGING
INFRASTRUCTURE
Electric Mobility – The Infrastructure
Perspective
A lot has been written on the possibilities
that electric mobility offers. In particular,
micro mobility has been in the news a lot
lately, especially with the current pandemic.
We are presented a vision where electric
scooter and e-bike sharing will revolutionise
public transportation, eliminate cars in urban
spaces and create green and pleasant cities.
However, the infrastructure perspective
is often missing from this narrative, despite
accessible, smart charging offering huge
potential to make electric, shared mobility
more convenient, more environmentally
friendly and more cost effective.
Thinking differently
With personal internal combustion engine cars,
we are all used to thinking a certain way about
mobility. We drive until the tank is empty, fill
up, and carry on. Except on long trips or for
frequent drivers, filling up happens maybe once
a week. Electric mobility forces a change in
thinking, as now the vehicle is filled up when not
in use, so you start the ride with a “full tank”.
Shared micro mobility requires a further
change. Now the vehicle is used much more
frequently, and charging is the necessary
annoyance that allows the user to do what they
actually want, namely to be mobile. The vehicle
is usually charged fully then used until empty, at
which point it stands useless until it is charged
again. For public sharing, dedicated personnel
are required to organise charging or swap
batteries. In private sharing, the user is required
to invest their time finding a suitable place to
plug in. A lot of activity in the background is
needed to give the user that effortless ride.
However, we at INTIS envisage smart
infrastructure replacing that activity in the
background. This requires accessible charging
infrastructure allowing automatic opportunity
charging, coupled with good use of data and
communications. In this scenario, neither
the user nor the operator need greatly
concern themselves with making sure the
vehicle gets its energy because that is taken
care of by the infrastructure solution.
Smart Services Provide Solutions,
Not Just Technology – Commentary By
The University Of Duisburg-Essen
One area where the potential of electromobility
is becoming apparent is in intralogistics,
although this potential is often inhibited by
incorrect usage behaviour. Vehicles are plugged
in to charge as often as possible to minimise
down-time. This high charging frequency
may be suitable for lithium-ion batteries, but
it drastically reducing the lifetime of leadgel
batteries which are still very common in
industry. Even worse, fleets and equipment are
not usually updated all at once, meaning a mix
of battery types ends up being charged the
same way by the same equipment. This leads
to a high replacement rate with associated
materials, time, and overhead costs.
Smart Charging – A Real World Application
The solution is smart charging in connection
with a fleet management system, where the
charging infrastructure identifies the vehicle and
battery type, connects to the fleet management
system and determines the optimal charging
behaviour based on stored information and
historic usage patterns. These usage patterns
provide information about the expected duration
and distance of the next drive, based on daily
driving patterns, which allow the smart charging
application to calculate whether the battery
level is sufficient or the battery needs to be
charged. The availability of good data to develop
relevant information is crucial to the efficacy of
smart charging.
Smart, inductive charging system
The project Smart Inductive Solutions, a spinoff
of the university Duisburg-Essen in Germany, is
developing a system to address this issue. A datadriven
approach is used to focus on value propositions
for the individual customer, with very promising
results coming from first tests currently running under
real-world conditions. The gathering, transmission,
and evaluation of required data in combination with
wireless charging are key components of the project.
The system consists of several core sub-systems,
principally the charging infrastructure, the application
server and multiple client workstations, as displayed
in figure 2. Besides providing energy, the charging
infrastructure provides bidirectional communication
between the vehicles and the back-end. When a
vehicle is parked, the charging infrastructure identifies
this vehicle and loads the applicable battery data
from the application server. The application server
keeps track of each charging process and determines
e-mobility Technology International 4 5
Summer 2020

Zero Emission Challenge
Vehicle
Changing Infrastructure
Application Server
Workstation
Higher operational uncertainty requires either
more vehicles or smarter tools.
Which would you choose?
Local Application
Battery
Microcontroller
Server
Display
Screen
Deployment diagram of the smart charging application
Webserver Server
Database System
Webbrowser
Live Vehicle &
Battery Data
Sycada gives you online access to location,
status, range, SoC and energy usage data for
all your dispatched vehicles.
whether and how a vehicle should be
charged. Data about vehicle status, battery
health, battery state of charge, etcetera, is
accessible on the application server from
any device with a network connection.
The advantages of wireless charging
Smart charging combined with wireless
charging technology can make electric micro
mobility and intralogistics applications
more useable, more environmentally
friendly and more cost effective.
In order to illustrate the potential,
a logistics use case from the field of
intralogistics is drawn upon: Employees are
under a certain amount of time pressure
and electric scooters are used for faster
movement in the warehouses. Charging
time is very limited and to take account of
these special circumstances, a good dataset
on battery consumption and charging
time is essential to control charging cycles
correctly. Wireless smart charging allows
the employees to just park the scooters
and continue with their assignment. The
charging system takes care of the rest,
deciding based on historical values and
the battery type whether and to what
parameters charging need take place. The
next time a vehicle is required, the user is
guided to an appropriate vehicle, meaning
that battery condition and vehicle wear
and tear across the fleet are optimised.
Altogether, uptime is maximised with the
user always having the mobility they required,
while the vehicle is maintained in the best
possible condition. Costs for replacement
parts can be minimised and maintenance
can be carried out in a planned way, thanks
to condition monitoring of the vehicles and
charging infrastructure. This allows the full
potential of electric mobility to be harnessed.
Smart Inductive Solutions will complete an
evaluation phase with two pilot customers
this year, with services able to be purchased
from the beginning of 2021. Other use cases
for smart inductive charging include micro
mobility in public areas and delivery drones.
Ubiquitous access to infrastructure
No one worries about finding a road to drive to
work or an electrical connection for their fridge.
The infrastructure in those cases is ubiquitous
and accessible. In order for infrastructure to truly
support and enable electric vehicles it needs
to be smart, but it also needs to be available
where the customer needs it and accessible. In
most cases infrastructure is, in fact, available;
electricity and communications lines run under
most streets in urban and suburban areas, and
even outside of urban areas, electricity and
communications infrastructure is never far away.
Accessibility is the challenge, namely getting
the necessary interfaces in place between
the readily available infrastructure and the
new EV customers who are now appearing.
Additionally, it is not this interface, or the
charging infrastructure, which prove the main
Mindful Driving
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Adaptive Planning
We monitor your operations and ensure you are
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routes or vehicle charge plan.
Charge Point
Management
We ensure chargers work seamlessly with
your operations, and can be serviced remotely.
e-mobility Technology International 6
MINDFUL DRIVING • TRANSITION TO ZERO-EMISSION • eCAR SHARING
www.sycada.com

expense and administrative hassle, but rather
the civil engineering, works and organisation.
This can be greatly reduced if interfaces are built
into the roads, housing, and industrial estates
during construction or scheduled maintenance,
rather than as an add on afterwards.
Enabling future smart cities, today –
commentary by Connected Kerb
Connected Kerb is a British start-up that
has taken an innovative and future-proofed
approach to developing and delivering smart
cities technology. The company provides electric
vehicle charging infrastructure solutions
that enable future communities through
connectivity. Its system is a smart cities platform
that integrates both power and data at the
kerbside to support electric, connected, and
autonomous vehicles, as well as the deployment
of advanced IoT technologies. With a focus on
inclusivity, Connected Kerb’s vision is to create
sustainable, future-proofed, and connected
environments for all those within our society.
Founder and Director of Innovation, Stephen
Richardson explains that what differentiates
Connected Kerb from traditional charge point
vendors is that its technology is a two-part
solution of flexible below-ground (power
and data) infrastructure and an advanced
charging and smart cities hardware solution.
This solution is comprised of a Power &
Data Pack that is sunk beneath the pavement
and housed in a Node Box, and the visible,
above-ground charge point socket and sensors.
The components of the subterranean Node
Box provides access to both power and data
at the kerbside, which in turn enables and
manages not only smart EV charging, but
also provides a neutral platform for an array
of different smart cities technologies.
Richardson highlights that the aim in
deploying a unique system such as this, is to
deliver both flexibility and longevity. It enables
upgrading over time (the system is modular
and able to integrate new technologies) while
also delivering a far broader value proposition
than purely EV charging (multiple infrastructure
projects in one single infrastructure solution),
therefore providing value to a much broader
cross-section of users than solely EV drivers.
Once the Connected Kerb Node Box is
installed it becomes a neutral host for a
range of technologies, such as 5G, connected and/
or autonomous vehicles and mobility services. Its
connectivity allows for more effective management
of EV chargers in real time (key for load management)
and supports the many ambitions of smart cities.
With current challenges considered, governments are
under immense fiscal pressure, as well as increasing
accountability for environmental commitments.
Connected Kerb’s unique solution offers an integration
of flexible innovations that is both cost-effective
and scalable, allowing city planners to prepare
for the future, while delivering for the present.
The future of EV infrastructure
Available, accessible, smart, and automatic
charging infrastructure offers huge
potential to transform transportation.
Node Box
Having ubiquitous interfaces to power and
communications allows charging infrastructure
to be turned into a commodity. Sharing stations
for electric scooters or bikes can be installed at
low cost and moved as demand and usage patterns
change. Batteries or renewable energy sources
can be installed to help deal with grid weaknesses.
EV charging stations can be installed and operated
at a fraction of the cost previously associated
with these technologies.
Smart charging and fleet management allows
electric vehicles to have a higher up-time while
also reducing wear and tear. Battery state of
charge can be maintained at optimum levels,
avoiding complete discharge or charge cycles
which stress battery technology, meaning
batteries last longer. Historic usage patterns
and even weather data can be utilised. For
example, if there is a week of rain and cold
weather ahead, it is likely that shared scooters
will not be used, so the state of charge can be
set to conservation levels. However, if a long
weekend ahead promises perfect weather,
the scooters can be charged up to full to
prepare for the expected surge in demand.
Inductive charging with its automatic handsfree
process, no wear and tear and ability to
be seamlessly integrated into the landscape
provides the final piece to the puzzle.
At INTIS, we envisage a future infrastructure
which is seamless, invisible, and automatic. A
customer picks up an electric scooter from a
charging station integrated into the pavement.
The vehicle assigned to them has the correct
state of charge to complete their trip and
INTIS easy charge 5 inductive station for Metz moover electric scooters
was chosen because its battery has experienced
a lower number of charging cycles than other
available options. The customer makes their way to
their destination; already, a charging slot has been
reserved for the vehicle and another trip has been
lined up after a planned 20 minutes of charging
to top up the battery. The customer reaches their
destination and parks the scooter at another charging
station in front of the train station, at which point
the opportunity charging process is immediately and
automatically started. At no point has the customer
or the operator had to think about the energy
needed to travel; the whole process is effortless.
Infrastructure like this not only enhances the
experience for the user, it reduces costs for the
operator as well, both by reducing maintenance
and increasing the longevity of the vehicle. Looking
to the future of electric vehicles, this kind of
infrastructure also allows battery capacity to be
reduced, further saving both money and resources.
Throughout the history of technology, each
progressive step has involved greater use of
resources and energy. The results of this are
clear to everyone. Electric vehicles powered by
renewable energy generation and enabled by
smart infrastructure have the potential to buck this
trend, providing truly sustainable mobility. •
e-mobility Technology International 8 9
Summer 2020

Artificial
Intelligence
Electric Vehicles
BATTERIES
02
The ongoing evolution in the automotive industry will change our
driving experience. The focus of attention is shifting towards the
interior design of cars – many interior concepts have been presented in
recent years. But what exactly does the customer expect?
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“From 2025, AIEVs will gradually
replace privately owned cars”. This
quote by Dr. Akira Yoshino, Asahi
Kasei Honorary Fellow and one of
the inventors of the lithium-ion
battery underlines the direction
the automotive society is heading.
“AIEV” – this abbreviation stands for
“Artificial Intelligence Electric Vehicle”
and is Dr. Yoshino’s vision of future
mobility. By sharing fully autonomous,
intelligent electric vehicles operating
at the highest efficiency, the traffic
as we know it today will change
profoundly: Traffic accidents and
privately-owned cars will decrease
drastically, CO2 emissions will vanish.
The cars will be moving energy
storage systems, with fully automated
charging cycles while discharging
energy into the grid when not being
used. The requirements for electric
batteries will change – with the battery
lifetime becoming an increasingly
important factor. At the same time
a high energy density for longdistance
cruises with the EV will not
be as important as it is today. “Range
anxiety” – today one major obstacle
for the popularity of electric vehicles
– will become an issue of the past.
This picture painted here is more
than just Dr. Yoshino’s vision - it is
slowly coming to life. The ongoing
CASE (Connected – Autonomous –
Shared – Electric) megatrends are
disrupting the automotive industry.
Development cycles are accelerating,
fuelled by tightening environmental
regulations, but also by rapidly
changing user’s demands. Because
not only the vehicle itself, but also the
driving experience is about to change.
Due to the increasing autonomy of
the car the users will have to focus
less on the traffic – and will have
more time to spend on work, in-car
entertainment or just relaxation. As a
result of this development, the focus
of attention will shift to the automotive
interior, rather than the exterior. But
what is the car user expecting from
the future automotive interior?
The Interior Is To Become
The New Exterior
In October 2019, Asahi Kasei Europe
conducted a survey together with
Cologne-based market research
e-mobility Technology International 10
institute Skopos, interviewing a total
of 1,200 car users in Germany, France,
Italy and the United Kingdom regarding
their preferences for the automotive
interior of the future. When asked
about the interior of shared cars, 73.5%
of all respondents who already have
used or who could imagine to use car
sharing put a special emphasis on the
cleanliness of the car, while 51.2% value
premium surfaces, for example for
seats or dashboards. Asked about cars
in general, 73,4% of the respondents
see antibacterial seats and surfaces as
beneficial, with 60.7% being inclined
to pay an extra price for those kinds
of surfaces. A question about surfaces
which look and feel particularly
premium shows a similar result, with
73.5% of the respondents seeing a
personal benefit in having premium
surfaces in the car, and 61.8% being
inclined to invest. 80.2% see benefit
in an acoustic system which filters the
vehicle’s background noise (63.8%),
78% in an acoustic system optimizing
the input of voice commands (61.9%).
In addition, 51.8% consider noiseabsorbing
seat covers and surfaces as
a value-add inside the car (64.9%).
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“From 2025, AIEVs will gradually
replace privately owned cars”.
Dr. Akira Yoshino
The Voice Of The Customer
Is Loud And Clear
Needs and demands towards the
future automotive interior are
becoming increasingly complex
and diversified. For the customer
the interior will play a decisive role
when choosing the next car. For the
OEMs, this development means an
increasing innovation pressure.
Heiko Rother, general manager,
business development, Automotive at
Asahi Kasei Europe, on the increasing
importance of the automotive interior:
“Customer expectations are not
changing over night, but gradually and
much faster than we have seen in the
past. More than half of the car buyers
in Europe are ready to change their
brand. A great chance for OEMs to
win new customers by implementing
convincing technologies which are
touching all senses, addressing
human emotions and needs.”
As a highly diversified technology
company covering a broad range of
advanced materials and technologies
from performance plastics and foams,
stain- and odor repellent fibers for
automotive interior, and electronic
sound and sensing solutions, Asahi
Kasei is offering solutions to these
changing needs. By establishing
its European Headquarter in
Düsseldorf, Germany, in April 2016,
the company is positioning itself as
a partner for the European OEMs
and Tier-1 suppliers to overcome
the challenges Dr. Yoshino’s vision of
future mobility is foreshadowing.
The past present and future of the Li-on
Interview with Dr. Akira Yoshino, Asahi Kasei Honorary Fellow and
2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry in recognition of his achievements in
the research and development of the lithium-ion battery (LIB).
e-motec: The arrival of Lithium
Ion batteries have been nothing
short of a blessing in the world
of technology and gadgets. As a
recent winner of the Nobel Prize
in chemistry for the creation
of the first commercially viable
lithium-ion battery, can you explain
your vision back in 1985 of where
you imagined their best uses?
Dr. Akira Yoshino: I started to
work on the lithium-ion battery
technology in the early 1980s,
together with two colleagues.
Back in those days the world
was waiting for a new battery
technology, replacing the primary
batteries that were powering the
portable electronic devices. When
we were developing the secondary
lithium-ion battery, we were mainly
thinking about its application in
Sony’s portable 8mm camera. At
that time, we estimated a yearly
production of around 12 million
batteries worldwide – and nobody
was thinking of its application
in the automotive. The rising
popularity of portable devices
such as cell phones and notebooks
beginning in the 1990s then
changed the scenery completely.
e-motec: Was there a Eureka
moment/discovery that led you to
lead the team that would build the
lithium ion battery prototype?
Dr. Akira Yoshino: This is a
funny story and it shows how
little coincidences can lead to
something great. In 1982, we were
already working on the battery,
but still struggling with the right
combination of anode and cathode
materials. During spring time I
was cleaning up my lab when I
stumbled across a research paper
by John Goodenough, something
I was planning to read for a while
but just could not find the time to
do so. Now I had the time! In this
paper Goodenough elaborated
on lithium cobalt oxide as a
suitable cathode material. And
this was the Eureka moment. We
reconfigured our battery, using
a carbon-based material for the
anode, and lithium cobalt oxide
for the cathode – and it worked!
e-motec: The impact of Li ion
batteries has pushed electric
vehicles from mere concept to a
reality. With the appetite for energy
storage solutions whetted along
with the transport infrastructure
electrification, there will be
several contenders challenging
the throne currently occupied
by Li-ion. Where do you see the
developments in this sector
taking the Li-Ion in the future?
Dr. Akira Yoshino: The lithium-ion
battery is a mature technology – but
only in its application in portable
electronic devices. When it comes
to its application in the automotive,
there is still a lot of room for
improvement. I personally am very
much interested in reviewing the
fundamentals of lithium-ions. The
movements of lithium-ions differ
greatly – depending on using a
liquid or a solid electrolyte.
By completely understanding
the behavior of lithium-ions,
we may be able to increase
their speed. This will greatly
enhance the current lithium-ion
battery technology. Then, there
is the use of different materials.
Next to the electrolyte, using
new material combinations for
the positive electrode (nickel,
cobalt and manganese) and the
negative electrode (graphite and
silicone) still bears potential.
Dr. Akira Yoshino inventor of lithium-ion battery.
Looking to the next-generation
battery technology, the solid-state
battery is a promising candidate.
Japanese companies like TDK,
Kyocera and Murata Manufacturing
are starting to commercialize
small solid-state batteries, for
examples for applications in
sensors. But it will take time before
this battery technology finds its
way into the automotive –
maybe more than ten years.
Asahi Kasei is also conducting
research in this field. •
e-mobility Technology International 12 13
Summer 2020

ELECTRIFICATION PLANNING
03
Electromobility Has
Withstood the
Coronavirus Crisis
Let’s Make It the Mass Zero-Emission Means of Transportation
The global pandemic caused by the COVID-19 crisis is at
the root of a major shock for the world’s economy. The
automotive sector was no exception, with an expected
decline of 21% in the production of light vehicles
globally, equivalent to more than 15 million fewer cars
being put on the market (Source: Frost&Sullivan, 2020).
Fortunately, the EV sector was able to withstand
the worst impacts of the crisis and is in the midst
of recovering comparably quicker which will
of course have substantial and much needed
benefits to decarbonise the transport sector.
The Strength of Electromobility
Makes for a Faster Recovery
During the crisis, the productions and sales of coming
to the market. However, following the summer, a
steady growth in the sales of electric vehicles is
expected – this is due to some key advantages that this
technology provides. (Source: Frost&Sullivan, 2020)
Some of these which are quite clear and well
known: EVs are sustainable as they have zero
emissions, require very little maintenance, as well
as are becoming increasingly cost-effective.
Furthermore its unique position as a new
technology on the cusp of mass uptake by
consumers drives specific business advantages
that can contribute to this growth.
Manufacturers are also likely to collaborate more
to produce cutting edge-technologies. The production
of batteries will become a more relevant part of the
value-chain. The broader ecosystem is also on the
path to become more integrated and innovative.
The Opportunity for a Green Recovery!
Europe must take this opportunity to invest
further in green and zero emission technologies.
It would be extremely dangerous to postpone
our overarching decarbonisation commitments
until the economy is back on track. •
By Philippe Vangeel, Secretary General
e-mobility Technology International 14 15
Summer 2020

BATTERIES
04
ISO 26262
Challenges
While the demand is present, the certification process is
neither simple nor cheap, and solutions for off-the-shelf
certified BMS are sparse on the market.
Claus Friis Pedersen, R&D Director at Lithium Balance.
ISO 26262 challenges for BMS
The ISO 26262 functional safety standard
is becoming an absolute necessity for
electric passenger cars, road vehicles, and
other EVs on the market. Considering that
the Battery Management System (BMS) is
a defining factor for the safety of these
electric applications, certification on at
least ASIL C level is also becoming a market
need for BMS. While the demand is present,
the certification process is neither simple
nor cheap, and solutions for off-the-shelf
certified BMS are sparse on the market.
The main reason for this is probably the
fact that the ISO26262 demands that you
provide a calculated estimate of the rate of
hazard occurrence due to random hardware
failures. Furthermore, you are obliged to
prove that the so-called Probabilistic Metric
for Hardware Failure (PMHF) is achieved.
To support this, over a hundred different
documents and reports are required to
be submitted to an accredited, external
organisation for analysis, review, and
approval for obtaining an ISO 26262
certification for a specific BMS product.
Although the standard offers some options
for configuration and calibration, such a
certified product typically lack flexibility too,
as recertification is subject to even minor
safety critical modifications. Therefore, a
fully ISO 26262 certified BMS is most often
purchased as a customised product for a
single or limited amount of product lines.
Breaking Down The Certification
And Development Process
“Lithium Balance has been through the ISO
26262 certification procedure on multiple
occasions, first, during the development
of a customised BMS created for some of
the major electric passenger car OEMs.
Afterwards, challenging the market norms,
we found a working solution for the
development of an ISO 26262 certified BMS,
that comes off-the-shelf, and maintains its
flexibility regardless of the strict certification
process, the third generation n-BMS
platform, thanks to a clever software-level
design.” - Claimed Claus Friis Pedersen,
R&D Director at Lithium Balance.
Whereas the development of an ISO 26262
certified BMS solution took us over two years,
with the n-BMS platform, the (re-)certification
process for custom specific solutions
can be cut down to a fraction hereof.
ISO 26262 defines requirements for the
whole life cycle of a product, including
management, development, production,
operation, service, and decommissioning,
and requires that the fulfilment of all
requirements are proven, documented,
reviewed, and verified/validated, while
potential failures are analysed, and risks
specified and quantified, Claus explained
For the n-BMS platform, the process started
with breaking down the development and
certification procedure into three phases,
the concept phase, product development phase, and
post-RFP phase. These phases were then broken down
to smaller stages as well. The concept phase was
consisting of an item definition stage, where the overall
functions and basic design of the BMS was defined,
a stage where Hazard Analysis and Risk Assessment
(HARA) was made, an important analysis technique to
ensure potential safety hazards are considered, and
then the definition of the functional safety concept
stage, where the main safety goal was set. For the
n-BMS, “Avoiding battery SOA (Safe Operating Area)
violation” was defined, as well as further safety
functions and steps, such as what safety support
functions shall be applied, when the BMS should
provide warnings, and when should it enter “Safestate”,
where all battery contactors are disconnected.
The product development phase included the
actual development of the hardware and software by
first looking at the BMS on a system level, deriving
What truly makes
the n-BMS platform
unique, however,
is its software-level
design.
e-mobility Technology International 16 17
Summer 2020

n-BMS Platform MCU.
code in the BMS, without
any risk posed on the ISO 26262
certification, thanks to a clever design.
The n-BMS platform’s software has been
separated into two layers, the Base-Layer-
Software (BSW) and the Application-Layer-
Software (ASW). All safety critical functions
and hardware drivers are included in the BSW,
allowing more flexibility and customisability
for the ASW, which contains non-safety critical
features only, such as SoX algorithms. The two
layers are separated by an open API interface
layer, making the connection between BSW
and ASW seamless and programming simple.
the safety requirements set from the
functional safety concept, creating a system
architecture, defining safety mechanics for
detection and avoidance of failures, and
safety analyses at a system level, such as
Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA) and
Failure Tree Analysis (FTA). For an ASIL-C
certification there shall be no potential
single-point failures in the system that
are not covered by a safety mechanism.
Development on a hardware level was
made in a similar structure. After deriving
Hardware Safety requirements and test
specifications, a detailed hardware design
was made with HW/SW interface specification
and test specification, which included a 32
bit RISC floating-point and dual core lockstep
CPU on the master board and several slave
boards to suit a number of different customer
interests in terms of number of battery cells
per slave and connector types. At this level
quantitative analysis, FMEDA and quantitative
FTA were conducted to provide the previous
figures for the likelihood of failure.
Risk-Free Implementation Of
Your Own Software Code
What truly makes the n-BMS platform
unique, however, is its software-level
design. It includes an open API that allows
customers to include their own software
e-mobility Technology International 18
In addition, a complete ASW package of
functionality has also been developed for
the n-BMS platform, with full configurability,
so the depth of customisation is completely
up to the user. Via the open API, users can
safely supplement, or completely replace
the added ASW functionality with their own
custom algorithms and battery models using
the MATLAB toolbox or Simulink codes, without
any effect on the ISO 26262 certified.
The software design was followed by proving
freedom from interference between safety
critical parts and non-safety critical parts,
and further tests, including environmental
tests, EMC test, system integration test,
and Fault Injection test to invoke safety
mechanisms. With that, the product was ready
for production, however, further paperwork
to the independent organisation, TÜV SÜD in
Lithium Balance’s case, was still filed during
the production, service, and decommissioning.
Conclusion
With the third generation n-BMS platform, we
developed one of the first ISO 26262 certified
BMS off-the-shelf, with a “sandbox” ASW that
allows for a large degree of customisability
without any negative effects on its safety
functions, pioneering the way towards safer
electric vehicles on the road and shorter
time-to-market for automotive OEMs, who will
not have to go through the lengthy and rather
costly ISO 26262 certification process. •
Hugo Benzing GmbH & Co. KG
Daimlerstrasse 49 - 53
70825 Korntal - Münchingen
Germany
E-Mail: info@hugobenzing.de
Phone: + 49 711 8000 6 - 0

THERMAL
MANAGEMENT
05
A Step
Toward
E-Mobility
Thermal Management
Solutions for Electric
and Hybrid Vehicles.
The MEDINA concept
The protection of the environment
is increasingly becoming a priority
on the political agenda around the
globe. The UN-Paris agreement sets
a target of 1.5°C on global warming,
Green parties are gaining influence
and even running or participating in
various governments (e.g. Austria)
and the youth movement ‘Fridays
for future’ is attracting more and
more attention and support.
The transportation sector with
combustion engines is one of the
major sources of CO2 emissions.
Automotive and machinery
equipment manufacturers all
over the globe are searching for
alternative drive solutions, most
importantly Battery Electric Vehicles
(BEV) and Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles
(FCEV) or hybrid systems with both a
combustion engine and electrical.
To ensure safety and to increase
longevity of electric vehicles, the
Drivetrain and energy systems must
Schematic overview of heat exchangers used in hybrid vehicles
operate under optimal thermal
conditions. At the same time,
applications demand increased
power, capacity, or charging/
discharging rates (C-rates). As
temperature boundaries are
significantly more restricted
compared to internal combustion
engines (ICE’s), observing these
limits is both more important
and more difficult. Electrical
motors overheating will lead to an
exponential decrease in lifetime.
Lithium-ion-batteries should
operate within a temperature range
of 20 to 45°C. If they overheat, the
electrochemical aging process
starts. If they are functioning
at temperatures below 20°C,
performance decreases significantly.
In addition, converters, transformers
and the power electronics all face
deterioration due to overheating.
So, generally speaking, for the
lifetime and performance an
efficient and consequent thermal
management is mandatory.
To face these challenges, AKG
Group - a company founded in
1919 in Hofgeismar, Germany
that has grown from a small
production facility into a worldwide
manufacturer of specialised cooling
systems - has collaborated with
Aurora, a leading global supplier
of HVAC solutions for low volume
and off-road applications and
high-end applications, founded
in 1930 also in Germany.
Together, they have developed
a range of products solving these
problems and allowing each
component to run in optimized
thermal conditions, extending life
and increasing effectiveness.
Special cold plates, designed
according to heat rejection maps
and completely new architectures
for battery cooling, offer one
type of solution. Developed in
cooperation with leading research
institutes and universities (e.g.
FEV and Aachen University), these
advancements warrant consideration.
e-mobility Technology International 20
21
Summer 2020

diagonal, U-flow, multi passages) are
also completely selectable. Aurora’s
long experience in refrigerant cycle,
HVAC and all required components
ensures the systems’ optimal
operation in all conditions.
To offer flexible solutions to
all kinds of customers, it is possible
to integrate MEDINA not only as a
complete system in a vehicle but
also to have a step-by-step
integration. An OEM may start with
a battery thermal management
system (BTMS) only or with
the hydraulic system as single
heat source for the pump and
later, in stage two, integrate
additional components.
Openness, flexibility,
and high value in technical
support and product
performance are key for
AKG-Aurora in serving their
customers; this is the driving
force of the MEDINA concept.
With their MEDINA concept,
AKG and Aurora offer
the market an option for
substantial overall reduction
in energy consumption for
electric vehicles and this
a potential for global CO2
emission reduction. •
“An option for
substantial
overall reduction
in energy
consumption for
electric vehicles
and with this
a potential for
global CO2
emission reduction.”
A
C
The MEDINA concept allows
two ways of optimization: either
offering the same size of battery
with significantly more autonomy
(if heating or cooling is needed),
or maintaining the same vehicle
range or operating time with a
reduction in the size and cost of the
battery (depending on utilization
and conditions up to 40 %).
AKG and Aurora jointly have
developed a software to calculate
the possible benefits under
specific conditions and with this
can support their customers
already in the development
phase with optimization.
The core element, the heat pump,
is again a joint development. AKG’s
high performance SSC (Stacked Shell
Cooler) contributes significantly
to the performance of the heat
pump. Due to their extraordinary
flexibility in design, each heat
exchanger is developed for the
physical properties of the media and
working conditions. Connections and
flow directions (parallel, counter,
(Above) Homogeneous temperature
distribution on a cold plate 3D-model
(left) and prototype (right) of a liquid
cooled battery module
B
D
E
“Openness, flexibility, and high value in technical
support and product performance are key”
(A) Schematic representation of the
MEDINA concept . (B) Energy demand
comparison of AC-system with PTC
heating vs. MEDINA over a year.
(C) A 3D-Model of the heat pump system
and (D) Heat sink for power electronics.
(E) Stacked Shell Cooler.
e-mobility Technology International 22 23
Summer 2020

THERMAL MANAGEMENT 06
The growth of Electric Vehicles (EV)
ushers in a need for novel thermal
management solutions. Heat loads
driven by ever increasing and
higher energy densities in battery
technology, electronics, and rapid
charging require high efficiency cooling
systems in compact packages. Also,
the battery performance in terms
of total energy stored and power
output significantly decreases as the
temperature becomes too low. The
thermal issues are exacerbated by
the necessity to keep batteries within
tight thermal boundaries in order to
maintain performance and reliability
for extended use. Engineers are more
and more reliant on active cooling to
meet these requirements. We’ll look
briefly at the issue of heating and
cooling batteries using a secondary
liquid loop and a direct refrigerant
approach and explore the trade-offs
between these two approaches.
Thermal
Management
For Electric
Vehicles
and Their
Infrastructure
Batteries can operate over a
reasonable range of temperatures, but
function best, last longest, and hold
their charge longest when maintained
in a temperature range of ~20°C to
~40°C. A typical ambient temperature
range for electric vehicles would have
a reasonable maximum of ~60°C and a
minimum of ~-30°C. This means that
active cooling and heating is a necessary
part of the Battery/E-vehicle system.
Furthermore, charging and particularly
rapid charging further confines the
temperature range. Extreme cold and
high heat reduce charge acceptance,
so the battery must be brought to a
moderate temperature before charging.
The most widespread active
cooling methods used in industry are
thermoelectric and vapor compression
refrigeration (VCR). Other options
for active cooling include magnetic,
thermo-acoustic and thermo tunneling.
In 2010, a DOE government-sponsored
study compared vapor compression
(VC) with five competing technologies,
Jim Burnett Director-Aspen Systems Inc.
including thermo-acoustic,
thermoelectric and magnetic
methods. The results determined
that VC systems are at least
three times more efficient than
all other current options—and
since 2010, much progress has been
made in efficiency of VCR, making
it, by far and away, the best cooling
option available. Vapor compression
is more efficient and lighter than
alternative technologies in most
applications. Simplest heating method
used in battery powered vehicles is
resistance heating, however, vapor
compression-based heating (VCH)
which uses significantly lower battery
power is a desirable alternative.
Figure 1 Miniature Compressor.
e-mobility Technology International 24

Direct Refrigerant Vapor Compression Cycle.
Direct Refrigerant Thermal Management for Battery Operated
Vehicles and Charging Stations
Air T °C COP DX °C
10 8.0
20 6.1
30 4.5
40 3.2
50 2.3
60 1.5
Table 1 Direct Refrigerant Cooling COP
Ambient T °C
COP
-30 Heater Required
-20 Heater Required
-10 0.7
0 1.4
10 2.3
20 3.4
Table 2 Direct Refrigerant Heating COP
Vapor Compression with Secondary Coolant Loop
Air T °C
COP LIQ
Ambient T °C
COP
10 6.6
-30 Heater Required
20 5.0
-20 Heater Required
30 3.6
-10 0.6
40 2.5
0 1.1
50 1.7
10 1.8
60 1.2
20 2.7
Table 3 Liquid Loop Cooling COP
Table 4 Liquid Loop Heating COP
Vapor Compression Based Refrigeration & Heating
Simply stated, vapor compression refrigeration
(VCR) systems move heat from a cold source
to a heat sink based on the physics of phase
change heat transfer. The basic components
of this system include compressor (the heart
of the system), condenser, expansion valve,
and evaporator. The compressor receives
low temperature/pressure refrigerant vapor
and compresses it as high density and high
temperature vapor into the condenser, where
heat is removed to the environment causing the
refrigerant to condense to hot liquid. The high
temp liquid exits the condenser and moves into
the expansion valve. Here the liquid sustains
a pressure drop that lowers the temperature
of the refrigerant at the exit of the expansion
valve. The result is a low temperature two-phase
mixture that enters the evaporator, and as it is
exposed to the heat source, the heat boils off the
liquid refrigerant through evaporation absorbing
heat from the source. The low temperature,
low pressure gas then re-enters the compressor
completing the process. In the heating mode
of a compression cycle, through the use of a
four-way valve, the former evaporator becomes
the condenser, heating the cold battery and
the former condenser becomes the evaporator
absorbing heat from the environment.
Rotary Compressor
The most prevalently used refrigeration
compressors for general applications have
been reciprocating compressors. In automotive
applications, shaft driven swash plate compressor
has been the compressor of choice. In a
battery-operated vehicle, a new highly efficient,
compact and lightweight alternative to the
previous standards are now available.
A line of miniature and small (1.4cc to 7.6cc
displacement), variable speed (2000 to 6500
RPM) BLDC rotary refrigeration compressors
were successfully developed in the US, precision
manufactured, individually performance tested,
and sold worldwide for wide ranging applications.
These compact and lightweight BLDC rotary
compressors have inherently high reliability in
mobile applications. This has been demonstrated
by the US Military’s use of these systems over
ten years of extreme field use. Over 4000
Environmental Control Units (ECU’s) using the
smallest of these compressors have been fielded
by the Military to cool communication electronics
on board Mine Resistant Ambush Protected
(MRAP) vehicles. These small rotary compressors
are more efficient (up to twice as efficient as
reciprocating BLDC compressors) and compact
compared to reciprocating compressors (one
tenth of the size and weight of reciprocating BLDC
compressors). These efficient, reliable, compact
and lightweight BLDC variable speed compressors
are already being effectively used in various
applications, including electric vehicle charging
stations, transportable military communications
electronics, industrial lasers, and medical devices.
These miniature compressors have overcome
previous obstacles to using vapor compression
cooling systems in extreme operating conditions
and applications, which demand high-reliability
in mobile operation, very low weight, and
small available space. Shown in Figure 1, is a
compressor that was specifically engineered
to make possible the miniaturization of vapor
compression cooling systems for military
electronics and laser cooling. The extremely high
capacity and high efficiency in such a small and
lightweight compressor along with its undisputable
reliability in mobile applications are the key
enabling factors in miniature refrigeration and
heating systems and offer excellent potential
for on-board battery cooling in vehicles.
This analysis will compare the cooling
and heating efficiency of a battery thermal
management system using vapor compression
technology with and without a secondary
pumped coolant loop. As shown in the direct refrigerant
solution Figure 2, the refrigerant is run directly through
the battery cold plates, which are the evaporator in
this system. The battery cold plate is designed as
an evaporator with special care taken to assure the
two-phase flow is uniformly distributed and that the
refrigerant pressure is safely contained. The batteries
are mounted directly to the cold plate, minimizing
conduction losses, and maximizing the efficiency of
the system. In addition, the refrigerant provides phase
change heat transfer in the cold plate, assuring that
the temperature across the battery bank is uniform.
The efficiency of vapor compression systems is
typically presented as the coefficient of performance or
COP of the system. The COP is the ratio of the cooling
provided and the power drawn by the system. Table 1
shows a calculation of the COP for a direct refrigerant
cooled system with varying ambient temperature and
a constant battery cold plate temperature of 20C. This
is a simple analysis designed to show correlations
between temperature and COP using R134a (similar in
performance to R1234yf approved for vehicle use) as
the refrigerant. Fan power has not been included. As
an example, at an air temperature of 40°C, a direct
refrigerant cooled system would provide 3.2 watts of
cooling for every watt of power draw. Alternatively,
if 3200 watts of cooling were required the system
would draw 1 KW of power under these conditions. As
e-mobility Technology International 26 27
Summer 2020

indicated in the table, there is a strong correlation
between ambient temperature and COP.
This system will also need to function at air
temperatures significantly below 10°C. By employing
a four-way valve, the system can be reversed and
turned into a heat pump. By reversing the refrigerant
flow, the heat is drawn from the cold ambient air,
and heating is supplied to the battery cold plate.
As a heat pump, the same COP calculation can be
used to assess the efficiency and power draw as a
function of ambient temperature. In this case, the
battery “hot plate” temperature is now set at 40C to
provide heating. The COP performance under these
conditions is shown in Table 2. As can be seen in the
table, at very low temperatures, up to an ambient of
approximately -10C, a heater is more efficient than
the vapor compression system at maintaining the
required plate temperature and would be required
under these operating conditions. For the heating
cycle, the COP has the same meaning as for the
cooling cycle. At 0C the system will provide 1.4
watts of heating for every watt of power drawn.
Vapor Compression with Secondary Coolant Loop
In this scenario, the vapor compression system
heats and cools the pumped coolant and the
evaporator is collocated with the condenser,
compressor, and expansion valve in a compact
assembly, similar to that shown in Figure 4. The
battery cold plate does not need to be designed
as an evaporator that carries the refrigerant
pressures. Table 3 shows the COP of the coolant
loop design in cooling mode and Table 4 shows
the COP of the coolant loop design when used
as a heat pump for heating the coolant loop. As
shown in Table 4, a heater is required at low
temperature. This is because the r134a refrigerant
used for this analysis is a vacuum at these low
temperatures and there is no refrigerant flow.
Direct Refrigerant & Liquid Loop
Cooling Conclusions
The direct refrigerant approach is more efficient
for both the heating and cooling cycles. See the
graph in Figure 5, which plots the power saved per
kilowatt for the cooling and heating cycle for the
direct refrigerant and secondary coolant approaches.
With direct refrigerant, the only active component
is the compressor, which drives the refrigerant
through the battery heat transfer plate, providing
phase change heat transfer at a uniform temperature
for the battery bank. The downside is that extra
attention needs to be paid to the design of the
battery heat transfer plate to make it an evaporator.
Power Saved
Power Saved Watts
250
200
150
100
50
200
150
100
224
187
0
-15 -10 -5 0 5 10 15 20 25
Ambient Temperature
50
Power Saved W/KW of Heating
Direct Refrigerant vs Liquid Coolant
26
38
58
Additionally, more careful attention needs to be
paid to the controls so to assure that desired
temperatures are achieved in the refrigeration circuit.
The circulating coolant approach is less efficient
primarily because there is a delta T between the
refrigerant and the coolant in the heat exchanger
that does not exist in the direct refrigerant
approach. This forces the compressor in the vapor
compression system to drive against a higher delta
T lowering its efficiency during both the heating and
cooling cycles. The addition of the coolant circuit
necessitates the addition of 1) liquid recirculating
pump, 2) fluid reservoir, and 3) associated tubing
and connectors. This increases the cost, weight, and
volume of the system but controls can be slightly
easier due to the heat/cold storage in the reservoir.
CONCLUSION
Compact refrigeration systems are available that
can be integrated into battery cooling systems
and rapid charging stations. Where possible, a
direct refrigerant heating and cooling approach
will be more efficient than using a secondary liquid
loop. There will be a cost and weight savings and
an expected improvement in reliability but the
designer must be prepared to design the heat
transfer plate as an evaporator with controlled
2-phase flow and the ability to handle refrigerant
pressures. With the electric vehicle’s characteristic
need for performance and efficiency, it is worth
considering a direct refrigerant cooling approach.
The performance and range on the road will likely be
the major differentiator in the buyers’ decisions. •
88
119
Power Saved W/KW of Cooling
Direct Refrigerant vs Liquid Coolant
130
75
157
0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Ambient Temperature °C
Power Savings with Direct Refrigerant.
DE
e-mobility Technology International 28

CHARGING
07
Electrical
Safety
Different applications have different
grounding strategies.
In the electrical safety world, a
person will typically encounter
three electrical grounding strategies
in industrial and commercial
applications. Power systems can
be operated using one of the
following methods: solidly grounded,
high resistance grounded (HRG),
or ungrounded (floating). These
methods can apply to AC or DC
systems alike, and each comes with
their own subset of advantages and
disadvantages. For starters, most of
us are very well acquainted with the
grounded system since it is utilized
in most residencies in the US. Here,
the neutral conductor and earth
ground are solidly connected via a
ground-neutral bonding jumper. This
occurs twice, once at the transformer
supplying the power, and a second
time at the service entrance or the
breaker panel. The grounded system
is relatively simple to operate.
Depending on the situation, if
any part of this process fails, the
subsequent result is often an increase
in current or ground-fault current, or
tripping overload thermal magnetic
breakers or ground-fault breakers.
Pay attention to the series of events:
A failure causes a malfunction, high
currents may flow, personnel can be
endangered, a safety mechanism will
trip, and the fix involves exchanging
equipment and resetting the switches.
While this may be acceptable in
a stationary environment, the
Electrical Vehicle Industry decided
to pursue a different route for EVs.
In this environment, all attributes
from grounded power would surely
result in dangerous situation. For
example, if the vehicle was moving
and was suddenly subjected to high
fault currents, breakers could trip
mid-drive and the vehicle’s operation
would shut down without warning.
A grounded system approach
simply would not make sense for
an EV. To make matters worse, it
was clear from an early stage of
development that battery voltages
would most likely follow the path
that the DC solar industry took years
earlier – pursuing higher efficiencies
by increasing the voltage. Modern
EVs, including trucks and busses, can
be designed with voltages ranging
up to 1000 VDC. This is primarily why
the power system of choice for an
EV is an ungrounded system, or in
other words, a system that is fully
isolated from the vehicle’s frame.
Having total isolation from a vehicle’s
frame provides one additional layer of
safety from shock hazards. Bender’s
expertise lies within the layer of
isolation between the high voltage
and the frame. If isolation is key to
continued safety and operation,
there must be a circuit in place to
safeguard it. In the beginning of the
EV movement, Bender supplied the
first generation of IMIs (Isolation
Monitoring Interrupters) to the EV
industry. These were often bulky
relays from industrial applications
that were being applied on the
battery pack to have some adequate
means of safety. Soon enough,
these systems were adapted and
miniaturized to accommodate
the industry’s need for smaller
components that were easier to
integrate and perfectly engineered
for the harsher vibration and
environmental requirements of an EV.
Students noticed that the IMI goes
into alarm during rain.
Benefitting from these early moves
were student racers at colleges
and universities. Schools had
followed the trend of electrification
closely and thus began annual
student competitions designing
electric race cars. The curriculum of
these newly formed organizations
included a variety of disciplines,
such as mechanics, electric power,
drivetrain and advanced electronics
engineering. Here, it was of utmost
importance to keep the students
safe, which Bender answered by
donating IMIs on an annual basis for
the student vehicle competitions.
These devices kept the students
vigilant, and one group even went
so far to complain that “The Bender”
(officially known as “the IMI”) would
always alarm while driving in the
rain. After further investigation, they
soon discovered this was due to a
sealing issue on the vehicle, and
the device had in fact prevented an
electrical hazard. The IMI benefits
became immediately clear and they
were quickly made a requirement
in the competition rulebook. The
e-mobility Technology International 30 31
Summer 2020

PIONEERS IN ELECTRICAL
INSULATION.
OUR LEADING TECHNOLOGY
DRIVES INNOVATION.
RESINS FOR
SENSORS
EV Isolation Decline
industry as a whole did not lag
behind either, and new standards
and guidelines were quickly issued.
Bender has kept pace with
this ever-changing industry by
constantly designing and upgrading
the IMI. Its latest iteration in the
pipeline, the Iso175, will be a small
PCB type with CAN communication
and insulation diagnostic capabilities
up to 30MOhm. This technology will
enable insulation monitoring of the
entire vehicle with high degrees of
accuracy, no matter whether it is parked
or being driven. And with the rapid
technological advances in electrification,
the application of these devices can
reach into rail, air travel, military,
mining, and many other industries. •
Applicable standards to this
editorial:ISO 6469-3: 2018 Electrically
propelled road vehicles — Safety
specifications — Part 3: Electrical safety
FMVSS305 Electric Powered Vehicles:
electrolyte Spillage and Electrical shock
protectionSAE J2578 Recommended
Practice for General Fuel Cell Vehicle
Safety SAE Safety J2344 Guidelines for
Electric Vehicle.
SYSTEMS
FOR e-Drive
SMART SOLUTIONS
FOR BATTERIES
E-MOBILITY TESTING
IN VON ROLL INSTITUTE
The IMI benefits became immediately clear and they were
quickly made a requirement in the competition rulebook.
The industry as a whole did not lag behind either, and new
standards and guidelines were quickly issued.
We were making products for electrical cars
long before they became the latest trend.
e-mobility Technology International 32
automotive@vonroll.com
www.vonroll.com

08
CONNECTIVITY
Maxime Flament, CTO. 5GAA
Ultimate Connection
Vehicle Connectivity, the combination of ICT and automotive industries,
is paramount for the development of the next generation of connected
mobility and automated vehicle solutions. generation of connected
mobility and automated vehicle solutions.
C-V2X is a versatile solution that can
be integrated into already available
cellular modems and platforms.
Vehicle connectivity is at the
heart of our organisation, the 5G
Automotive Association (5GAA).
Since our inception in 2016, we
are addressing the necessity to
bridge the technical and cultural
gap between the automotive
and telecommunications sectors
to make connected mobility
and road safety a reality.
As we look towards the future,
connected mobility is synonymous
of automated driving, digitalisation
of transportation and traffic
management. Through our more
than 130 members, all major
industry players from Telco, Auto
and IT industries, we are willing
to address the complex challenge
with providing enhanced safety,
sustainability and convenience for
all road users. Our contribution
entails the development,
standardisation, testing and
deployment of cellular-based
communications for the automotive
market, as well as the stimulation
of the global implementation.
Commercial availability is also
one of our major priorities.
Nowadays, society’s transport
requires companies to deliver
solutions allowing citizens to
safely move faster, farther and
with more freedom than ever
before. Advancements in cellular
technologies hold the potential
for enhanced vehicular safety
and efficiency. That is why we
strongly support the deployment
of Cellular Vehicle to Everything
(C-V2X), first on the basis of the
current 4G/LTE complemented
in the near future with 5G.
The potential to make roads
safer for all through this technology
is enormous, and our organisation
is working to make it happen.
Indeed, C-V2X is a versatile solution
that can be integrated into already
available cellular modems and
platforms. It requires one
single modem to provide
both short-range safety
applications and long-range
network communications. This
simplicity shortens the time
to the markets and overall
market penetration, making it
scalable and cost-efficient.
Moreover, the easy integration
into 4G/LTE chipsets is synonymous
of integration with consumerelectronics
applications, on
smartphones for pedestrians
and cyclists. This can nicely
complement the current
sensor-based pedestrian
protection systems.
e-mobility Technology International 34 35
Summer 2020

one should make a technology
choice. If they do not listen to the
automotive market, they risk that
their EU-funded roadside units
will never communicate with the
newer vehicles. Indeed, vehicle
manufacturers are investing heavily
on 4G/5G technologies standardised
globally by 3GPP, which comes
automatically with the newer 5.9GHz
short range communication called
LTE-V2X PC5 making the wifi solution
obsolete (based on 802.11p).
The first phase of the technology
was standardised back in 2017. We
are now able to witness the first
products coming to the automotive
market, which are being tested in
different parts of the world. We
bring two sorts of connectivity
together: (1) the device-to-device
interaction based on short-range
communication, which connects
vehicles with pedestrians,
cycle riders and the broader
infrastructure (2) the long-range
communication, linking vehicles
to cloud services and the internet.
These two technologies should
be complementary and answer
different use-cases. Connectivity
to the network informs the driver
about possible problems ahead
of the journey. In contrast, shortrange
communication enables the
sending of warnings to the driver,
triggering life-saving actions (e.g.
braking). In collaboration with the
European Telecommunications
Standards Institute (ETSI), we
organise C-V2X plugfests – or
interoperability tests – aiming to
support the C-V2X ecosystem in
the C-ITS deployment according to
the highest security standards.
Our vision further encompasses
connected mobility through 5G.
Thanks to multi-gigabit speed that
will create new opportunities in
infotainment and teleoperation use
cases, 5G is going to redefine the
driving experience of all users. Such
features will be reliable, predictable
and provide low-latency Quality
of Service (QoS). We have already
successfully shown on-road 5G tests
combining safety-relevant dynamic
map downloads and multi-media
streaming. When the signal drops,
the first service is guaranteed while
the video quality is reduced.
On the telecommunications
side, operators will have the
possibility to provide tailor-made
services for the needs of the
automotive industry thanks to the
new spectrum bands allocated
with 5G New Radio. We make it our
mission to speed up our efforts
to make connected mobility and
5G-V2X a reality, and believe
it can only be achieved by a
sustained technological evolution
throughout the different cycles of
this ecosystem. This evolution also
requires our partners’ support to
create a harmonised environment.
What about the transition from LTE
to 5G-V2X, you might ask? LTEenabled
vehicles will be able to
“talk” to 5G-V2X-enabled vehicles.
As we are a global association
paving the way in Europe, Northern
America and Asia, many challenges
relating to standardisation across
continents rise ahead. From
a regulatory standpoint, the
situation differs according to the
continent. Looking east, the Chinese
government is extremely supportive
of 5G. There are plans to implement
LTE-V2X roadside coverage on
expressways and major urban roads
as soon as regulations allow it.
In the United States, the Federal
Communications Commission
(FCC) is assessing the current
regulation that gives DSRC radios
exclusive use of the 5.9 GHz band.
In 2018, 5GAA submitted a waiver
request to allow C-V2X operation
in the upper 20 MHz of this band.
US policymakers recognise the
value of technology-neutrality.
They understand the advantages
of a consensual industry solution
to improve the use of the 5.9 GHz
band to the benefit of road safety
and efficiency. As of 2022, our
founding member Ford is deploying
C-V2X in all their new models in
the country. For this reason, we
are actively advocating to keep
the band reserved exclusively for
road safety while others would like
to open it up to another usage.
In Europe, the situation is
consolidating. The European
Council – the collective body which
defines the European Union’s
overall political direction and
priorities – opposed a delegated
regulation on C-ITS which was
favoring the wifi short range
solution. This decision sent a
strong message to the European
Commission: a technologically
neutral approach. We believe a
level playing field between different
technologies is the only way to
safer and more efficient mobility
on European roads. Unfortunately,
some road operators in line
with the now-defunct Delegated
Act are funded to deploy C-ITS
solutions based on wifi. We
need to remind them that it is
not with tax-payer’s money that
As we are looking ahead
for a full deployment of the
technology, we will rely on the
existing infrastructure – whether
it comes from road operators,
city owners, local agencies
or from the current cellular
infrastructure, which is currently
owned by mobile operators.
In terms of automated driving,
we wish to make a difference
in the major arteries, highways
and major intersections. Usually,
intersections are designed
in a way enclined to adapted
management (e.g. many red lights).
In this controlled environment,
the deployment of V2X is relatively
easy: by adding a further layer of
information, it can be deployed
in a relatively structured way.
As a first step, we want to make
sure the actors of the ecosystem,
such as vehicles and pedestrians,
are correctly connected to the
services and one another. Then,
we will be able to pursue our
research and offer solutions to
address a majority of issues,
even in the oldest of cities! •
e-mobility Technology International 36 37
Summer 2020

THERMAL
MANAGEMENT
09
Next-Gen
Thermal
Management
Ultra-low viscosity Gap Filler Liquids – handling like
a potting material while performing like a high class
thermally conductive and electrical isolating Gap Filler.
The switch to electric drive systems
and the increasing variety of
sensors and electronics imply
completely new challenges for the
automotive sector. Besides the
field of the electric powertrain,
the battery is one of the most
critical parts of the EV or PHEV.
A perfect temperature control is
crucial and therefore, the selection
and integration of thermal
interface materials is essential.
Of course, there are many
different types of battery cells,
modules, manufacturers and
requirements on the market,
which vary widely. This in turn
leads to a lot of different thermal
management solutions. The most
common solution, is to transfer the
heat of the cells to the bottom of
the module and to connect these
cells with a Gap Filler Liquid (GFL),
which will compensate for any
e-mobility Technology International 38 39
Summer 2020

Thermal
management or
rather thermal
connectivity and
cooling of electrical
components have
an important role
to play. While there
is a large number of
Thermal Interface
Materials, the most
common solution
for the automotive
sector are the Gap
Filler Liquids (GFL)
and the Softtherm
Pads, both can
be individually
customized.
kind of mechanical tolerances.
Also a thermal connection to
the side of the module can be
useful. Depending on the size
of the battery modules, which
can be a very large area and in
the case of the side connection
thin gaps must be covered.
To fulfil these requirements,
always thinking about weight,
handling and cycle time, KERFAOL
invented an ultra-low viscosity Gap
Filler, the GFL 1800 SL. It is a twocomponent
system with 1,8 W/mK,
15kV/mm and a viscosity of < 5.000
mPas which means about 1/10 of
comparable Gap Filler systems.
Therefore, the material is “flowing
like water” and has the advantage
of self-levelling and filling up
every corner, which comes very
close to a potting material.
For the thermal connection of
the side wall, the dispensing must
be started at the bottom to avoid
air inclusion. Consequently, a
long and very thin dosing needle
must be used to fill the small
horizontal gap. While it is not
possible to fill a gap of e.g. 1 mm
with standard Gap Fillers, the GFL
1800 SL has a special particle size,
shape and distribution and can be
dispensed by small dosing needles
that have an inner diameter
of only 0,6 mm. It takes only a
short time to fill that gap and the
curing time of 60 minutes at room
temperature can be speeded up
with heat. After curing, the GFL
1800 SL, which is based on low
volatile silicone, is very stable
and at the same time still soft
over the whole lifetime, creating
a perfect match for compensation
of vibrations and thermal
expansion of other components.
The GFL 1800 SL combines good
thermal, electrical and mechanical
properties with a new way of
processing. Due to that special
flow behaviour, difficult small gaps
can be dispensed automatically.
Whether battery, or electric
powertrain - The Gap Filler
Liquids of KERAFOL are already
an approved solution for a wide
range of automotive applications.
Wolfgang Höfer (Sales Manager
KERAFOL GmbH & Co. KG). •
e-mobility Technology International 40
41
Spring 2020

CHARGING
10
What Can The
E-Mobility Market
Learn From The
Smartphone
Industry?
Why e-mobility is moving
towards a full DC charging
ecosystem.
Contrary To Popular Belief,
Ev Charging Takes Less Time To
Charge Than Pumping Petrol
Once upon a time, people laughed at the idea that an electric vehicle could be used for day- today
travel, let alone used for long-distance road trips. Fast forward to today and High-Power
Charging units (HPC) now give EVs bursts of power along highways.
A residential EV charge point.
In business, it takes courage to do
something new. This may seem
obvious, but there are countless
stories of companies who have
waited for the mass adoption of new
technology even when the business
advantages, and user benefits to be
gained are obvious. Apple’s recent
move toward technological progress
is a prime example. Not only did they
make the CD drive and Ethernet port
on laptops outdated, they removed
the century-old headphone jack.
Phil Schiller, Apple’s marketing
chief, explained the decision in
one word - courage. In fact, he did
not even try to convince users of
the benefits. When he spoke to
the media he said, “they might not
understand it now, but one day they
will”. Now, a few years down the
road, the removal of the headphone
jack was the start of a new level of
convenience and simplicity. One
day, a similar story will be told
about the demise of AC chargers.
The inconvenient truth is DC
charging is the way of the future,
and there is significant evidence to
support this. First, battery capacity
has increased to a size where onboard
chargers (OBC) are no longer
required. It is now possible for EV
owners to drive at least 200 miles
on a full charge 1 and research
shows a single day’s commute only
averages 40 miles 2 . That means, it is
now possible for EV owners to drive
for days before the battery runs out.
This is supported by Global EV
Outlook who acknowledged that the
average EV battery capacity has
increased from 20-30kWh
in 2012 to 70-80kWh in 2018 3 .
On top of that, public DC charging
networks are rapidly growing because
of the anticipated rise in EV sales.
The Edison Electric Institute projects
that the next 1 million EVs will be on
the road by early 2021, and the total
number of EVs on the road will reach
more than 18 million in 2030 3 . To
accommodate for this growth, IONITY,
a joint venture by four major car
manufacturers, is building a network
of 400 high-power DC chargers
that has the ability to recharge a
battery in an estimated 10 minutes.
As EV battery capacity and
charging networks continue
to grow, three scenarios are
expected to take shape to form a
DC only charging environment.
Private charging at home which
includes the utilisation of the EV’s
battery as a general energy storage
element. Public charging to enable
long-distance driving. Maximising
unused energy during fleet downtime.
Private DC charging at home
Contrary to popular belief, EV charging
takes less time to charge than
pumping petrol. That is because, EV
charging can take advantage of the
e-mobility Technology International 42 43
Summer 2020

EV charger module, both engineered
to lead the transformation the
e- mobility industry is facing.
Efficiency and reliability work in
tandem as the DC Home Charger
delivers 11kW of power in a slimline
design, ideal for low-profile wall
mounts or narrow spaces, such
as garages, carports as well as
shopping centres and office
buildings. Bi-directional charging
capabilities are also integrated,
enabling an EV to export its energy
to reduce grid dependence.
time that vehicles are parked, which
according to Fortune is estimated to
be 95% of the time 4 . So, even though
EV charging takes longer than
pumping petrol, EV charging can take
place when the owner is not actively
attending to the car – while sleeping,
eating, shopping, or working. If you
factor in the time it takes to drive to a
station to pump petrol, EV charging at
home can actually save time. The
same can be said of charging at work,
if it is available.
However, with the increase in
charging in general, it is not possible
for the existing grid infrastructure
to support the growing load,
particularly at peak electricity usage
hours. To address this challenge,
some companies, like Rectifier
Technologies, an Australian company
that specialises in developing and
manufacturing high efficiency power
conversion products, are integrating
bi-directional capabilities with their
DC chargers to create a sustainable
charging environment. This will allow
electricity from the EV battery to be
returned to the grid when needed
(V2G) and with careful control, power
can be exported to homes so EV
charging can be efficiently balanced
throughout a 24-hour period.
Public DC charging for
long-distance driving
Once upon a time, people laughed
at the idea that an electric vehicle
could be used for day- to-day travel,
let alone used for long-distance
road trips. Fast forward to today and
High- Power Charging units (HPC)
now give EVs bursts of power along
highways. During a short break to eat,
rest, or stretch legs, this technology
can offer a charging power of 150kW
to 350kW and higher output power
is in discussion for electric trucks.
Along with the growing number
of DC fast chargers (~50kW)
installed at various destinations,
long trips in an EV are becoming
increasingly practical. In the US,
Green Car Congress 5 reports over
10,860 DC fast charging units
and as this number continues to
increase globally, EVs will continue
to evolve from an alternative, to a
preferred mode of transportation.
Maximising unused energy
during fleet downtime
Whether it be hauling freight,
delivering goods, or moving people,
fleet EVs are playing a critical role in
transforming industries and lowering
costs. They do so by reducing the
need for petrol and minimising
the amount of maintenance on
combustion engines. This of
course, meets the needs of today’s
consumers who value companies
who embrace sustainable initiatives.
Fleet EVs also present an untapped
opportunity to maximise battery
capacity during downtime. If a fleet
of 10 buses (which has at least
300kWh battery) can export just 5%
energy during their down time, that’s
150kWh– the equivalent to the entire
battery capacity of at least 2 longrange
passenger vehicles. Now picture
this when the number of electric bus
increases to its expected 3.2 million by
2025 according to Global EV Outlook.
This does however require a highpower
bi-directional charger which is
not readily available in the market.
The result? AC chargers are
becoming redundant
As the growth of DC public charging
infrastructure continues, and
at-home DC charging becomes
more common, car manufacturers
will no longer have any reason to
provide bulky OBCs. This will pave
the way for lower manufacturing
and material costs due to the
more simplified and lighter vehicle
architecture. Like the headphone
jack, premium EV real estate can
be saved for additional technology,
or even larger battery capacities.
The irony is, even though it makes
sense to switch to DC charging, the
adoption of DC chargers is held back
by incumbent stakeholders. While
the removal of OBCs is occurring in
some fleet vehicles in an effort to
reduce overheads, the transition to
every-day vehicles is stalled because
alike any type of change, there is
a misconception that we need the
very thing we are trying to give up.
Two causes for resistance. One
is that a lot of time and money
has been spent on private and
public AC charging infrastructure.
Because of this, many industry
stakeholders are trying to persevere
despite evidence of the contrary.
The other concern has to do with
the unlikely event of an EV battery
running flat with no nearby DC
charger available. The misconception
that the only way to overcome this
is to include an OBC in EVs is simply
not true. An inexpensive portable
DC charger of no more than 3kW of
power that plugs into any general
power outlet, settles this easily.
As we move towards a better
reality, it is understandable to detach
from AC charging bit-by- bit. But
if there is a lesson to be learned
from Apple it is that slow change
breeds resistance. If we can take
EV buyers to the promised land
quicker, it reduces the complexity of
change and minimises loss aversion.
All the industry is waiting for is for
one car manufacturer to be the
first mover in leading this change.
The Rectifier differences
With renowned expertise in
developing and manufacturing
high efficiency power conversion
products, Rectifier Technologies
recently launched an 11kW DC Home
Charger and is developing a 50kW
The 50kW charger module, RT22,
on the other hand is suitable for all
power classes of DC charging and
is rated for continuous operation
and high efficiency. As a scalable
and future- proof solution, it
enables charger manufacturers
to achieve any charger power
class by simply connecting
RT22 modules in parallel. •
Resources
1. https://www.consumerreports.org/hybrids-evs/electric-cars-101-the-answers-toall-your-ev-questions/
2. https://www.myev.com/
research/comparisons/thelongest-range-electric-vehicles-for-2019
3. https://www.eei.org/
resourcesandmedia/newsroom/Pages/Press%20Releases/EEI%20Celebrates%20
1%20Million%20Electric%20
Vehicles%20on%20U-S-%20
Roads.aspx
4. https://fortune.
com/2016/03/13/cars-parked-
95-percent-of-time/
5. https://www.greencarcon-
gress.com/2019/07/20190709-
fotw.html
e-mobility Technology International 44 45
Summer 2020

POWERTRAIN
MATERIALS
11
Pure
Steel
Axalta and Tau Industrial Robotics are at the
literal core of e-mobility with electrical steel.
Dr Christoph
Lomoschitz,
Axalta’s Global
Product Manager
for its Energy
Solutions
business and
Filippo Veglia,
TAU’s CCO Chief
Commercial
Officer, Tau.
A working partnership between Axalta
- a leading global supplier of liquid
and powder coatings – and Italian
advanced materials and manufacturing
company Tau Industrial Robotics, has
resulted in a more efficient process for
the curing and subsequent bonding of
electric motors’ magnetic steel cores.
This has been achieved by combining
Axalta’s Voltatex® self-bonding
coatings with Tau’s LILIT® in-line,
real-time curing process control.
Unreliable testing leads
to uneven production
The e-mobility and renewable energy
industries are focussed on achieving
greater sustainability and therefore
continually working to advance the
development of higher performing,
lighter and more reliable motors. The
optimisation of the magnetic steel core
of electric motors plays a crucial role in
these endeavours. Steel mills, punchers
and motor manufacturers require
superior quality electrical insulation to
minimise iron losses in electric motors
in order to achieve a higher power
output and greater energy efficiency.
Precise control of the curing level is
therefore essential. Until recently, this
has been impossible to achieve.
In 2017, Axalta and Tau Industrial
Robotics teamed up to create a
ground-breaking solution that
completely revolutionised the
way this testing is undertaken.
In the past, when electrical steel was
produced by a steel mill for punching,
the only way of testing the quality
of the run was to rely on sporadic
quality checks that gave unreliable
results. Steel mill operators have to
ensure that the quality of the steel
coil coating (with pre-cured bonding
coatings) their team produces meets
their client’s - the puncher - exact
requirements. Punchers in turn punch
specific shapes out of the coil and stack
and bond them using coatings to build
the electric core of the motor. These
must match the requirements of the end
customers: the electric motor producers.
On an average day, the steel mill’s
production line might produce electrical
steel coils at over 70m/min. A few
times a day, the operator has a small
sample cut from the production line
and taken to the laboratory to test
the curing of the applied self-bonding
paint. Testing takes a few hours, during
which time there is uncertainty about
the quality of that production run.
Typically, the results of the testing are
good and the coils can be sent on to
the puncher. However, occasionally
the test results are not good. By the
time this is realised, several hours of
production of insufficient quality have
taken place and all produce must be
discarded – a quantity which can easily
exceed 10km of electric steel coil.
When all goes well, the steel coil is
sent to the punching process together
with a test report listing all the
specifications. The puncher adjusts
their line to these specifications and
starts to punch the desired shapes
from the coil. To build the magnetic
core of the motor, the punched shapes
are stacked one over the other like
a layered cake - where the filling is
the insulating varnish - and baked in
a curing oven. The puncher regularly
tests the cores they produce and will
occasionally find one that does not have
the required strength; in other words
the bonding has not worked properly,
i.e. the curing level of at least some
parts of the incoming coil must have
differed from the specs the puncher
has received. As a result, the magnetic
cores are under- or over-cured and will
not comply with the specifications of
the motor producer. They are therefore
discarded, resulting in wasted costs.
When the puncher complains to the
steel mill about the curing defects, they
will be told that the coil was tested
in the laboratory as often as possible
and that, unfortunately, as it was not
possible to test 100% of the production,
these errors can occur. This frustrating
scenario is costly in both time and
resources for all parties and has been a
common occurrence in the industry for
many years. This is why Axalta and Tau
Industrial Robotics decided to combine
their knowledge and technology to
find a solution which would be a
game-changer for the industry.
Axalta and TAU partner
up to get the most out of
electrical steel coatings
Axalta’s self-bonding paint is a clever
and innovative concept: Voltatex
high-quality, self-bonding varnishes
allow for the creation of a seamless
magnetic core without any defects to
the lamination stacks. Since the selfbonded
magnetic core is more rigid
and mechanically firmer, it provides
better heat dissipation, prevents the
generation of harmful eddy currents –
localised electric currents that impair
the efficiency of the iron core – and
eliminates humming noise, which
happens when steel laminations are
poorly joined. The tricky issue is that
the correct curing window for the self-
e-mobility Technology International 46 47
Summer 2020

THINK HOLISTIC
BATTERY
MATERIALS
SYNTHETIC
RUBBER
bonded core sheet has very limited tolerances:
an under-cured varnish can be squeezed out
of the stacking, while an over-cured varnish
might no longer bond the laminations. An
optimised, uniform curing level and process
control is therefore paramount. And that
is exactly what TAU’s LILIT now delivers - a
real-time, in-line, non-destructive curing
control that offers peace-of-mind at both
the steel mill and the punching line.
LILIT uses spectroscopy boosted with
industry 4.0 artificial intelligence data analysis
to identify relevant inconsistencies and
defects in the coating. This allows the steel
mill operator and the puncher to set or to
adjust their production parameters correctly,
according to the target product specifications.
It minimises the possibility of poorly cured
self-bonding composites and provides
accurate insight - at a rate of more than 95
percent - into the electrical steel coil coating.
Consequently, LILIT removes the need for timeconsuming
and destructive laboratory tests.
Shedding light on the curing of selfbonding
paint – making it work
Every steel mill and every puncher have
their own individual process requirements
for core sheet manufacturing, stacking and
laminations, so tailoring the system to their
individual needs is key. This consists of three
steps: installation, calibration and learning.
For the installation, TAU engineers go on-site to
work closely with the plant’s process operators.
After evaluating the premises and addressing the
real operational and environmental conditions
- such as temperature, humidity and luminosity -
they indicate the right positioning for LILIT, which
is no bigger than a large shoebox, and suggest
the best installation set-up. Depending on the
number of control channels the user wants to
run simultaneously, the installation is finalised
by TAU within a few days. Electrical and network
connections are provided by the plant operators.
LILIT relies on contactless spectrometric
analysis to detect fluctuations in the curing
level of self-bonding varnishes. The position
of the probe must be as precise as possible.
TAU works on-site until this precise calibration
is complete and the probe is firmly attached
with the supporting holder. Nominal production
parameters like core sheet speed, oven
temperature and ventilation for the selected
Axalta Voltatex varnish are set up by the user.
The TAU engineer selects this signal as a
reference spectrum. The acquired spectrum of
one line can later be used for further channels
in case of multi-channel installations.
LILIT is then taught how to define whether
the Voltatex polymeric surface is under-cured,
FIBERS &
TEXTILES
ELECTRONICS
PERFORMANCE
PLASTICS
FOAM
MATERIALS
e-mobility Technology International 48
WE MAKE FUTURE MOBILITY WORK .
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“Voltatex high-quality, self-bonding
varnishes allow for the creation of a
seamless magnetic core without any
defects to the lamination stacks”
over-cured or correctly cured. This is done
in close collaboration with the user’s quality
department. LILIT can learn the qualitative
difference between the good and bad curing
levels of the core sheet. Once the system is
fully operational, it is able to identify relevant
coating inconsistencies and repetitive defects in
real time. Any minimal variation from the target
characteristics will be recognised in less than
15 seconds and result in a call for corrective
action by the user. Incoming quality values are
continuously correlated through the AI engine
– and this is achieved without any physical
interference or damage caused while testing.
LILIT is capable of quality tracking on both fixed
and moving surfaces, assessing coating uniformity
across the entire coil. Immediate feedback reduces
start-up time, for example after varnish changes
or coil changes. Crucially, operators can use
cloud-based remote access to get comprehensive,
real-time insight into their production flow within
selected time periods and have access to it
anytime and anywhere. TAU’s operating software
is aimed at simplifying production process
management and quality control by providing
ongoing, uncomplicated feedback on curing
characterisation. It generates values online and
creates visualised data reporting that can be
automatically clustered, backed up and filed.
Crucially, once operational, the system’s ongoing
machine learning based on the operational
and environmental data assists the steel mill
or the puncher to improve curing processes
and eventually allows predictive suggestions
for production adjustments, coil changing,
maintenance activities or general planning.
Filippo Veglia, TAU’s CCO, says, “Simplicity
aligned with performance are the key aspects
of how we upgraded the prevailing testing
techniques. Our intention was to create an
automated process assessment and reporting
tool with artificial intelligence capabilities that
could continuously analyse the operational
data of curing, provide tangible help for the
electrical steel value chain and contribute
to the peace-of-mind of the operators.”
Christoph Lomoschitz, Global Product Manager
for Axalta’s Energy Solutions business, says, “As a
major provider of electrical steel coatings, Axalta
is always looking for ways to offer our customers
the best possible services and support, and
finding a good, reliable method to determine
degrees of curing has been a challenge that
has faced our industry for many years. This
collaboration with TAU has now enabled us to
create new innovation for the electric mobility
and renewable energy industries, helping them
to move from traditional to a more sustainable
and smarter way of manufacturing.” •
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e-mobility Technology International 50
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henkel-adhesives.com/emobility

VEHICLE CONNECTIVITY
12
Destination Zero
Reducing Capex and Opex in zero emission bus operations is as
easy as CYB.
The transition to zero emission public transport
is accelerating. In Western Europe there were
more electric bus registrations in 2019 than in
the entire period 2012-2018. In fact, their number
tripled. This means that zero-emission transport
is rapidly coming out of the ‘project’ phases and
has entered a volume that requires operators
to take a much closer look at the requirements
for managing a 100% zero-emission fleet. New
rules and tools for playing the operational
game are required and failure to adopt these
could make the transition very costly indeed.
There may be help around the corner, though.
An eco-system of best-of-breed
technology partners
Three years ago, a group of technology pioneers
in their fields set out to create an integrated
technology platform with the objective to facilitate
operational excellence in zero-emission public
transport. This initiative, called Cloud-Your-Bus
(CYB), is co-funded under the EMEurope innovation
program. Today, these technology partners
form a technology eco-system of best-of-breed
partners in their fields. Their promise: reduce
capital expenses by up to 10%, reduce operational
disruptions and associated expenses radically, and
improve quality of service simultaneously. Sounds
too good to be true? Well, here is their story.
“In an emerging market with a lot at stake, there
is a reflex by many actors in the zero-emission
supply chain to defend their own turf and to try
to develop their own propositions and services in
dire isolation. We don’t believe in this approach”,
says Kristian Winge, CEO of Sycada, and initiator
of the CYB initiative. “The complexity of the
transition across areas such as battery health
management, smart charging, energy trading,
dynamic operational planning, massive data
collection and processing, machine learning and
big data analysis is such that no single actor
can develop and maintain the level of expertise
required to solve the entire transition riddle.
Enter the world of connected specialists”.
It’s the data, stupid!
Any operational management in the zeroemission
space starts with data. Lots of data.
So how do you secure live, consistent data from
e-buses when no data standard for collecting the
required data exists
for these buses? And there are more
than 50 different bus makes and models on
the European market today, all with different
availability and update frequencies for the
required data points! “I suppose you either go
single source, or find a data partner that can
provide you a normalized data set across all
makes and models. So, part of the CYB initiative
was to start the creation of a taxonomy for e-bus
data points that would allow a bus operator to
simply subscribe to data like State-of-Charge,
Power Draw etcetera across the entire fleet. That
taxonomy is now in place and available via the
CYB data hub”, says Rogier Mulder, CTO
of Sycada.
Another of the founding partners in the CYB
eco-system is Owasys, a manufacturer of wireless
embedded computers based in Bilbao, Spain,
which has developed an ITxPT certified data
gateway for buses. This device has now become
the preferred choice for many IoT projects in
European Public Transport, given its extensive
modularity, data processing power and open
Linux operating system, that allows for a multitenant
development strategy on the device itself.
Along with the vehicle data, the CYB platform
integrates transactional data from opportunity
and depot chargers using OCPP and OCPI
protocols. This allows CYB to stream live data
from the e-buses and the charging infrastructure,
making both available to operational planners,
traffic controllers and, where relevant, drivers.
Turning data into actionable information
So how do you turn tons of vehicle, battery
and charge point data into information that
adds real value to bus operators, OEM’s and
partner companies? It starts with the realization
that data points can be (selectively) shared
for mutual benefit to all stakeholders. Sycada
has implemented a ‘fork’ strategy for data that
allows e.g. granular battery cell data to be
shared with a bus manufacturer’s engineering
department, but not with the bus operator, and
at the same time battery state-of-charge data,
from the same source, can be made available
to the traffic planning operations of that same
bus operator. The same strategy allows live
data from e-buses to be enriched with 3rd party
data such as traffic congestion and weather
conditions; data points which add value to
e-mobility Technology International 52 53
Summer 2020

adaptive scenario planning in bus operations.
This is exactly how ICRON, one of the
other founding members of CYB, is feeding
their planning algorithms in order to
optimize line- and charge planning for
bus operations throughout the day.
How real-time scenario planning
can reduce Capex
ICRON has advanced algorithms that
automatically generate optimized plans for
both static day-ahead planning and dynamic
re-planning. These algorithms consider trip
requirements, service level targets, vehicle
types, battery capacities, battery levels,
vehicle locations, charger restrictions in
order to rapidly generate optimized plans.
The CYB platform continuously monitors
vehicle locations, battery levels, charger states,
weather and traffic information and provides
an overview of the real-time information in
the planning cockpit. The system continuously
compares the operational reality with the plan
in order to identify any discrepancies and to
detect potential problems, such as vehicles not
having sufficient charge to complete a route,
or a charge cycle being delayed or interrupted.
The planning dashboard displays notifications
and proposes alternative solutions such as
vehicle re-assignments to mitigate the detected
problems. The dynamic planning algorithms
automatically make minimal modifications
to the plan to quickly resolve problems with
the least possible impact on operations.
“We continue to enhance the planning
algorithms by using machine learning to for
example, program the impact of environmental
conditions on energy usage or the impact of
driving behaviour on actual range, together
with our partners in the CYB eco-system”,
says Caner Taskin, CTO of ICRON . “A good
example of such R&D work is the collaboration
between Sycada and the Technical University
of Eindhoven to more accurately predict the
remaining battery State-of-Charge at the end
of an active route, and to update this prediction
during operations for use in the ICRON planning
algorithms. This is absolute cutting edge when
compared to the relative low accuracy of estimated
range data coming from most electric vehicles today”.
Obvious benefits reductions in fleet sizes
In the recent transitions from fossil fuelled to full
electric concessions many bus operators added
extra buses to their fleets in order to secure a high
quality of service. In the first 100% electric concession
in the Netherlands, 34 diesel buses, serving 34
lines, were replaced with 43 electric buses with a
significant impact on capital expense. 6 of these
e-buses were basically serving as ‘back-up’ for
operational calamities and to compensate for the
lack of real-time planning optimisation systems.
By using smarter technologies, such as the ones
developed by the CYB partners, this ‘risk buffer’ can
be seriously reduced. Reducing the required fleet size
with 2-3 buses in the above-mentioned example would
reduce Capex with some Euro 2mln. Extrapolating this
to the 15,000 city buses in operation across western
Europe today, a large part of which will transition
to zero-emission drivetrains during this decade,
and the potential savings become staggering.
A glimpse into the near future
The intention of the founding partners behind the CYB
eco-system is to continue to develop and expand the
services to be offered around the platform together
with existing and new solution partners. The premise
is that a strong and growing network of technically
connected specialists will be a compelling value
proposition to both OEM’s, bus operators and other
stakeholders in the zero-emission supply chain.
Kristian Winge concludes, “Building on what we
have developed with the initial CYB launch partners,
we will add new partners and online services in
areas such as battery cell prognostics and energy
balancing and trading during the course of 2020. Our
clients are of course in charge of with whom they
share data and from whom they acquire services,
but having the option on these solution modules,
and knowing that all parts of the system integrate
seamlessly, is definitely a compelling idea”. •
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e-mobility Technology International 54

THERMAL
THERMAL
MANAGEMENT
13
Journey
to Thermal
Effiency
Efficient thermal management is needed for drive batteries,
electric motors and power electronics in electric vehicles.
Due to their wide range of consistencies and their robustness,
silicone-based thermal interface materials prove indispensable
in this field.
Most experts agree: tomorrow’s cars
will be electric. By 2025, roughly
25 percent of world light vehicle
production will have an electric
engine with a battery, as found in
hybrids, plugin hybrids, battery
electric or fuel cell vehicles.
The automotive industry has
recognized the signs of the times
and is now working flat out on the
development of electromobility.
One challenge is how to effectively
dissipate the heat generated in
the various components while
the battery is being charged and
when the vehicle is on the road.
Such thermal management is
especially critical for the battery
serving as the power source. Lithiumion
batteries only deliver their
best performance at temperatures
between 20 and 35 °C. Consequently,
to ensure acceptable performance
and life span, they need to be
prevented from overheating. Heat is
also generated by the electric motor
and the power electronics. Again, to
avoid heat-related damage or failure,
this thermal energy also needs to be
dissipated quickly and effectively.
Thermal interface materials
(TIMs) play a key role here. They
fill the gap between the assembly
which needs to be temperaturecontrolled
and the heat exchanger
or heat sink, and thus lower the
e-mobility Technology International 56 57
Summer 2020

thermal transfer resistance. With
this, they enhance thermal coupling
between the components. Thermal
interface materials are therefore
becoming increasingly attractive to
car makers as they develop electric
vehicles for mass production.
Thermal Conductivity
The choice of thermal interface
material and its presentation
form – whether paste, curable gap
filler, adhesive, prefabricated pad –
depends on the application and the
prospective operating conditions.
Thermal interface materials are
commonly made from polymers
which have a high filler content
of thermally conductive inorganic
substances. The base polymer may
be an organic polymer or a silicone.
The desired thermal conductivity
is achieved with filler loads well
in excess of 90 percent. The fillers
are typically metal oxides, such as
aluminum oxide. They ensure that the
TIM remains electrically insulating, a
property which is essential for use in
close proximity to live components.
The global silicone in the electric
vehicles (EVs) market size is poised
to reach USD 1.80 billion by 2025,
experiencing a CAGR of 8.1% Siliconebased
thermal interface materials, i.e.
heat-conducting materials comprising
a matrix of cured or uncured silicones,
have a long successful track record
in power electronics assemblies.
Silicones are widely known for
their aging resistance – even upon
exposure to high or low temperatures.
Unlike organic polymers, their
physical and technical properties
show very little change over the
temperature range -45°C to 180 °C
and above. They are also more flameresistant
than organic polymers.
A further characteristic of silicones
is their low surface energy. Liquid
silicones, for instance, will wet nearly
all solid surfaces. This makes siliconebased
TIMs easier to work with
because they will fill even the tiniest
Dispensing a bead of silicone-based gap filler onto the heat sink of a power
electronics module. (Photo: Wacker)
irregularities in the substrate surfaces.
Aging resistance and flame resistance
are also the main arguments in favor
of using thermally conductive silicone
products in vehicles fitted with allelectric
drives – even for assemblies
operating at temperatures which do
not necessarily require silicones.
Easy Application
Many silicone-based thermal
interface materials are available in
paste form. These TIMs are shear
thinning compounds and so will not
sag when at rest, but will flow when
exposed to shear forces. They are
dispensed onto the heat sink in the
form of a bead. The assembly to be
cooled is then mounted on top and
pressed into place. Pourable types are
also available in the form of resins
and encapsulation compounds.
The use of thermally conductive
silicone adhesives obviates the need
for other means of attachment,
as they not only provide thermal
coupling between the parts,
but also bond them together.
Silicone pastes maintain their
consistency after application. In
practice, their applications are
limited to small substrates and
thin film thicknesses which should
not exceed 100 to 150 µm.
Silicone-based gap fillers and
silicone adhesives undergo a change
of consistency as a result of a
platinum-catalyzed addition-cure
reaction. This yields a relatively
soft, elastically deformable pad in
the gap which fills out the contours
of the surfaces exactly. Such gap
fillers can even out surfaces with
roughness values in the millimeter
range which occur especially with
large substrates. This distinguishes
them from prefabricated pads,
which have a specific thickness
and are therefore unable to
accommodate large tolerances.
Thermally conductive encapsulants
are used for surfaces of complex
shape. They transport the heat
to the heat sink and at the same
time protect the surfaces from
environmental factors. Such products
are applied by pouring. Resins
are also applied by dipping.
Heat-sink pastes displace the air, which is a poor conductor of heat, in the gap
between heat source and heat sink. This creates a thermally conductive coupling.
(Chart: WACKER)
Special Products for
Electromobility
WACKER has taken products with
a successful track record in power
electronics assemblies and has used
them to develop numerous siliconebased
TIMs for the electromobility
sector. The company is continually
optimizing these products and their
ease of processing to meet the
requirements of mass production.
The primary requirement here
has been to adjust the rheological
properties of the paste-like
compounds so that they can cope
with high-speed, highly automated car
production. The relevant parameters
are the molecular chain lengths and
the type of liquid silicone polymers
as well as the size and shape of
the filler particles. The new highly
loaded silicone systems are much
more resistant to sedimentation than
conventional products. They can be
readily conveyed over long distances
on suitable handling equipment,
dispensed at high rates. Gap fillers,
for example, can be dispensed at
up to 30 to 50 mL/s, supporting
rapid, automated assembly of parts
at low, reproducible pressure.
The speed of crosslinking of the
silicone systems is also important.
Gap fillers and adhesives need to
be formulated in such a way that
curing – and the development of
adhesion in the case of adhesives
– proceeds rapidly at moderate
temperatures. Unlike conventional
products, Semicosil® 9754 TC, a
rapid-cure, thermally conductive
silicone adhesive, develops good
adhesion even at room temperature,
cures quickly below 80 °Celsius and
thus allows rapid processing down
the production line. Such adhesives
achieve thermal conductivity values
of between 2 and 4 W/(m K).
Applications in Electric Cars
Electric vehicles currently use lithiumion
batteries as energy storage.
These are usually installed below the
passenger compartment, where they
occupy most of the floor space.
A thermally conductive gap filler
is needed to provide thermal coupling
between the battery modules and
the heat-dissipation system. It
must be aging-resistant to prevent
premature battery failure and must
lend itself to rapid application to
large surfaces. Ease of application is
therefore key for this filler. Precisely
for such applications, WACKER has
developed gap fillers from the
SEMICOSIL® 96x TC series which
can be dispensed rapidly and
permit short cycle times, even
where large substrates are
mass produced.
A further source of heat in electric
vehicles are power electronics. Their
task is to transform and regulate
the electric current. Inverters, for
example, convert direct current into
alternating current and vice versa,
while voltage converters change the
level of the voltage. Power module
components such as Integrated Gate
Bipolar Transistors (IGBT) can reach
temperatures greater than 100 °C
in operation. The power losses can
exceed 100 W/cm² – more than the
power density emitted from the
surface of a cooker hob on full power.
Overheating can damage the
sensitive semiconductor structures
and so lead to aging and eventually to
component failure. Such failures can
be prevented by actively cooling the
printed board and IGBT assembly. At
operating temperatures above 150 °C,
silicone-based TIMs are the materials
of choice for thermal coupling
because organic polymers would
be unable to withstand the heat.
Depending on the design, effective
component cooling can be achieved
with thermally conductive gap fillers
from the SEMICOSIL® 96x TC series,
heat-sink pastes (e.g. SEMICOSIL®
Paste 40 TC) or heat-sink adhesives
(SEMICOSIL® 9754 TC).
Summary
There is still a great deal of
development and testing being
done in the field of thermal
management in electric vehicles.
However, it is already apparent
that silicone-based thermal
interface materials will play a key
role in future thermal management.
They can be readily adapted to
a wide variety of application and
manufacturing methods and are
therefore the thermal interface
materials of choice for mass
production of electric vehicles.
Silicones thus go a long way toward
ensuring that key components of
electromobility such as batteries and
power electronics function reliably
over the long term. •
e-mobility Technology International 58 59
Summer 2020

HIGH-PERFORMANCE COATINGS PLAY A CRITICAL
ROLE IN LI-ION BATTERY PACK ARCHITECTURE
MATERIALS
RESEARCH
14
Driving Toward the
BEV Tipping Point
There is nothing like a global pandemic to impede the best-laid plans.
Dave Malobicky - General Manager, e-Mobility PPG
As the auto industry begins its recovery from
the economic damage of COVID-19, many
observers wonder whether the headlong rush
to battery-electric vehicles will slow. In truth,
even before the onset of the pandemic, the
technology tipping point toward widespread
adoption of electric powertrains, while
alluringly close, remained somewhere in
the future. Nevertheless, vehicle OEMs and
their battery suppliers have continued to
make steady progress in the performance,
durability and safety of lithium-ion battery
packs. Moreover, the industry is already
looking ahead to 800-volt and higher vehicle
architectures that, among other benefits,
would enable significantly faster charging
times.
Yet, two interrelated challenges remain:
battery cost and scalability. Auto OEMs
have bet billions of Euros in the belief that
consumers will flock to electric vehicles once
robust recharging networks are established
and, more important, these sophisticated
powertrains achieve ownership and,
ultimately, vehicle cost parity with internal
combustion engines. (The latter battle is
not getting any easier given the sustained
weakness of the oil market and recent 20-yearlow
diesel and petrol prices.) Nevertheless, the
effective cost per kilowatt hour of a productionready
lithium-ion battery pack remains in the
€130 to €140 range rather than the sub-€95 level
that would make BEVs affordable for the mass
market.
One recent step in reducing battery cost has
been the introduction of cell-to-pack production,
which, in addition to dramatically reducing the
number of parts (and complexity) per pack, offers
increased energy density and improved volume
utilization efficiency.
The next step will involve an equally
fundamental rethinking of Li-ion battery
production, an approach PPG believes will
be enabled by established coatings science
in combination with significantly enhanced
production efficiency.
Making The Jump
Henry Ford’s introduction, in 1913, of the
first moving assembly line reduced auto
production time from 12-plus hours to just 2
hours 30 minutes. Ford also more than doubled
worker wages in the belief it would help expand
the market for his vehicles. Together these
decisions represented the tipping point
that accelerated the shift from horse-drawn
carriages in North America.
Vehicle OEMs face the same need to
scale production of Li-ion battery packs
while continuing to advance the science
of battery design. The industry is now
at the point where every element of a
Li-ion battery pack must contribute to
performance, durability and safety as
well as production throughput and cost.
This requires materials and methods of
application that will deliver high quality and
consistency and support high throughput
in a mass production environment.
High-performance coatings play a
critical role in Li-ion battery pack
architecture, from cell-level dielectric
coatings to thermal management materials
to intumescent coatings that help prevent
dangerous high-energy events. The need
for fast charging capability and the likely
introduction of higher voltage battery packs
will require step-change improvements in
electrical separation and corresponding
dielectric performance. Moreover, these
coatings will need to lend themselves
to ultra-precise, high-throughput,
robotic application to meet strict quality,
weight, performance and cost targets.
We also know that maintaining the
battery’s designed working temperature
is critical to performance, durability and
safety. Thermal gap fillers and other
materials are designed to ensure optimal
heat transfer within the pack assembly.
This greatly improves the effective heating
or cooling of the battery cells needed
for optimal performance, range and
convenience (including fast discharging,
efficient regenerative braking and fast
charging) on a year-round basis while also
extending battery life. However, the jump
to enhanced thermal management and
high-quality, high-throughput production
requires a shift from manually applied
thermal pad materials to liquid-dispense
coatings. These advanced materials –
already available – eliminate air bubbles,
gaps and other problems and can be
applied within very tight tolerances at high
speeds. The results are higher quality,
e-mobility Technology International 60 61
Summer 2020

improved performance, less waste, lighter
weight, significantly increased through
put and, of course, lower overall cost.
PPG scientists are also developing a new
generation of coatings that can provide
additional functions beyond thermal
management and/or electrical separation to
further reduce complexity, weight and cost.
In each case, we are aligning the unique
capabilities of PPG coatings,
adhesives and sealants with the
requirements of the highly automated
production environment that will be
necessary to achieve cost parity with
ICE vehicles. And, as the superior
scalability of liquid-dispense materials is
established, the chemistries themselves
will continue to be enhanced to meet the
requirements of each new battery design.
Many of these solutions have already
been widely adopted in other industries.
PPG specializes in managing interfaces at
the nano and meso scales. Our dielectric
coatings are leading choices of consumer
electronics manufacturers. PPG intumescent
coatings are applied throughout the world
for fire protection of buildings, bridges and
other structures, large and small. Our deep
knowledge of interfaces has enabled the
development of highly advantaged thermal
management coatings for Li-ion battery
packs. And, of course, we are one of the
world’s largest suppliers of protective,
decorative and functional coatings –
from electrocoat to clearcoat as well as
structural adhesives, sealants, sound
deadeners and other solutions – used in auto
and commercial-vehicle plants on
every continent. PPG chemists are also
helping drive the industry toward another
technology tipping point – the adoption
of autonomous vehicles – through
the development of LIDAR-reflective
coatings, transparent coatings for sensor
lenses and other applications.
One Strategy, Better Outcome
Each component of a high-performance
Li-ion battery pack must function perfectly,
with seamless integration into the whole,
to ensure optimal battery performance,
longevity and safety. Managing each
of these elements – particularly in an
environment of almost continuous innovation
– is an incredibly complex task. Scaling the
enterprise is exponentially more difficult.
Given this fact, vehicle OEMs and
their battery suppliers are best served
to address dielectric protection, thermal
management, fire protection, EMI/RFI
shielding, structural enhancement and sealing
challenges through a single, comprehensive
coatings strategy. This approach, quickly
gaining favor among leading OEMs, enables
a deeper level of innovation and significantly
reduced complexity. Given the right partner, it
can also ensure that each solution meets
not only its performance requirement
within the battery pack but also within each
manufacturer’s production environment.
In many respects, this is no different than
developing sophisticated interior and
exterior coatings that are applied each
day in PPG-operated paint departments at
vehicle assembly plants around the world.
Truly game-changing innovations – whether
designed to reduce the complexity and cost
of painting a vehicle or assembling a
battery pack – are based not simply
on great science but also great processes.
Our ability to master both makes
PPG unique.
Despite the profound impact of the COVID-19
crisis, the auto industry is poised on the
verge of an exciting new era of personal and
commercial mobility. When will we reach
the tipping point that ignites the adoption
of battery-electric vehicles? We believe
it is closer than ever, and the path to its
achievement is becoming clearer every day. •
Turbo boost for electro-mobility with
automotive CoolSiC
Setting new performance benchmark for high-efficiency inverters
and chargers
With more than 15 years of experience in electromobility and silicon carbide, Infineon is now combining its deep
application know-how with technological expertise to create an unmatched silicon carbide portfolio for electric vehicles.
Infineon CoolSiC can be purchased in various packages: from discretes to power modules in different form factors.
Power modules and discretes benefit from our performant and reliable silicon carbide chips, which provide a benchmark
to the market. Combined with Infineons proven packages like the HybridPACK Drive, EasyPACK, TO-247 and D 2 PAK
CoolSiC is truly a revolution to rely on as it enables significant system size reduction and increases battery utilization
about 5-10%. The system benefits in terms of efficiency, system cost and size allow to reach a new level of performance
and driving range.
e-mobility Technology International 62
www.infineon.com/coolsic

ELECTRIFICATION PLANNING
VOLKSWAGEN THE GERMAN AUTO GIANT PROMISES THAT
THANKS TO ITS NEW MODULAR PLATFORM, THERE WILL
BE 10 MILLION ELECTRIC VOLKSWAGEN GROUP CARS ON
THE ROADS IN THE COMING YEARS.
A Leap Into
The Modern
15
Automobile Age
Volkswagen is
switching a large car
factory completely to
electric mobility.
The last model with a combustion engine
left the Volkswagen assembly line on June
26th at the Zwickau car factory. The seventh
generation Golf R Estate with 2.0-litre
petrol engine in Oryx White Pearl Effect was
produced for a customer in Germany. From
now on, only electric models of Volkswagen
including the sister brands Audi and Seat
will be produced in Zwickau. The leap into
the modern automobile age has been a
long one: since 1904, cars with combustion
engines have been built in Zwickau,
including Horch models, and in GDR times
the Trabant came off the assembly line. In
May 1990, Volkswagen started production
at its plant in western Saxony. Over the
course of the past 30 years, exactly 6,049,207
Volkswagen cars of the models Polo, Golf,
Golf Estate, Passat Saloon and Passat
Variant have been produced in Zwickau.
With a step-by-step transformation of
the Zwickau plant, Volkswagen is switching
a large car factory completely to electric
mobility. which amounts to an investment
of around 1.2 billion euros. In the final
expansion stage from 2021, six MEB models
will be built for three Group brands
All 8,000 employees will be prepared
for production of electric cars and for
handling high-voltage systems as part of
various training measures. The Zwickau
team will complete around 20,500 days
of training by the end of 2020. The ID.3
is the first vehicle based on the modular
electric toolkit (MEB) from Volkswagen.
The platform was developed specifically
for electric cars and optimally exploits
the possibilities offered by electric
mobility. The market launch of the ID.3 1st
Continued on page 66
e-mobility Technology International 64
65
Summer 2020

GROB E-MOBILITY
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GROB turns new opportunities into your success!
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petrol and diesel engines. The battery’s modular
layout allows scalable ranges from about 330 up
to more than 550 kilometres (WLTP/Worldwide
Harmonized Light Vehicles Test Procedure).
Edition will take place almost simultaneously
throughout Europe in September 2020
We spoke recently with Tino Fuhrmann
the head of the MEB project who describes
here the concept and design of the Modular
Electric Drive Matrix, or MEB, platform
Without compromises
The new ID.3 will be the first model based
on the modular electric drive matrix to
be released onto the world market.
The MEB is the technical element that
will link all future models in the ID. family:
a platform specifically developed for purely
electric vehicles. The components in the electric
drive system and the package are therefore
consistently interlinked. Offering a range on
the level of today’s petrol-driven vehicles
and available for the same price as a diesel
car. The new ID.3 will be the first model based
on the modular electric drive matrix to be
released onto the world market, it also has
the potential to facilitate the breakthrough of
environmentally friendly electric mobility and
usher in a new era of electric drive systems.
Revolutionary Wheelbase, Small Overhangs
This enables Volkswagen to use the design
specifications of the MEB to enhance the range,
space, versatility, comfort and dynamics of
models. These benefits will result in an entirely
new form of mobility for drivers and passengers.
The fact is that the interior dimensions and
versatility of the ID.3 will exceed all current
limits in its class. Just as revolutionary is the
ratio of the extremely large wheelbases to the
overall length, and the resulting short overhangs.
This is possible because there is no need for a
combustion engine in the front, and the axles
can thus be transferred far toward the outside.
All Components Of The Meb
Drive Matrix In Detail
The zero-emission drive in the ID.3 primarily
consists of an electric motor integrated into the
rear axle together with power electronics and
a gearbox, a high-voltage flat battery installed
in the vehicle floor to save space and auxiliary
powertrains integrated into the front end of the
vehicle. The power electronics are effectively
a link that controls the flow of high voltage
energy between the motor and the battery.
The power electronics convert the direct
current (DC) stored in the battery into
alternating current (AC). Meanwhile, a DC/DC
converter supplies the onboard electronics
with 12 V of power. The 1-speed gearbox
transfers the power from the motor to the
rear axle. The motor, power electronics and
gearbox form a single, compact unit.
The electric motor of the ID.3 has a power
output of up to 110 kW / 150 PS. Electric drive
motors offering either more or less power may
be considered for the 2020 series version. In
parallel to this, the idea is to be able to configure
the ID.3 using different sizes of battery. This will
enable the drive to be precisely attuned to how
that specific car is to be used – as is standard for
Ideal weight distribution
The battery is the decisive factor when it
comes to the ID.3’s range. It is installed in the
underbody, which saves space and significantly
lowers the centre of gravity. The location of the
battery in the centre of the vehicle results in
optimal weight distribution of close to 50:50.
The low centre of gravity and the balanced
weight distribution lead to a driving behaviour
that is dynamic as well as balanced.
Update-compatible hardware and software
The MEB will enable new assistance, comfort,
infotainment, control and display systems to
be integrated into vehicles across the board.
The ID.3 features an AR (augmented reality)
head-up display which projects information
such as visual cues from the navigation system
into the virtual space in front of the vehicle.
Without the new platform, this technology
would not be able to be integrated. To control
the huge range of features on board the ID.
models, Volkswagen has designed the completely
new end-to-end electronics architecture,
called E3, as well as a new operating system,
called vw.OS (OS = operating system).
Id. Family Is Always Online
The models in the ID. family are always online
and can access a range of information and
services, some of which are entirely new.
Volkswagen is therefore set to transform
from a pure vehicle manufacturer into a
mobility provider of vehicles and services
characterised by extensive digitalisation. During
this transformation process, the focus will be
on electric mobility, connectivity (linking the
vehicles with the users and the internet) and
– from 2025 onwards – automated driving.
One Chassis, Many Body Versions
The range of MEB models will be just
as large as the current crop of MQB
vehicles. Other Group brands (Skoda,
Seat, Audi) belonging to Volkswagen AG
will also take advantage of the MEB.
What are the main materials, in the construction
of the platform and which firms did you
cooperate with in the construction?
Like the MQB models also the MEB family is
mainly build of different steel alloyings including
high tensile steels. The MEB contains some
innovative measures. For example, aluminium
rocker panels and a battery housing made of
aluminium. Additionally, a seat lower cross-rail
made from ultra-high tensile steel, thin high
tensile door panels and a plastic rear gate.
Can the platform be customised
for different applications?
Yes. The platform can carry different
vehicle types. From compact hatches
to SUVs, sedans and even Vans...
How many units do you hope to
build in the next decade?
Our plan is to offer an all-electric vehicle
in every segment with high demand.
So, we will aim to sell up to 1,5 million
electric cars yearly from 2025 onwards.
This is the most ambitious mobility plan
in history. We’re uniquely positioned by our
history, volume, reach, resources and technical
capability to take E-Mobility mainstream.” •
e-mobility Technology International 68 69
Summer 2020

POWERTRAINS
16
ELECTRIC DRIVES OF TOMORROW
Drivetrain Components will Evolve due to Vehicle
Electrification
Efficiency is the most important driver for
future technologies. But performance is
a selling point for exciting vehicles. Both
targets must be fulfilled at the same time.
ZF presents a couple of technologies for
future electric drivelines which fulfill both
requirements: e||Connect is an electric drive
with a decoupling element to lower drag
losses. e2Drive is the 2-speed approach to
enhance driving performance and efficiency
at the same time. With 800V and Silicon
Carbide semiconductor inverters, the fast
charging driveline can be supported by an
efficient e-drive. Integration and design is
the only path for future electric drives.
e||Connect
Efficiency is the most important driver
for future technologies. The range of
a vehicle is defined by the size of the
battery and the energy consumption of
the vehicle. The battery has a heavy weight
and is very expensive. So, future electric
drives must be as efficient as possible,
without compromising performance.
e||Connect is a technology
to fulfill two requirements:
performance and efficiency
Electric Drives of today have a constant
ratio and a permanent connection between
e-motor and wheels: The wheels and the
e-motor rotation synchronized. There is no
clutch or separating element in between.
The technical challenge is to
connect very fast and smoothly.
A 4WD BEV configuration with 2 electric
drives, one at the front axle and one
at the rear axle does not need all the
available power all the time. In normal
driving situations, the power of one
e-motor is plenty enough to run the car.
Full power is only needed in acceleration
phases, in gradients, in towing situations
or high-speed driving modes. This leads
to the idea, to disconnect one axle drive,
as is common in conventional 4WD
e-mobility Technology International 70 71
Summer 2020

Electric 2-Speed Drive
for Passenger Cars.
New Electric 2-Speed Drive for
Passenger Cars, compact electric
motor solution incorporating the shift
element and power electronics.
drivelines, to avoid drag losses.
The drag losses of the mechanics
and the electrics, caused by the
rotating magnets in the rotor are
much higher, then in conventional
drivelines. In one of our e-drives,
we can reduce the drag losses by
90%. Depending on the vehicle,
it’s overall consumption and
the driving behavior, this can
enhance the range by up to 10%.
The technical challenge is to
connect very fast and smoothly.
The driver does not want to feel
an interruption of requested
torque. The car should behave
exactly similar to a car without
this disconnect function. Only the
range should be enhanced. This
technical task can be managed
by a close cooperation between
the e-motor and mechanical dog
clutch. In the disconnected situation
with a torque request coming from
the driver, the e-motor has to
accelerate within milliseconds to
the target rotational speed, followed
by the clutch closing actuation.
Depending on the actual speed of
the vehicle, this operation can be
managed within 50 and 250 ms.
e2Drive
Disconnect is a step towards
efficiency for a 4WD configuration.
Another step to increase efficiency
is a multispeed electric drive. With a
two-speed gearbox and an optimized
e-motor layout, the efficiency and
the performance of a vehicle can be
improved. Let’s first have a look at
performance and then efficiency:
Performance
With a 2-speed gearbox it is possible
to have a higher first gear ratio
to increase acceleration, or the
gradeability is higher. Especially with
a trailer, this can be an advantage.
With a lower second gear ratio,
top speed can be increased. So,
it is possible to have a wider
range to use the power and the
torque of the electric motor.
Efficiency
Efficiency means, the energyquotient
of mechanical output
over electrical input of an electric
drive. The target is to run as long as
possible with one charge of a battery.
There are two effects, to save
energy with a two-speed electric
drive. First of all, it is possible to shift
to a more efficient working point.
The best point in the efficiency map
is typically at medium numbers of
rotation. With a higher first gear and
a lower second gear it is possible to
run with less energy consumption
in a certification cycle. Especially for
driving on highways. In our demo
vehicle, we achieved 1,7% range
extension during the WLTP cycle.
The second effect has more
influence: It is a new layout for the
e-motor. Since we have a second
gear and thereby lower rpms at
maximum speed, we can avoid this
field of operation completely. So,
it is possible to design an electric
motor, that can have even higher
efficiency around the best point
by losing efficiency at maximum
speed. With this effect, we could
achieve an additional 3% range
extension with our demonstration
vehicle. In total, we achieved
a benefit of about 4,7%. [1]
Future eAxle Shapes
First generations of e-axle drives
are already in the market. They
look like a kind of prototype design:
with all the components attached
together. Looking at highly developed
automatic transmissions, over
many generations, it is obvious,
that the development of electric
axle drives will have a higher
integration in the future. Regarding
the positive effect of disconnect
and 2-speed transmissions,
the mechanical gearbox will
be extended and equipped
with actuators and controls.
Plug-In Hybrid transmissions
shows us the way of development
for e-axles: high integration of
electronic controls and the inverters
combined with an integrated
hydraulic concept, where actuation,
lubrication and cooling are done
within one system. The coaxial
shape has a positive effect on
noise, vibration and harshness. The
challenge is to keep the system
as small as possible, to bring that
drive into the limited installation
space between the wheels and to
leave enough length for the side
shafts. System development and
higher integration is the challenge
for future electric drives.
800V and SiC
Common voltage levels are
currently about 400V. Depending
e-mobility Technology International 72 73
Summer 2020

Disconnect function safes up to 90% of drag losses. Quick and
comfortable reconnect supplies full torque within imperceptible time.
Charged energy in 5 minutes, measured in range of a vehicle with
3,6 mpkWh consumption.
on the state of charge, the voltage
level operates between 300 and
below 400V. 400V is a kind of peak
voltage. Nevertheless, the e-mobility
community is talking about the 400V
class. The power of this voltage
class is limited by the current, since
power = Voltage x Current. When
current meets resistance, voltage
drop is the result, which ends up
in heat. Heat destroys the isolation
and leads to short cuts and the end
of electronic and electric parts:
Power = Voltage x Current
Current => Losses => Heat
=> destroyed isolation =>
short cut => damages
At a certain level of power, it is
necessary to increase the voltage,
due to limitations of the current.
High power is demanded in heavy
vehicles, like trains or even trucks and
buses. So heavy commercial vehicles
are using 650 V voltage levels to
provide 200 – 400 kW power for one
single drive. This 650V voltage is the
nominal voltage level. The maximum
voltage is up to 800V. The passenger
car community is talking about 800V
technology, which is the same as in
commercial vehicles. Nominal voltage
level is in both cases around 650V.
The 800V level is driven by the
charging time. Overnight charging
is not a problem, but the goal is to
shorten charging time at the highway
down to a minimum. With 800V, the
charging time can be shortened by
a half. A 5 minutes stop can then
be used to recharge about 100
miles driving range 800V voltage
level will relieve the problem of
limited range with battery electric
vehicles. Electric drives must be
800V compatible to operate with
the battery in the vehicle.
How to design a 800V drive?
The e-motor has an additional
number of windings and an
isolation concept which fulfills
the requirements of 800V. The
key change is in the inverter:
400V inverters normally are
based on Si – IGBT semiconductor
technology. The more efficient
Silicon Carbide Mosfet Technology
is much more expensive, so it is
not common to implement that
expensive technology. The situation is
different with the 800V voltage level:
The material has to be thicker and
thereby the losses with Si-IGBTs are
much higher. The benefits of the SiCtechnology
against Si are greater. The
range can be extended by more than
5% with SiC-Mosfets compared to
Si-IGBTs. SiC Mosfets can switch faster
than Si-IGBTs. Si has greater losses,
due to slower switching. SiC has
higher ripples due to fast switching.
Future electric drives with 800V
voltage level will operate with an SiC
inverter. The fast switching possibility
enables a wide field of different
operating frequencies. This opens the
door for system optimization between
inverter, e-motor and transmission.
Electric Drives of Tomorrow
Electric vehicles will become
common on the roads. Not only small
distances, also large distances with
higher velocities must be operated
with battery electric cars. So, battery
size will increase along with the
weight and the costs of the battery.
Disconnect and 2-speed technology
is therefore a good solution due to
their energy saving potentials. But
the range will still be a problem for
long distance driving. Fast charging is
the key to handle that disadvantage.
800V technology is an enabler for fast
charging. So 800V technology and
2-speed technology is a combination
which fulfills the same requirements
of a multi-purpose vehicle, as we
know it from today’s habits. System
development of all three components
will lead to higher efficiency.
Finally, the e-drive with more
gears and more power has to be
installed in the axle between the
wheels. The requirements for that
limited installation space leads to the
highest integration. The boundaries
between the three key elements
will be removed and we will end
up with an integrated design. A
modular kit will cover the different
power levels but keep the synergy.
Literature:
[1] Dr. Stephan Demmerer,
Efficiency of electric axle drive
systems – Potential of multispeed-drives,
VDI-Bericht 2354,
Bonn, 10.-11. Juli 2019, p.279-286
Dr. Stephan Demmerer Head
of Advanced Engineering
ZF Friedrichshafen AG, Germany •
e-mobility Technology International 74
75
Spring 2020

17
V2x Early Benefits – It All Comes Together Now
VEHICLE
CONNECTIVITY
V2X Early Benefits
Robert Gee, Innovation Manager, V2X and Future Connectivity, at Continental.
Connectivity is crucial to future vehicles. It
will make driving safer, more comfortable,
more efficient, and more fun. While this
holds true for all types of cars, electrified
vehicles will benefit above all others from
seamless connectivity. Why is that so? Vehicle
electrification – purely electric vehicles in
particular – is firmly connected to re-thinking the car.
No one would seriously consider new types of vehicles
such as people movers, robo taxis, or others, with a
combustion engine powertrain. This trend is considered
so self-evident that it is hardly ever spelled out.
New vehicle interior concepts, and to a degree also
automated driving (AD), are univocally utilizing the
design freedom that comes with the electric powertrain.
Think of swivel seats and a retracting steering wheel,
which give the driver and passengers the freedom
to face one another during the AD phases of a trip.
With traditional “obstacles” such as the transmission
tunnel and the gearstick gone, the vehicle will offer
e-mobility Technology International 76 77
Spring 2020

From mobile networks to Bluetooth: Vehicles are exchanging data and information via various communication standards.
a completely different level of freedom and a new
user experience. Boundary conditions such as the flat
underfloor battery and compact electric axle drives
or wheel-integrated electric motors open up a whole
new horizon for the vehicle design. Larger cabin
spaces and less overhang will be game changers. So,
re-thinking the car is almost all about electrification
and related services. A whole new eco system is
currently beginning to evolve around the battery
electric vehicle (BEV). Clearly, the future of mobility
is electric. And connectivity is essential for it.
BEVs will utilize V2X connectivity just like other
vehicles – and more. While the road-safety and
comfort benefits of seamless connectivity apply
to all vehicles, added efficiency and range are the
icing on the cake for the BEV. The timing is perfect
for utilizing connectivity in the BEV: With the advent
of 5G high-performance cellular networks one last
connectivity gap can finally be closed. Analyzing the
current situation shows what is about to change.
Up to now, cellular networks, vehicle-to-vehicle
networking (V2V), and the more recent trend towards
smart cities have typically evolved relatively separately,
but have now reached a point where together, they
can form a powerful means to improve traffic safety,
including for vulnerable road users. In the past, each of
these technologies had little overlap with the other and
tended to focus on different categories or use cases.
This is why one can easily get the impression that there
are not too few solutions but rather too many. The
focus on isolated use cases has resulted in boundaries
which are not really helpful – plus they are certainly not
necessary. Cellular, for instance, was used for remote
(long-range) vehicle functions like emergency calls and
diagnostics, while smart city concepts focused initially
on efficiency and comfort, and V2V on inter-vehicle
communications for critical, short-range situations.
Now, that 5G cellular networks are beginning to be
available, the performance gap between V2N (vehicle
to network) and V2V (vehicle to vehicle) can finally be
closed: 5G in combination with V2V facilitate a seamless
communications experience from long range to short
range. No longer need one only have short-range,
immediate warnings and long-range traffic alerts,
but safety risks can be tracked from longer distances,
allowing the vehicle, and driver, to be notified in a much
more timely manner, enabling safer, more comfortable
human-level reaction times rather than having to trigger
a rapid decision to either brake or swerve. This kind of
V2X-enhanced Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS)
takes out stress but keeps the driver in the loop in a
more relaxed way which improves the user experience.
For the BEV this seamless networking holds an
additional efficiency benefit: During AD – or with a
cooperative driver behind the wheel – the vehicle
range can be extended by avoiding unnecessary load
changes. For instance, if the vehicle “knows” through
seamless networking (i.e. access to timely, relevant
information), the average traffic flow speed and when
the oncoming traffic light will turn green, the AD
controller can adjust the driving speed accordingly
– or a signal-change advisory can be triggered. The
same applies to a situation where the AD controller
“knows” in time about an approaching vehicle with
priority. Admittedly, a vehicle with combustion
engine also benefits but for a BEV efficiency means
range! And range remains a major concern.
One key to this type of seamless connectivity is the
emerging standard of the Collective Perception Message
(CPM), which is particularly relevant for the smart
intersections of smart cities. Enter CPM, and vehicle
networking reaches a new level of seamless. CPM is a
new V2X message, anticipated to be standardized within
the next year. It allows vehicles to share information
about objects, such as vehicles, pedestrians, and
cyclists, with other vehicles that might not be able
to see them from the other vehicle’s perspective.
One vehicle could therefore provide information that
could help improve safety for the other vehicle.
Now, sceptics like to puncture what they perceive
to be V2X balloons by saying that its benefits will only
be reaped, if a sufficiently large number of vehicles
is actually equipped with V2V transceivers. The US
Department of Transportation has estimated that
legislation mandating a 100% V2V take rate in new
vehicles would only result in a 51% equipment rate
after 10 years! Any two, random vehicles meeting at
an intersection would only have a (0.51 x 0.51) = 26%
chance of both vehicles being able to communicate
with V2V. However, this sobering outlook completely
e-mobility Technology International 78 79
Summer 2020

The
people
that make the additives
that go into the oil
that lubricates the
transmission
ignores the changes that equipped vehicles and smart
intersections can bring! Using CPM opens up early V2X
benefits by bringing everything together. This is why:
Even if only one vehicle can receive the message,
the sender need not be another vehicle. Rather a
smart intersection, which today may already be
equipped with cameras and/or radar, may generate
and send the message. This smart intersection
would already be detecting vehicles, pedestrians,
and cyclists in the area, and could easily broadcast
this information in the CPM message. Dangerous
intersections could therefore use existing infrastructure
line-of-sight sensors such as camera and/or radar and
provide safety benefits to allow a single, equipped
vehicle to benefit, but also helping to save the lives
of occupants in surrounding, non-equipped vehicles
and vulnerable road users. Any one vehicle that is
protected against accidents that could be caused by a
danger approaching from an obstructed view will thus
benefit long before the take rate of V2V is indeed high.
This allows for an increase in the safety benefits
even during the early years of deployment of V2X
in vehicles. Furthermore, warnings from smart
intersections could even be sent over 5G, allowing
vehicles with Telematics systems, and the necessary
software to decode the information, to benefit. As a
e-mobility Technology International 80
note, nearly 50% of all new vehicles globally ship with
Telematics systems, and the automotive industry is
rapidly switching to 5G over the next several years. And
while warnings sent over 5G would likely not supplant
the CPM messages sent over V2X, leveraging modern
vehicle connectivity and smart intersections can be an
ideal means to rapidly enable life-saving benefits.
With the early safety benefits that the new V2X CPM
message and smart intersections are anticipated to
provide and given that it is only software if the vehicle
already has a suitable Telematics and V2X system,
seamless connectivity is perfect for the EV. Of course,
the CPM standard needs to be completed, and for
high-risk intersections, which may already be smart
intersections, to be equipped with the capability
to create and send CPM messages and warnings.
The goal, after all, is not only to deploy technology to
improve transportation safety, but to do so
in the most effective manner, and always keeping in
mind the protection of all road users – on foot,
on 2 wheels, or in other vehicles – even the ones
who do not yet have V2X systems. There is no chickenand-egg
problem. And there is certainly nothing
wrong with has been done so far in the V2X field;
it just needs to come together now.
Seamless is the word. •
that drives the wheels
smoothly
passenger and
commercial vehicles.
www.aftonchemical.com
© 2020. Afton Chemical Corporation is a wholly owned subsidiary
of NewMarket Corporation (NYSE:NEU) www.aftonchemical.com
in electrified
e volving

BATTERIES
18
Safe,
Reliable,
Modular and
Secure
Welcome to the latest development in the battery
assembly process. Jean-François de Palma,
VP R&D & Innovation.
Efficiency and CO2 emissions have driven
the EV market development, nevertheless
customers will drive the market adoption.
EVs are about to provide features that
go beyond efficiency, proposing
enhanced driving experience and fast
charging to mitigate battery capacity and
autonomy. To support these evolutions
and enable EV performances, safety
architectures are proposing new
concepts and leading-edge technologies.
Welcome to the latest development in
battery busbar product as well as new
assembly process addressing the need
to shorten the battery module processes
assembly. Vehicle electrification is
usually presented as a major industry
trend driven by a need for more efficient,
low CO2 emission solutions but calling
out for product innovation in both
product as well as design for ease of
assembly (design for manufacturability).
Most OEMs have recognized and taken
this trend seriously within their R&D
programs to develop a large product
offering. Nevertheless, having an offer
doesn’t necessarily bring you customers:
customers are expecting EVs to come
equipped with extra-features compared
to traditional cars such as cost of
ownership, autonomy and performance.
EVs need to align with these expectations
and deliver a new driving experience.
Electric motors intrinsically provide all
the torque at 0 RPM to enable a unique
acceleration capability. Fast charging
is being adopted as an autonomy
mitigation plan for today’s battery
capacity. With such features, EVs go
beyond CO2 emission reduction to be
much more convenient and ‘fun’ to drive
compared to all other type of vehicles.
As e-mobility and battery energy
storage applications grow in number
and power density, designers
want the best of both worlds, high
efficiency and high flexibility.
Current battery cells technologies
like cylindrical, prismatic or pouch
types are chemical systems with risks
of electrical failure or thermal runaway.
Electrical contact with these cells is
done through a so-called busbar. The
“a new and dedicated design
for a laminated busbar
especially developed
for battery application and
laser welding”.
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“Using laser welding
will drastically cut
the process time
(a reduction of
60% is achievable)
addressing high
production demand
and lowering costs
for EV and EES
applications”
Infini-cell assembly
busbar, laminated or not, allows the
interconnection of these cells according
to a precise configuration. Nowadays,
a busbar is the preferred solution, a
conductive plate generally copper or
aluminum, insulated from cells with
plastic. It is common to see in first
generation battery module designs, the
connection between the bus bar and
the cell is done with either a wire or
ribbon laser or ultrasonically welded.
This is time consuming and costly.
To improve the cell welding process
time as well as reduce the cost, Mersen
a global expert in electrical power and
advanced materials has developed a new
and dedicated design for a laminated
busbar especially developed for battery
application and laser welding: they call it
the Infinity-cell busbar. This lightweight
single layer busbar solution is made
using lamination of conductive and
insulation materials. Thanks to a very
thin conductive layer, between 0.2 and
0.5 mm, the cells can be easily welded
by laser welding. The busbar design is
made with a conducting layer as well as
a monitoring layer. The conducting layer
allows the OEM to design his cell series
in a parallel configuration to reach the
voltage and power level required for his
module, and the imbedded monitoring
layer provides precise monitoring of the
temperature and voltage in selected areas
of the assembly, as well as feeding the
module battery management system
(BMS). The BMS monitors the voltage
and temperature of selected cells while
also monitoring the status of charge,
balancing the current during the charging
thanks to the Infinity bus bar. The
integration of voltage and temperature
probes on the busbar, as close as
possible to the cells leads to better
management of the complete
battery assembly as well as
better safety management.
Other safety issues can occur during
the module assembly and during the
battery lifetime. To prevent short circuits,
a surge protection system is integrated
within the module. with a new line of
dc Over-Current protection (O.C.P.)
developed to address specific needs in
battery systems.
As already stated, current battery cell
interconnection solutions, including
monitoring, use mainly non-laminated
busbars, quite heavy, bulky, and poorly
integrated in the module box. The Infinity
cell bus bar reduces weight and
weight of the battery. The use of wire
or ribbon to connect cells is no longer
necessary leading to a gain in
time and cost on the manufacturing
line. Downtime on the manufacturing
line to change the wire or ribbon
spool is eradicated. Using laser
welding will drastically cut the
process time (a reduction of 60% is
achievable) addressing high
production demand and lowering
costs for EV and EES applications.
Unlike traditional battery interconnect
solutions, laser interface guarantees
a high speed, safe, robust & efficient
connection of the battery cells
to the laminated bus bar. This
method is more than four times
faster than conventional wire /
ribbon insertion and welding. •
e-mobility Technology International 84 85
Summer 2020

19
Intelligent e-mobility solutions for Hamburg’s e-buses.
CHARGING
INFRASTRUCTURE
Europe’s Bus Market Electrification Charges Towards Sustainability.
Electric Buses and E-Mobility Are
Transforming European Transport
E-mobility solutions are enabling European nations to address their growing need for
transport without compromising the environment
For several years, European nations have
expressed increasing concern about the
rapid depletion of fossil fuels and rising
pollution levels. As a result, there is a
growing demand for sustainable public
transport across the continent.
Much of the focus is on electrifying buses,
one of the most popular and affordable means
of mass transit. The market for battery-electric
buses (e-buses) is expected to accelerate and
grow at a consolidated rate of 12.1 percent
for the next four years. Projections show that
e-buses will command 40 percent of new city
buses by 2025 as large cities set ambitious
targets to curb greenhouse gas emissions and
slow down climate change. Heavy duty diesel and
gasoline-run buses will be phased out gradually.
ABB, as a global leader in e-mobility solutions, is
well positioned to support the transition to sustainable
transportation by providing charging infrastructure
solutions. Supporting ABB Electrification’s Mission to
Zero, the ABB AbilityTM enabled chargers benefit from
cloud connectivity which makes remote diagnostics and
remote management possible, supports integration
in depot management systems and guarantees a
reliable and efficient infrastructure. This translates into
lower downtime and running costs for bus fleets and
a future of sustainable transportation for countries.
Charging Netherlands’ bus fleet
Qbuzz, one of the largest public transport operators
in the Netherlands, relies on more than 100 chargers
from ABB to power its fleet of 99 electric buses and
contribute towards the country’s goal of making all
new buses emission-free by 2025. ABB’s high-power
and fast charging solutions deliver an intelligent
and cost-effective means to charge large fleets
of buses during the night and on route, ensuring
zero emission transportation during the day.
For Qbuzz fleets in northern Netherlands, ABB
has installed 62 of its 100 kW high-power charging
stations. With a voltage range of 150-850VDC, they
are ideal for powering a fleet of buses overnight.
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87
Summer 2020

Meanwhile, in the south-west part of the
country, ABB has installed 38 of its Terra 54 depot
fast chargers. With a typical charging time range
of 15-30 minutes, the Terra 54 chargers are best
suited for charging on route. These chargers also
give Qbuzz the flexibility to provide charging
capacity for private cars, allowing the company to
quickly expand to other EVs as the market grows.
ABB has also supplied six HVC-300 Pantograph
Down (PD) smart charging solutions for on-route
charging as required. These chargers have been
installed at locations throughout the regional
network around Dordrecht, including Drechtsteden,
Alblasserwaard and Vijfheerenlanden.
These chargers deliver 300kW of power,
which means buses are ready to move after
just 3 to 6 minutes of charging, depending on
the power the bus needs to finish its route.
“Mobility plays an important role in unlocking
economic and personal prosperity, especially for the
citizens of the European Union where the freedom
to move between countries is a fundamental
freedom,“ said Frank Muehlon, Head of ABB’s
global business for EV Charging Infrastructure.
“By helping large cities build their e-mobility
infrastructure, ABB is fulfilling its own Mission to
Zero commitmment to achieve a zero-emission
reality not only for the future, but also for today.”
Powering Germany’s first e-bus depot
About 400 km away from the Netherlands,
the Hanseatic city of Hamburg, Germany
has an ambitious goal to cut carbon dioxide
emissions by half by 2030. To help achieve
this aim, public transport operator Hamburger
HOCHBAHN AG partnered with ABB to
electrify the country’s first e-bus depot.
Last year, the company commissioned the
largest charging installations of e-buses in
Germany to date, thereby setting a standard for
other cities to follow. Forty four of ABB’s Heavy
Vehicle Chargers (HVC) 150 C charging stations
are powering this project. ABB is also involved in
the planning and implementation of the electric
infrastructure and connecting the depot to the grid.
The HVC depot charging systems from ABB can
charge larger fleets of e-buses during the night
in a cost-effective manner. With a range of up to
150 km in normal conditions, the e-buses can
remain operational without the need for interim
charging. Improved comfort for passengers and
optimized driving range is made possible by
pre-conditioning, which brings the passenger
cabin to the optimum temperature prior to
departure from the depot station, reducing onroute
power needs from on-board batteries.
The solution features a sealed medium-voltage
(MV) SafePlus switchgear system, dry transformers
and a low-voltage (LV) switchgear that together
ensure high availability and reliability, and
allow seamless charging between stations.
Helping achieve Sweden’s sustainability goals
In line with the Swedish government’s vision that
Sweden should be climate neutral by 2050, public
transport company Västtrafik expects to have
electrified all city traffic in Västra Götaland by 2030.
Volvo Buses and ABB are helping to realize that
aim with the supply of 157 new electric buses and
supporting charging infrastructure to bus operator
Transdev. With services scheduled to commence
in December 2020, the new electrified lines will
mean a total of 220 electric buses to transport
Gothenburg‘s residents and visitors by the end of
the year. These buses – with high passenger capacity
and low environmental footprint – will be part of
a larger fleet to transport Gothenburg’s residents
and visitors across the region. Together, they will cut
carbon dioxide emission by as much as 88 percent.
The buses will be charged by ABB’s 450kW highpower
PD chargers. The company will also supply a
complete solution that includes charging stations
and the necessary grid connection hardware
through ABB’s cable distribution cabinets.
“These cities are great examples to show the
world how we can meet the needs of the present
generation without compromising on the ability for
future generations to meet their own needs. We
have the products and solutions to deliver electricity
from generation to the point of consumption in a
safe, smart and sustainable way”, said Muehlon.
“We are world leaders in e-mobility solutions,
offering the full range of charging and electrification
solutions for electric cars, electric and hybrid buses
as well as for ships and railways. We entered the
e-mobility market back in 2010, and today we have
sold more than 13,000 DC fast chargers across
more than 80 countries. I am also proud to state
that we recently received the Global E-mobility
Leader 2019 award for our role in supporting
the international adoption of sustainable
transport solutions“. Muehlon concluded. •
ABB and Volvo electrify the streets of Gothenburg.
e-mobility Technology International 88 89
Summer 2020

CONNECTIVITY
20
The Digital
5G is critical to achieve the potential of digital roads.
Luke Ibbetson, Head of Research & Development
One of the primary considerations behind the design of
the new fifth generation of mobile networks has been
enhanced support for commercial and industrial sectors,
of which automotive and roads are leading examples
C-V2X
New connected vehicle services promise to
deliver environmental, societal and commercial
gains in advance of the evolution towards
full vehicle electrification and autonomy.
Road to 5G
The development of enhanced mobile standards
and edge cloud systems to support advanced connected
vehicle services is underway. Going into the near future,
Vodafone will deploy both 5G and enhanced 4G systems
to support a rapid, planned evolution towards Connected and
Co-operative Autonomous Vehicles (CAV).
Cellular Vehicle to Everything (C-V2X)
connections use advanced 4G and 5G
technology to enable vehicles to talk to
each other and to roadside infrastructure
over both short and long distances. The
introduction of C-V2X will support critical
safety, information, traffic management and
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Spring 2020

journey optimisation services that will reduce
accidents, road deaths, fuel consumption and
environmental pollution in the years to come.
5GAA
Mobile network operators have joined with
automotive manufacturers through the
establishment of the 5G Automotive Association
(5GAA) to align and co-ordinate their approaches
to the deployment of C-V2X.
Vodafone is supporting 5GAA strategy as an
active member, building on our experience
as a long-term provider of connectivity to
manufacturers, vehicles, drivers and passengers
and also, through our Vodafone Automotive
division, as one of the largest providers of
connected vehicle technology for the industry.
One of the major focus points for the 5GAA is
co-operative engagement with road operators
and city authorities to promote mutually
beneficial co-operation and partnerships. This
enables alignment of service and technology
roadmaps and infrastructure sharing, where
needed.
Vodafone is at the forefront of this effort and
we are engaging directly with the industry across
the 22 countries where we operate, and in our 42
partner markets, to establish best practise and
co-operation to provide manufacturers, road
users and road operators with the means to
evolve automotive to the next level.
Digital Roads
An important term that encompasses many of
the elements that comprise the evolution of the
automotive experience is ‘Digital Roads’.
Digital Roads encompasses a concept whereby
physical elements of the roads and driving
(vehicles, roadside infrastructure and even
human drivers) are represented in a parallel,
virtual environment which serves to enhance
and optimise the experience.
For Digital Roads, vehicles and the roads
themselves will need embedded intelligence
and to be connected to each other and cloud
services by contiguous communications
networks. To achieve this deep co-operation is
needed between telecom providers, IT service
providers, automotive manufacturers and road
operators.
As outlined above, our efforts in this area
are well underway. Over recent years we have
participated and contributed to several research
programmes within the European Union (EU)
related to the deployment of connected vehicles
and C-V2X services, using both short-range
‘vehicle to vehicle’ (V2V) and wide area ‘vehicle
to mobile network’ (V2N) technologies. The
successful conclusion of these programmes
has led to the current phase, which is the
preparation for full commercialisation of
driverless cars on roads.
For mobile operators, Digital Roads comprises
two primary areas. Firstly, the provision of
good coverage and connectivity to roads.
Secondly, the provision and support for edge
cloud systems and services that will serve both
vehicles and road operators. Both of these
elements must be carefully planned, developed,
costed and deployed in conjunction with policy
and technology roadmaps to ensure efficient
use of financial and human resources.
Mobile coverage
Planned coverage by mobile networks of
highways for specific automotive service
support is a relatively new concept. Historically,
regulatory requirements placed upon mobile
operators by authorities have referenced
static population coverage and sometimes
rural population coverage. Then came the
need in Europe for road coverage to fulfil eCall
telephony requirements (automated systems in
vehicles to call emergency services in the event
of a major accident).
Road coverage tends to be better in urban
areas because of the associated population
density. Many countries though, particularly
large countries with low population densities,
have stretches of highway with little or no
mobile network coverage.
Edge Cloud Systems
Highway road operators and urban authorities
are now at the forefront of planning for the
future of automotive: CAV.
The requirements of these sectors differ but
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Spring 2020

they have many common factors: they all aim
to reduce accidents/fatalities, with vulnerable
road users, particularly prominent on nonhighway
roads; and to improve traffic efficiency
(while reducing pollution and addressing global
warming).
The need for high quality, ideally contiguous
mobile network coverage on roads has been
a long-standing ambition but until recently
primarily for driver/passenger comfort
(voice calls, internet access) and for their
ability to report accidents and incidents.
Road/city authority budgets are finite, under
pressure and must be planned carefully.
At the same time, business operations are
becoming more complex, with increased
road usage and pressures on pollution and
vehicle emissions. The benefits of improved
information and resulting ability to conduct
aspects of road usage (dynamic traffic
control, smarter access charging) are clear.
Road and city authorities well understand
today the potential of leveraging good
communications network coverage of the
roads for their business operations, but a
model which relies on third party systems
is a novel concept that must be explored,
tested and expanded over time.
Our business understands this and has
established a consortium which is embarking
on a programme in the UK, in collaborative
partnership with a major city/road authority,
to deploy a platform which incorporates
advanced 4G and 5G urban coverage alongside
state-of-the-art edge compute platform
and IT systems. This will enable the full
range of potential services addressing all
use cases that relate to existing and future
automotive and operational requirements, as
we move towards full vehicle autonomy and
integration between vehicles and the road
and city environment (such as traffic lights).
We are currently in the process of
discussing possible participation in the
programme by wider stakeholders, such as
vehicle manufacturers, automotive service
providers (maps, precise positioning products)
and roadside infrastructure vendors.
Connecting Europe Facility
We also welcome the Connecting Europe Facility
(CEF2) initiative from the European Commission,
which aims to address coverage and service
provision issues on key transport routes
through Europe. It will do this by promoting the
deployment of 5G to support roads and border
crossings, with a specific objective to deliver
connected car services that will form the basis
for the evolution to full vehicle autonomy.
Vodafone’s presence in key markets across
Europe, on both sides of many key borders, gives
us clear insight into the importance of such
routes and crossings. We support the objectives
of CEF2, and are actively exploring the formation
of partnerships with other relevant stakeholders
to expedite the deployment of connected vehicle
services along key European 5G corridors.
The global technical evaluation of C-V2X
and connected services is coming to a
successful close and 5G rollout is underway
in Europe. Active preparation for CAV is the
next phase for mobile and road operators
to support the deployment of C-V2X systems
and next levels of vehicle autonomy.
Vodafone leadership
As the operator with the largest
5G network footprint in Europe Vodafone
is well positioned to continue our
leadership role in the development of
systems that will make a fundamental
difference to the lives of citizens in years
to come with much safer roads and a
wholly transformed travel experience once
automated vehicles are fully integrated into
travel networks.
The partnerships between telecom
operators, vehicle manufacturers and
public authorities will continue to be
pivotal to achieve that potential. In
particular we will continue to encourage
road and city authorities to leverage
established and planned mobile networks
and edge cloud systems. At EU level, there
is a clear requirement for harmonisation
of national and regional policy to promote
and deliver the improved coverage of key
routes throughout the continent, to support
business and society into the future with
5G enhanced connected automotive
capabilities. •
e-mobility Technology International 94 95
Spring 2020

POWER
ELECTRONICS
21
Efficient,
Powerful, Reliable,
Connected and
Eco-Friendly
Ultrasonics and electromobility - a powerful combination.
Andreas Hutterli, Product Manager
Electromobility is the key to climate-friendly
driving practices, because electric vehicles
generate significantly less carbon dioxide per
kilometer than vehicles with conventional
combustion engines - especially with
electricity from renewable sources. At the
same time, the energy storage systems
used by electric vehicles can compensate
for fluctuations in the electricity grid by
means of wind and solar power, thereby
supporting the expansion and market
integration of these energy sources. However,
the automotive industry is now facing new
challenges which need to be addressed in
an innovative manner. This also applies to
the manufacturing technologies that are
required for all aspects of electromobility,
from lightweight body construction to the
electrical and electronic components and
battery production. Processes that use
ultrasonics open up interesting possibilities
with regard to quality and also from an
economic and ecological point of view.
Ultrasonic-based processes and
electric vehicles have much in common:
Efficiency, performance capability,
reliability, connectivity and ecofriendliness
are among the essential
characteristics that they both possess.
Efficient - Ultrasonic Sieving
In Battery Production
Electric vehicles are optimized for efficiency
due to the transparency of accurate
consumption measurements. From battery
to drive train, air resistance and the rolling
friction of the tires, close attention is paid to
the level of efficiency. Efficiency also plays
an important part in ultrasonic processes.
Thanks to its extensive experience in sieving,
Swiss ultrasonic specialist Telsonic
is involved in the key process of
battery production right from the very
beginning: Sieves stimulated with
ultrasonics reduce friction during
the separation of powdered battery
materials. This reliable and energyefficient
process technology improves
selectivity and therefore provides very
homogeneous powder consistency
for manufacturing the electrodes
of vehicle batteries. Ultrasonically
stimulated double-decker sieves with
precisely defined mesh sizes are often
used in practice. This allows the carbon
for the anode and the lithium metal
oxide for the cathode to be separated
with a high degree of selectivity, and
outsizes are reliably removed. These
quality characteristics are essential
for subsequent processes in which
the powder is mixed into a paste
with water and solvent and must be
applied to the electrode carrier films
in an extremely homogeneous way.
Powerful - Reliable Contacting
Of High-Voltage Conductors,
Battery Films And High-
Performance Electronics
Electric motors provide full power
from a standstill. They do not need
to be warmed up or brought to a
certain speed to give maximum
performance. This also applies to
ultrasonic processes. These also
deliver immediate performance and
make short cycle times possible. A
typical example is reliable welding of
copper, aluminum or any combination
thereof for high-voltage connections
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Summer 2020

Ultrasonic sieving during battery production.
in vehicles. Charging cables with plugs that run
from the charging station to the high-voltage
battery make rapid charging possible, even
under difficult conditions, whereby a reliable
connection with low contact resistance is
important. A cable with a cross-section of 70,
95 or 120 mm² must be securely welded to a
high-current contact for this purpose. Designers
demand a welding width that is as narrow as
possible to save space. What was previously
difficult to solve with conventional processes
can now be realized with the PowerWheel®
technology, which quickly and reliably connects
the cable to the high-current contact.
Contacts between the individual aluminum
and copper films of the pouch cells of a
high-voltage battery and the arresters for
the external connections are welded quickly,
reliably and with high quality using ultrasonics.
A central electronic component for converters
of electrical drives and battery charging
systems are IGBT power semiconductors, which
are capable of switching electrical currents
quickly and with minimal losses. The unique
torsional welding technique SONIQTWIST®,
which uses slim sonotrodes that approach
from above, is particularly suitable for the
sensitive ceramic substrates of the IGBTs
onto which the contacts are welded.
SONIQTWIST® is perfect for cylindrical welding.
Rotationally symmetrical sonotrodes can be used
for round bolts, rings or screws, which is not
possible with any other process. This technique
allows automotive suppliers, for example, to
weld a steel bolt pressed into a copper-nickel
sleeve to the front end of an aluminum busbar
as a contact. In this case, the weld is made 360°
around the sleeve without any interruptions. This
provides short cycle times and high productivity
when integrated into a fully automated system.
Reliable: Wire splicing for
electrical connections
Electric vehicles have a minimal number of
moving parts, which significantly reduces
maintenance costs and increases reliability.
Ultrasonic welding systems are also extremely
reliable and low-maintenance. Wire splicing
with ultrasonics is therefore the solution of
choice whenever reliable electrical connections
are required to fulfil the high quality standards
of the automotive industry. The cables must
have perfect connections in order to function
reliably throughout the life of a vehicle. In
these cases, ultrasonic connections have
e-mobility Technology International 98

High-voltage cables connect the
charge controller to the charging
socket and/or the charger to the
charging plug.
“Ultrasonic-based processes and electric vehicles have
much in common: Efficiency, performance capability,
reliability, connectivity and ecofriendliness are among
the essential characteristics that they both possess”.
Telso®Splice TS3 with multi-conductor high-voltage cable (top). Aluminum busbars with a 360 degree welded mounting bolt
(bottom left) and Sensor holder welded to the inside of a bumper using ultrasonics (bottom right).
both financial and technical advantages,
including cost efficiency, low electrical contact
resistance and high strength in the vicinity
of the conductor material. Some extremely
flexible welding systems are now available for
fulfilling the various requirements in production.
This means that even very thin cables with a
cross-section of 0.13 mm2 and twisted cables
for high data transfer rates can be welded.
Connected: Integrated in a higherlevel
production system
Electric vehicles are digital. The optimal route
is calculated based on the battery charge level,
driving style, traffic and other environmental
conditions. Ultrasonic processes can also be
digitally adapted to the respective application,
i.e. optimally designed. Wire splicing with
ultrasonics has therefore proven to be
highly reliable and safe in practice, because
the relevant parameters can be adjusted
and monitored in an application-specific
way. The control and operating software of
the Telso®Splice welding systems provides
integration and networking options that are
fit for the future, together with numerous
functions for effective quality assurance. The
wire splicing systems can be connected directly
to production management systems, giving
users a significant amount of added value. This
primarily applies to the most popular MES in
the sector, 4Wire CAO by DiIT / Schleuniger.
However, integration into other MES systems
is also simple via the flexible Telso®CON
interface. Thanks to the OPC UA architecture,
process control and parameterization of
intelligent benchtop systems with a degree
of automation of up to 100% is possible.
Eco-friendly: Joining technology
for lightweight construction
Ultrasonic technology plays a key role in
lightweight automotive construction It is an area
in which new materials and thin-wall technology
are ideally suited for the SONIQTWIST® ultrasonic
welding technology. This patented and gentle
welding process makes it possible to significantly
reduce the wall thickness of vehicle bumpers
(to approx. 2 mm) without leaving visible
marks on the opposite pre-painted Class A
surfaces. Ultrasonic technology thereby makes a
significant contribution to reducing the weight of
the vehicle. The fact that no adhesives or other
consumables are required is another analogy
to electromobility: electric vehicles do not burn
finite fuel resources and can be operated with
renewable energy, making them eco-friendly.
Ultrasonic-based manufacturing processes,
electromobility or the automotive sector of
the future in general will be closely linked and
will benefit from each another. It is therefore
advisable to involve ultrasonic specialists
at an early stage of the design phase. •
e-mobility Technology International 100 101
Summer 2020

CHARGING INFRASTRUCTURE
22
Roadside
Charging at
500 Amps
“The improvements we have made to the complete HPC
system make this a truly groundbreaking product which
enables continuous charging at 500A for the first time.”
Roadside Charging At 500 Amps
Strengthening its footprint in the
growing global e-mobility market.
HUBER+SUHNER, a leading global
supplier of electrical and optical
connectivity solutions, has recently
announced the commercial launch
of its new high power charging
solution to provide the automotive
industry with a superior solution,
the RADOX® HPC500; It is the
world’s first cooled charging cable
system that allows continuous
charging at 500 Amperes.
The HPC500 cable and connector
improves on the performance
and design of its predecessor the
HPC400, and is built on extensive
experience and continuous
research and innovation in cooled
cable solutions for EV charging
stations. Several new features
make the system ready not just
for existing stations but their
future requirements as well.
These enhancements include
continuous 500A charging, an
IP67 connector protection rating,
integrated option of a ready-to-use
metering system and replaceable
contacts for longer service life.
“We are talking about 500 amps
/1.000 volts in a very thin cable, to
transport 500 amps usually requires
a very thick inflexible cable. So, we
have reduced the copper and made
the cable very thin and flexible. The
reduction in the connector weight
and improved cable flexibility,
offers easier handling for endusers.
flexible and lightweight
but we have to cool the whole
cable otherwise it gets too hot”
said Max Göldi, Market Manager
Industry at HUBER+SUHNER,
who went on to explain
Cooling
“For the cooling we have a closed
loop; that means we have a small
tank, a pump, a heat exchanger
and we pump in the coolant
through the cable direct on to the
powerlines. The cooling starts
with the coolant to the front of the
connector through the contacts
and then back on the copper lines.
With this direct cooling of the
power lines we achieve the best
heat dissipation. We decided to
use an insulated liquid for the
coolant and not water glycol so it
means we are not implementing
any risk if there is a fault.
Alongside the cooled cable
system, the company has
also developed a new 24 V
cooling unit to increase cooling
capacity and reduce operational
temperatures of the power
lines, enabling continuous 500
A charging at environmental
temperatures of up to 50 o C.
The new plug-and-play cooling
unit, which is pre-filled with
coolant, fits into existing charging
stations, significantly reducing
installation time. The speed
of both the ventilators on the
heat exchanger and the coolant
pump is automatically adjusted
to achieve the most efficient
performance, with normal operating
levels requiring lower speed,
significantly reducing noise level.
These new features make the
HPC500 a future-proof solution
for infrastructure manufacturers
and charging station operators.
“The improvements we have
made to the complete HPC
system make this a truly groundbreaking
product which enables
continuous charging at 500 A for
the first time,” continued Göldi “This
helps charging station operators
prepare for the future with an
improved return on investment.”
Max Göldi, Market Manager Automotive
Industry at HUBER+SUHNER.
“We have the largest number of
installed cooled HPC (high power
charging) systems in the world.
Our expertise in HPC solutions is
renowned which is why we are the
absolute market leader in America
where we are the leading supplier
of the RADOX® HPC systems in
Electrify America, so that means the
three main contractors Signet, ABB
and BTC are all using our cooling
cables. We are also very keen
to be a part of the Asian market
where you know the Chinese and
Japanese are creating their own
interface under the working name
“ChaoJi” and we are eager to lend
our intellect to this project “
“Becoming the biggest HPC
supplier in the US and Europe is
very rewarding and it involved a
lot of learning for us. Our newest
generation of cool cable solutions
will be essential to the future of
charging infrastructures as we
keep pace with advancing charge
rates and accommodate greater
range in the new era of electric
transportation”, he concluded. •
e-mobility Technology International 102 103
Summer 2020

Main image Wire Mat Fitting.
23
POWERTRAINS
The E-Mobility Offensive Of A Turnkey Supplier
Mastering the Challenges
The Case for Identifying and Seizing Opportunities at an Early Stage -
insights from GROB, an award-winning electromobility supplier
Within five years of establishing a Research and
Development Team specifically to address the
e-mobility sector, GROB won the award for best
supplier in the field of electromobility, given by
the Volkswagen Group for its comprehensive
expertise and performance in the e-drive project.
“Our company has previously been recognized
for many outstanding achievements of our
employees,” said German Wankmiller, Chairman
of the Board & CEO of GROB, at the award
ceremony. “But we have never received an award
in the ‘e-mobility’ category before. This award is
one that honors us in a very special way, as this
business segment is also relatively new for us.”
The Case for Identifying and Seizing Opportunities at an Early Stage
Electromobility is gaining momentum, but the
markets have not responded to the required changes
in a consistent manner. GROB though, thanks to the
inherent strength and experience of making highly
productive manufacturing and assembly lines, has
decided to rise to this new challenge. According
to company officials, the GROB Group champions
a uniform procedure and sales structure, closely
coordinated with the headquarters in Mindelheim.
Since Europe and China are among the
forerunners in electromobility and the proportion
of e-drives in China for the next few years has
been laid down by legislation, investments
in this sector are high. With its expertise as a
turnkey supplier, recognized by the automotive
industry globally, GROB has already mastered
all the processes and technologies required to
deliver system concepts for reliable and costefficient
series production. No surprise, then,
that the company is already regarded as the
first point of contact in the electromobility
sector - the first extensive orders from the
automotive industry stand as testimony to this.
e-mobility Technology International 104 105
Summer 2020

Technology Application Center for E-Mobility at GROB Mindelheim.
The Market Entry Strategy
Some ten years ago, when GROB
introduced universal machining
centers to establish a new, third
business sector, the market’
familiarity with the existing
G-modules provided the ideal
basis for success, not least because
GROB, as a turnkey supplier in
the system business, enjoyed an
excellent reputation in the market;
unlike in the electromobility sector,
where technology calls for new
working methods, hence different
approaches. Although established
processes in existing sectors are
considered the standard and basic
model, it must be remembered that
e-mobility is a relatively new area for
the automotive industry too. Thus, to
successfully master the challenges of
the transformation from combustion
to electric drive technologies, all
market competitors are having to
reposition themselves in this sector.
At the present time, projects are
being set up and implemented
only in close contact with
the automotive industry and
selected suppliers. On that basis,
a project team – comprising
planning, innovation and sales
management – has been established
to create the best possible
solutions for the customers.
The paradigm shift towards
electromobility in the automobile
industry for GROB is made
particularly clear by a newly created
“New Technologies” business unit
in which the company`s complete
technological electromobility
expertise is concentrated.
From The Initial Idea Through
To Series Production
Five years ago, in response to the
increasingly progressive pace of
technological change with vehicle
powertrains, GROB established a
Research and Development Team
focused solely
on electromobility. Close
consultation with renowned
representatives from the
automotive industry soon
revealed a high demand for
mass production equipment in
this sector, with the focal point
the being on two core areas, the
electric motor and the battery.
To accelerate the set-up and
development phase, the company
consolidated its knowledge of
winding and inserting technology
and, in early 2017, acquired a
renowned mechanical engineering
partner for the production of
electric motors – DMG meccanica,
renamed in 2018 to GROB Italy S.r.l. In
addition, a dedicated, ultra-modern
development and application center
for electromobility was constructed
at the company’s Mindelheim site.
In close collaboration with the
automotive industry, engineering
processes and methods for the
series production of high-efficiency
electric motors and extremely
compact battery modules with
a high power density are being
developed and trialed here
on over 2,500 m² of space.
“We are currently working on
several projects for electric drives
in the international automotive
Inserting technology & Battery Module Assembly line.
industry,” says German Wankmiller.
He goes on to explain: “Thanks
to a team of specialists and
development engineers, we can
realize each and every one of these
projects. As a general contractor,
we are already able to handle
large orders and offer machines
and systems for electric motors,
battery modules and fuel cells.”
For stator production in particular,
there are various manufacturing
methods for inserting copper wires
into the stator slots, wave winding
technology, the hairpin method and
the fan coil technology. In addition,
GROB Italy S.r.l. covers the inserting
technology and needle winding. The
new machine portfolio combines
the entire manufacturing process
for an electric motor, including the
various methods of wire winding and
forming, assembly and contacting.
More so, GROB supports its
customers, from the initial idea to
the system concept for prototypes
through to large-scale series
production. In addition to production
systems for e-machines, the
company has also been focusing on
assembly systems for energy storage
systems. A technical laboratory for
battery cell production is currently
under construction, which will
provide the basis for technical
implementation and enable the
timely provision of additional largescale
production systems for battery
cells for the European market.
Investment and Growth
On the basis of its many years of
experience in developing production
and assembly lines for the automobile
industry, GROB continues to invest
heavily in fuel cell technology and
other new innovative solutions. This
is evidenced by its investment in
an in-house testing laboratory with
an electrical test stand, a geometric
measuring laboratory, a CT machine,
a laser welding system, and an
X-ray machine. This allows a direct
test of the various processes with
the highest technical requirements
and immediate optimisation. The
high and positive market response
shows how successful this strategy
has been for the company.
The company has supplied VW
Salzgitter with a rotor and stator
production line, and VW Kassel
with a line for the assembly of
the components, and thus the
production of the finished unit,
for the production of the modular
electrification kit (MEB for short),
which is very important for
Volkswagen, as it represents the
future platform for electric vehicles
of the VW Group. All machines
for this project were designed
and produced in Mindelheim. The
order covers complete production/
assembly lines including highgrade
automation solutions,
posing an enormous challenge
to all the divisions involved. Due
to completely new assembly
processes, the innovative rotor and
stator manufacturing processes
and the high proportion of
purchased parts used on the
line, the requirements for this
project differed significantly from
the company’s previous core
competencies. The information
gained during the implementation
of the VW projects was of great
benefit to the engineers, facilitating
a continuous improvement
process and resulting in
successful implementation.
Another important milestone
in GROB’s e-mobility offensive is
a brand new production plant in
Pianezza, Italy. The foundation
stone of GROB`s fifth plant for the
development and production of
machines and automation solutions
for e-mobility was laid on March 12,
2019 and the opening is planned
for spring 2020. All these successes
show that GROB, with its extensive
range of products in the field of
electromobility, has established
itself as a reliable partner of
the automotive industry when it
comes to versatile solutions.
GROB generates today a
quarter of its turnover from this
new business segment, with this
number certainly set to rise. •
e-mobility Technology International 106 107
Summer 2020

MATERIALS
RESEARCH
24
A Key
You Cannot
Pick Up
Lubricant technology plays
a key role in unlocking
performance for new
electrified drivetrain
hardware. Technology is
advancing but collaboration
with engineers will help
maximise the benefit and
test any risks.
Oil And Electricity Can Mix
That electric vehicles require oil comes as
a surprise to the layman. The performance
difference between different lubricant
technologies can sometimes astonish
mechanical and electrical engineers. And
the ability of new lubricant technology to
unlock and enable new hardware designs
with electrified vehicles is surprising even
experienced drivetrain engineers.
A lubricant is a critical component in
any drive system that can be designed and
optimised for performance just like the solid
parts of a transmission are engineered. A
lubricant is a painstakingly developed wonder
of science. Much of the performance is driven
by lubricant additives; chemical packages that
when added to the base oil deliver protection
to gears, modify friction in shifting devices,
increase lubricant life, prevent foaming,
prevent rust and corrosion and more.
Only four major providers of lubricant
additive packages exist in the world today
– companies whose products are part of
your everyday life, but most people have
never heard of. One such company, with a
leading position in transmission lubricants
is Afton Chemical. The company has been
working in the fuel and lubricant additives
marketplace for over 90 years, developing and
manufacturing products and solutions to help
machines last longer, engines run smoother
and fuels burn cleaner and more efficiently.
Describing Afton’s response to electrification,
Adam Banks, eMobility Marketing Manager at
Afton Chemical, states “a strong R&D effort
and focus is being applied to new challenges
presented by hybrid and electric vehicles”.
New Hardware, New Challenges
In a traditional transmission, the lubricant is the
one component that touches the entire system.
Electrification of the drivetrain is bringing
new demands to the transmission lubricant.
Existing properties remain essential, such as
gear protection and corrosion prevention.
But it’s the new properties that will shape the
formulating style for electric transmission
fluids (ETF) in electric and hybrid vehicles.
Electrical Properties
Electrical properties become important when
directly cooling eMotors. The lubricant needs
e-mobility Technology International 108 109
Summer 2020

to act as an insulator, while not allowing static
charge to build. It also needs to be compatible
with coatings and not attack conduction metals
to prevent electrified parts becoming damaged.
Electrical properties must be considered too for
user safety, reliable operation and efficiency of
the transmission. Jackie Zhou, eMobility Technical
specialist for Afton Chemical comments “These
properties need to be maintained over the service
life of the fluid. This requires good oxidative
stability and the prevention of contamination
from wear metals or ingress through the seals.”
Cooling Ability
An important new role of the lubricant will be
to take heat away from the eMotor in the most
effective and efficient way. This requires high
heat capacity and thermal conductivity. Using the
lubricant to cool the eMotor directly leads to much
higher maximum lubricant temperatures. The fluid
needs to be able to withstand these temperatures,
requiring greater oxidation stability. And all this
in a demanding high-speed environment.
Compatibility
Electrified drivetrains unsurprisingly contain a
greater number of electrical parts and electronic
control elements than conventional transmissions.
The metals used in these components, such
as copper, tin and silver, can be vulnerable to
corrosion. “The chemistry used to protect gears
and bearings can cause problems for these metals,
requiring a careful and balanced approach to
additive formulating” notes Zhou.Live and Direct
Demand for new fluid types is being generated
by the emerging hardware designs. In pure
electric drives, several components may be
lubricated by a common sump in one system.
Lubrication in a simple eAxle will only be for the
gears and bearings. The requirements of a fluid for
this hardware is relatively straightforward, though
protection and efficiency will be greatly valued. The
high torque generated by eMotors at low speeds will
place additional stresses on these mechanical parts.
Direct cooling of the eMotor with an oil-based
lubricant is desirable for many auto makers. This
can enable the vehicle to maintain peak torque for
longer, reduce risks of overheating and increase
efficiency. Efficiency in eMotors is hugely important
to OEMs as it allows greater power or range from
an equivalent battery. Academic studies point to
2-3 speed transmissions being most effective for
eDrives. Shifting may require some type of friction
element such as clutches or synchronizers.
eMotors produce high torque at low speed. This
is exciting for vehicle performance, but can leave
engineers with problems of control and durability.
A friction element to control the output torque
is an option. In either of these cases, frictional
properties of the lubricant are essential.
When a friction element and eMotor cooling
is combined, the technical challenge for the
lubricant becomes substantial, requiring an
advanced electric transmission fluid (ETF).
Hybrid transmissions will require some of the
properties needed for BEVs, whilst also enabling
flawless operation of the traditional transmission
parts. Banks sees synergies; “Learnings from ETF
development is helping lubricant marketers better
evolve fluids for hybrid transmissions too.”
A World-First
In Q3 of 2020, the world’s first lubricant
additive developed specifically for eAxles
equipped with both direct eMotor cooling and
a multi-speed system will be launched. “Afton
Chemical has developed this product to meet
the expected interest in these technologies
as they spread from high-end niche vehicles
into mass-market EVs” states Banks.
Mature specifications have not yet been widely
published for such a product, as each manufacturer
“In Q3 of 2020, the
world’s first lubricant
additive developed
specifically for eAxles
equipped with
both direct eMotor
cooling and a multispeed
system will be
launched.”
is developing in parallel and in isolation. Industry
bodies have not traditionally defined specifications
for transmission applications, though some efforts
are underway for eAxles. Typical data required is a
combination of existing industry tests and new tests
that look at new challenges the lubricants face.
Three types of test illustrate new approaches
to understanding performance.
Extended Copper Testing,
Measuring Copper In Oil
The criticality of conductive metals in electrical
systems requires a longer and more demanding
corrosion test. An industry standard ASTM D130
“These properties need to be maintained over the
service life of the fluid. This requires good oxidative
stability and the prevention of contamination from
wear metals or ingress through the seals.”
e-mobility Technology International 110 111
Summer 2020

tested at 121OC for 3 hours is not sufficiently
discriminating. Greatly extending the duration to
384 hours (16 days) and elevating the temperature
to 150OC is recommended. The post-test analysis
should rate the strip, but crucially look at copper
in the oil. “In benchmarking it is observed that
some fluids will return a fantastic looking strip,
but they do so by stripping away the copper.
This leeching process would be disastrous for
copper wire or contacts, with a stable barrier
of mild corrosion preferred” comments Zhou.
Vapour Phase
A different mechanism of corrosion is via the
vapour phase. Experiments show that some
lubricants can corrode copper wire more quickly
above the surface of the oil than where it is
immersed. Volatile species, especially free sulfur
compounds can attack winding, sensors, controls
and connections. New testing to assess vapour
phase corrosion has been developed and Zhou
sees this as a useful tool, “Vapour phase testing
complements well the extended D130 testing to
evaluate corrosion in from different mechanisms.”
Electrical Properties After Ageing
Measuring electrical properties of fluids is crucial
for function and safety. But it is clear that
oxidation products, wear metals, water ingress
and other contaminants could all increase the
conductivity over time. “Benchmarking shows
that different lubricant additive technology
varies greatly in its ability to control this effect.
Even well-recognised fluids can show poor
electrical results after ageing.” confirms Zhou.
Partners Prosper
“Afton Chemical believes in an open, flexible
and collaborative way of working with our
customers to understand their business needs
and help them achieve their goals. This unique
partnering style allows long-term relationships
to develop and greatly aids delivery of leadingedge
technology” says Banks when discussing
how companies can better make progress.
“With development timelines for electrified
drivetrains shorter-than-ever, it is even more
critical to bring engineers and chemists
together to enable new hardware and
reduce risks for pioneering OEMs.”
It is clear that new performance requirements
need new technology to be developed in tandem
with hardware. New testing methods, relevant
to the application in development, are also
needed to control risk. Expertise in formulating
technology solutions and creating relevant
testing along with a collaborative working style
will be required for lubricant developers and
OEMs to lead in evolving lubrication. •
Small has never
been so cool!
Aspen Systems produces the world’s smallest
vapor compression systems with a range of
standard products and custom cooling solutions
based on our own in-house developed miniature
compressors. We have developed custom
solutions for batteries, electronics, and charge
cables. Aspen currently manufactures chillers
for fast chargers installed throughout the United
States, Europe, and Australia.
Applications
• Battery cooling
• Rapid charging cables
• Power electronics
• Sensors
Ultra Compact Cooling Systems
Liquid Chiller Module
Air Cooling
2U Rack Mount Chiller
Custom Systems
e-mobility Technology International 112
Contact us today for a free evaluation of your application:
e-mail: info@aspensystems.com, Tel: +1 (508) 281-5322
www.aspensystems.com
Aspen Systems
24 St. Martin Drive
Marlborough, MA 01752

TESTING
25
Virtualising Durability
The Final Test of Zero Prototype Vehicle Development
Many OEMs, including Jaguar Land-
Rover (JLR), Mazda and Renault, have
stated that their goal is to achieve
zero (or near zero) prototype
vehicle production. To achieve this,
they require simulation to replace
testing that would be covered by
prototypes, as such, many have
started their own investments in
vehicle simulation development.
BMW have built the “Driving
Simulation Centre” in Munich,
an investment of around €100m
towards achieving this. Robust
simulation is critical to any OEM
in achieving a quicker, economic,
and more environmentally friendly
vehicle development process. But
the closer to the zero-prototype
goal an OEM gets, the more difficult
it can be to reproduce the data
they would expect from traditional
prototype-based testing.
Simulation already forms
an essential role in the early
stages of vehicle development,
aerodynamics simulation improving
vehicle drag, powertrain analysis
to gain vehicle efficiency and
suspension optimisation to make
the ride comfortable and achieve
the handling targets. A great
number of tools are available for
development and refinement,
but many predominantly work in
isolation from each other. Most
specialise in their own aspect of
vehicle analysis and produce results
for one element of the vehicle. Data
from each tool feeds another but as
the vehicle design mutates during
development the inputs to each test
must change with it. For example,
an alteration to the bodywork at
the front of the vehicle could affect
the cooling of the powertrain, the
drag and average torque load on
the motors and vertical load on
the suspension and tyres. This can
cause a cascade of reviews and
modifications to accommodate the
change but that in turn can have its
own effect on every other system.
While obvious changes can
be earmarked as potentially
influential and investigated ahead
of this problem, some issues
are only found when full vehicle
durability testing is carried out.
Problems in component wear is
a problem that many OEMs have
difficulty in predicting but critical
to achieving vehicle longevity. In
almost all cases, prototype vehicles,
their drivers and the subsequent
component evaluation have the
final say in whether the vehicle
is working correctly and ready
for sale.
What Is Durability Testing?
Durability testing is an investigation
into the long-term degradation
of a vehicle after experiencing
the expected obstacles it should
expect to see through its lifetime.
Most durability testing is carried
out at vehicle proving grounds
and encompasses both what most
would consider normal driving
conditions and the less common
events that a normal driver would
see irregularly. This can include
sustained high speed, laps around
racetracks and kerb strikes. Each
OEM will have durability routines
which are tailored to include
what they anticipate the vehicle
will encounter given the vehicle
type and the target market.
The information gained from
durability studies come in many
different forms, both measurable,
from the vehicle, and objective
feedback, from the drivers who
conduct the studies. Information
is gathered during and after a
durability test where the vehicle
can be examined and any
component exhibiting failures
or performance degradation
identified and investigated.
The subjective feedback can be
regarding many elements of the
vehicle, including vehicle comfort
and handling characteristics.
Problems With Existing
Development Programs
Up to 70 prototype vehicles are
produced for a new vehicle program,
with earlier prototypes potentially
costing over £250,000. As these
vehicles can only be produced in
late stages of development, the
very earliest the point at which
an approximate full system can
be fully tested is after the oneoff
first vehicle is constructed.
In the early stages of testing,
proxy vehicles can be adapted to
include components of interest
and early investigations carried
out. While these give a lot of useful
results, the time and cost for both
modifying and testing the vehicles
allows a limited number of tests.
There is of course an
environmental cost to prototype
testing. Involving thousands of miles
of driving, using a larger amount
of energy over normal driving
conditions. Often needing tests
performed in many locations, in all
conditions, the transport between
test facilities also increases the time,
cost and environmental effects.
Once full-scale production
is on the horizon, the ability to
modify components reduces. With
lead time needed to produce
production tools such as panel
press forms, there is little that can
be modified in the event of a design
fault emerging during durability
testing, as durability tests are often
performed with late stage prototype
vehicles once the tools have already
been produced. Finding these
issues before the tool designs
are set is critical in improving
efficiencies. But this requires a
durability study to be conducted
before first tool production.
This can only be achieved with
virtual durability testing.
Development Of Durability
Simulations
Claytex, a global modelling and
simulation solutions developer for
the automotive and motorsports
markets, has been working with
an international OEM to recreate
their specific durability studies
in Dymola, a simulation package
with the ability to simulate mixed
media experiments. This means that
the multibody of the suspension,
heat, and fluid dynamics of the
cooling system and the controllers,
can all be modelled in the same
program. Libraries are available
that specialise in specific system
modelling, normally focusing on
particular areas of investigation,
such as suspension, engines, or
electric motors. Effort has been
made to create simulations with
future vehicles and adaptability
in mind. The setup has been
developed such that test sequences
are not vehicle specific. This allows
any new vehicle to be tested
by replacing and simulating.
Using the Vehicle Systems
Modelling and Analysis (VeSyMA)
simulation libraries as a base
provides vehicle templates and
interchangeable sub systems to
match the design of the vehicle and
progression of the development.
Other libraries such as VeSyMA –
Suspensions, VeSyMA – Engines,
VeSyMA - Powertrain, Electrified
Powertrains or Batteries provide
high fidelity models and controllers
of suspension systems, engines,
transmissions, electric motors,
or batteries, respectively.
Vehicle Simulation
The choice by the OEM to use
Dymola was based on the
capabilities of both the acausal
language and the hierarchical
modelling structure. Combined
with the templates and models
provided with libraries such as the
VeSyMA Suite allowed them to work
on distinct areas of investigation
separately and chose models of
complexity to match the availability
of data throughout development.
A combination of different system
complexities was also used in
the same model, mixing a simple
suspension with a complex
powertrain model or vice-versa.
This provided targeted and efficient
investigations by only simulating
complex elements that affected
the outcome of the investigation.
e-mobility Technology International 114 115
Summer 2020

When conducting any vehicle
simulation, the effect of
interdependent systems must be
considered and accommodated,
as in the real vehicle. In durability
studies this is of even higher
importance, while small changes
to component behaviour may have
small or negligible effects in short
term tests, when performed hundreds
of times in durability studies, it can
have a resounding effect. Having
simulations with active sub-system
modelling produces a more accurate
result. With sub-systems becoming
more active and interdependent in
modern vehicles, this is becoming
more important than ever.
“Our solutions allow a range
of vehicles to be put through the
same test with the same driver and
environment models, allowing one
library of tests for all vehicles.” says
David Briant, Project Engineer
Driver and Environment
Simulation
Each test consists of a series of
actions, which could include defined
motions or require driver feedback
control. Tests such as coasting around
a corner involves not touching the
throttle (open loop) but steering
to follow the corner (closed loop).
The VeSyMA drivers include both
elements where a series of tasks is
given to the driver to follow, changing
from “closed loop” control to “open
loop” demand dependent on the
vehicle status, position, or time. This
produces repeatable test conditions
that in this project replicate their
pre-existing durability studies.
The surface and tyres are also one
of the key elements to get correct
to match the fidelity requirement
of the vehicle. Using the Pacejka
tyre model, an industry standard
tyre model for most of the vehicle
simulations to produce the forces
to move the vehicle, coupled to the
VeSyMA grid contact model, allows
the tyres to interface with rough
surfaces and obstacles such as kerbs
and cobblestones. The road surface
can range from ideal flat surfaces
for early investigations to millimetre
resolution scans of proving ground
roads. Roads can be defined using
the CRG standard or using the same
techniques developed and used in
Formula One, on the road models
scanned and available through
the virtual environment software
of rFPro. Roads such as Millbrook
Testing Ground or racetracks such as
the Nurburgring, commonly used in
durability testing by many OEMs, are
available in rFPro. Additional surfaces
owned or specific to an OEM test can
also be scanned and used; this allows
for utilisation of pre-existing data
as validation for the simulations.
Simulation of a vehicle with
multibody suspension and Pacejka
tyre models on an alpine road.
This technology conceived for
Formula One also includes the ability
to use the same vehicle models
run real-time in Driver-In-The-Loop
simulations. The coupling of rFPro
for the environment, Dymola for the
vehicle and driver interfacing with
simulators is common throughout
racing. In this type of simulation
professional drivers can analyse
the performance of the vehicles
at very early stages. This method
can produce very close to the
same feedback from the drivers
concerning handling and performance
characteristics that you would
gain in prototype-based testing.
Interaction with other Tools
Modelling every aspect of the vehicle
is possible in Dymola but sometimes
may not be the optimum path to
creating a valid vehicle model. Using
multiple tools to their strengths
can produce results quicker and
sometimes with more applicable
results. The FMI standard allows
many tools such as Dymola and
Matlab to be interfaced. Keeping to
a low number of imported models
retains simulation efficiency, by
reducing the amount of interfacing
overheads low. This allows the
component controllers, such as
active suspension systems, that are
usually developed for final production
in Matlab to be used directly by
the vehicle models in Dymola.
This also extends to tyre modelling,
using FTire to model the tyre and
surface. While running in parallel
with Dymola, the hub forces are
fed directly out from FTire to the
vehicle suspension. FTire allows for
even higher fidelity tyre simulation
by modelling aspects such as tyre
belt deflection, dynamic pressure
waves and tread pattern interaction
with the road surfaces. With Pacejka
considered to have an accuracy limit
of 25Hz, FTire is used to analyse
frequencies exceeding this, both
transferred to the powertrain and
to the bushes of the suspension.
Automated Testing
The goal of projects like this is to
produce an automated, validated
process where the only input required
is the vehicle model. Once a new
vehicle model is created, it can be run
through the library of durability tests
and results extracted automatically.
But the scalability and diversity
of the tests can be increased with
simulation-based studies as the time
to conduct and variety of tests is of
a lot less consequence. Tests that
were too costly or time consuming
to add to the durability study can
be included by adding any number
of additional tests to the library.
With simultaneous simulation
used to run all the tests at once, it
allows the entire durability study
to be run in as much time it takes
to run the longest single simulation
to be completed. With this process
automated to be run at regular
intervals the OEM can much
more readily assess the ability
of the vehicle periodically.
If chosen to extend this
automation further, the
cumulative results can be
passed to secondary programs
to perform analysis on
specific aspects of the vehicle
performance or degradation
of components. An example
of this would be using both
peak chassis load curves with
frequency of their occurrences
within Finite Element Analysis
tools to gain the chassis
mount strength degradation
over time. This can directly inform
the engineers to the best component
selection at a very early stage and if
any unforeseen effects cause these
loads to change, this can be flagged
up for component re-evaluation.
Concluding
Reducing the number of prototype
vehicles needed during vehicle
development needs a large initial
investment in both the production
and validation of the simulations.
“Our solutions allow
a range of vehicles
to be put through
the same test with
the same driver
and environment
models, allowing
one library of tests
for all vehicles.”
But once a simulation sequence
has been fully developed, only new
vehicles need to be created and run.
But the benefits of using a simulationbased
durability study gains more
than just a reduction in the number
of prototype vehicles. With a good
implementation of a simulation tool
chain OEMs can carry out and gain
results from more evaluations a lot
earlier in the development process,
leaving a lot more time for refining
and improving the vehicle. •
Experiment layout with separate vehicle, driver,
environment and road models. And a vehicle model
used to investigate suspension dynamics.
e-mobility Technology International 116 117
Summer 2020

POWER
ELECTRONICS
26
Silver
Sintering
Sintered Silver Interconnects for Traction Inverter Assembly
Fig 1. Cross-section of
pressure-sintered silver
Argomax®
Silver Sintering as Die Attach
Layer (top and bottom)
Introduction
For Electric vehicle (EV) adoption to
accelerate beyond the premium and
commercial segment, the cost of
batteries and inverters need to come
down significantly. At the same time,
reliability needs to be improved to
achieve lifetime targets (8K and 70K
hours of operation for passenger and
commercial vehicles respectively).
EV power electronics is responsible for
delivery and management of power efficiently
and reliably (from the battery to the motor).
EV driving range and cost are directly related
to the power density (KW/L) and efficiency ($/
KW) of the traction power module (and hence
the inverter). The traditional power modules
are not designed for EV traction and suffer
from several limitations. Most important of
these are related to poor heat dissipation
and inability to handle high temperature and
mechanical stress (usually together during
prolong or peak operation). The degradation
symptoms include poor die performance
(due to overheating) and inability to manage
the transients. All these issues have been
traced back to poor design and selection
of thermal and electrical interconnect
layers in the power module stack.
Power Module Interconnect Layers
Thermal interconnects between the power
module layers (die attach, heat-sink
attach, thermal interface material) serve
three key functions – convey power to/
from the device, remove heat and mitigate
the stress between the layers (originating
from difference in thermal expansion
during the multiple heating and cooling
cycles). The ability of these layers to
efficiently remove the heat (by enabling
lower thermal resistance) directly affects
the performance of power semiconductors.
It has widely reported that interconnect
layers account for >50% of the thermal
impedance of the entire assembly stack1.
More efficient thermal management enables
higher temperature operation and lower
losses. This allows higher power density
(lower semiconductor area) and lower cooling
needs (which further reduces vehicle weight
and operation cost). Finally, high temperature
operation reliability directly impacts power
electronics lifetime (and warranty costs).
Good news is that silver sintering
technology is rapidly evolving to overcome
the thermal and reliability challenges
associated with these layers. Power
electronics of the most advanced electric
vehicles on the market are now using silver
sintering technology for increased efficiency
(lower power loss by thermal dissipation),
improved peak performance (managing
transients at high torque situations) and
improving reliability (10-15X improvement
in power cycling)2 for longer lifetime.
This article details the performance
and reliability improvements in electric
vehicle power electronics enabled by
Argomax® pressure-sintering platform from
MacDermid Alpha Electronics Solutions.
Silver Sintering
Traditionally solder (usually lead-based) has
been used as the conductive interconnect
in power electronics stacks. It suffers from
poor thermal conductivity (200W/m.K for sintered
silver) and poor reliability (the lead is
also obviously undesirable). Silver is an
attractive replacement - given its high bulk
thermal conductivity, low electrical resistivity
and non-toxic and relatively stable nonoxidative
nature. However due to its high
melting point most of the silver-based
systems do not take the advantage of the
superior thermal and electrical properties.
Sintering enables atomic diffusion between
individual silver particles (at temperatures
significantly below the melting point) to
eliminate the resistive losses among the
particles and minimize the losses at the
interface. During sintering the silver particles
form inter-metallic free diffusion bond (in
the bulk as well as the interfaces) - resulting
in a dense microstructure that is highly stable
(against high temperature and cyclic fatigue)
and provides very low thermal resistance.
Figure 1 shows the microstructure of
sintered silver die attach layer pressuresintered
at 250C and 10MPa. It consists
of dense structure (>85% density) of
fine grains of silver surrounded by small
uniformly distributed porosity. It is also
important to note that the bonding at the
interfaces is purely diffusion (between
the silver particles and the metallization
layers to die and substrate without any
inter-metallics or organic resin).
Silver sintering has been used as the
conductive interconnect at the layers right
next to the die (die attach layers both
on top and bottom of the die). Figure 2
shows x-sections of two packages – one
was sintered both die top and bottom
(2a), while the other one used traditional
packaging technology (2b, with hi-lead
solder at bottom and wire-bonds at die
top). Creep deformation of the wirebonds
is the largest source of failure in traditional
power packages. Replacing these wirebonds
with a sintered clip on the die-top, and
This double-sintered
design has been used
in high volume production
for making power
modules for high-end EVs
and hybrid EVs.
e-mobility Technology International 118 119
Summer 2020

improving the heat dissipation through the
sintered layer at the die-bottom improved
the packaged device reliability by ~30X (as
measured by number of power cycles). The
thermal resistance of the sintered die attach
layer was also found to be ~25% lower than
the regular. These enhancements, enabled by
silver sintering, enabled the double-sintered
package to operate at higher peak current
(200A vs 130A for the traditional package).
These stacks were then put through the
power cycling set-up to check the effect
of the heat-sink attach layer on thermal
resistance. The regions of the structure function
curve – related to die, die attach and DBC
substrate overlap while a clear difference is
seen in the copper layer attach layer. Overall
the sintered layer reduces the cumulative
thermal resistance of the stack (from die to
the pin-fin heat sink) by approximately 10%.
Schematic of power packages
sintered to aluminum block
Wire bonding
Sintered Diode
Top connection sintered
Sintered IGBT
Soldered Diode
Soldered IGBT
Mold compund
Cu Tab
Mold compund
Cu Tab
Fig.2 Cross-section of double sintered package (left) with sintered clip on die-top and die-bottom and traditional
soldered wire-bonded package (right).
This double-sintered design has been used
in high volume production for making power
modules for high-end EVs and hybrid EVs.
The sintered interconnects have increased
the inverter reliability by >10X (measured by
power cycles achieved at 80C delta T) and
increased the power density (KW/L) by >80%.
Silver Sintering for Heatsink
Package Attach
In the second application example, we
share how the effect of silver sintering on
module to heat sink interconnect layer
was investigated. This layer transmits
heat from the module to the heat-sink
(which is typically cooled actively) and
manages stress between these two different
thermal expansion layers. SiC MOSFET dies
attached to DBC substrate with sintered
silver die attach were attached to copper
(heat-sink) with either the sintered silver
material or regular solder (SAC305).
This difference is very significant – since it
directly translates into higher performance
and reliability. The lower thermal resistance
reduces the semiconductor (and the stack)
operating temperature, thereby increasing the
lifetime (and the warranty costs). Alternately
it can be used to increase the peak operating
currents that are needed in high performance
situations (like driving up a hill or accelerating).
The heat-sink attach application has come
into focus recently as both Si & SiC based
die-sintered, over-molded power packages
are becoming available in packaged TO-247
or comparable form factor. These provide
readily scalable building blocks for assembling
EV inverters by sintering these packages
directly to the heat sink. The number of
packages can be varied to achieve different
KW rating inverters without the need of
designing and qualifying the module and
its die package separately. A demo unit of
power packages sintered to an aluminum
plate is shown above and has been used
as the building block for assembling
traction inverters for EV applications.
MacDermid Alpha is working with
equipment partners and automotive OEMs
to dispense the sintering material directly
on the heat-sink (250C
for prolonged times without degradation
in structure and performance. Since
fewer SiC devices were needed for the
same power, SiC inverter (enabled with
Argomax) cost ($/KW) is 25% lower
than Silicon IGBT/solder alternative.
Summary
The EV revolution is upon us and silver
sintering is a key technology enabling it.
By switching the die attach and package
attach layers to sintered silver, device
makers, automotive Tier1s and OEMs
are achieving the performance and
reliability targets of their traction
inverters. •
e-mobility Technology International 120 121
Summer 2020

Jonathan Borrill, Francois
Ortolan – Anritsu Corporation.
VEHICLE
CONNECTIVITY
27
Virtual Driving
Testing Telematics Services Over Cellular Networks.
Let’s face it, the interior of modern cars
has the feeling of operating a smartphone
on wheels, and the services provided by
smartphones have also been ported or
tethered to the infotainment systems on
board the vehicle. In recent years the telecom
industry has also started to build additional
applications and services together with
the automotive industry. This was usually
referred to as ‘telematics services’.
Currently vehicles are using applications
to exchange the data with the cloudbased
servers via a mobile radio network,
sharing their position/movement and
getting valuable information such as
hazard warnings, traffic information, and
free parking spaces. This also allows novel
new usage of cars such as car sharing or
live carpooling, and specific applications
for this are now widely available. The next
generation of these applications will provide
vehicles with the latest software updates
and up-to-date and accurate High Definition
map data for autonomous driving in real
time. The applications will be integrated
more closely with the vehicle and place high
demands on data throughput, latency, and
reliability of the mobile radio connection.
Telematics services assist the decisionmaking
of the driver, or of the algorithms
controlling the autonomous vehicle such
as ADAS systems. These Advanced driverassistance
systems (ADAS) rely on various
sensors to make safety decisions. ADAS
systems initially began by using sensors
such as RADAR for distance and object
sensing. To improve their representation of
the world, ADAS started to fuse information
coming from additional information such
as Video and Lidar. This enables the build
of a 3D model of the world surrounding the
vehicle. However, one main limitation is its
inability to see beyond the line of sight.
This is where wireless networking can help
as it communicates to the infrastructure
or between cars, so the car connectivity
is now becoming an essential addition
e-mobility Technology International 122 123
Summer 2020

to safety and the user experience. These
types of V2X communications allow the car
to ‘see around the corner’ to be aware of
a pedestrian crossing, or to ‘see through
the truck in front’ to know of a vehicle
coming in the opposite direction.
Road testing and Virtual testing
An approach for testing ADAS and Telematics
services is to take it to the road. Road
testing requires millions of miles to validate
implementations, even then not every
situation can be encountered. Reproducibility
to test a given scenario is difficult, and
in particular testing a given scenario for
wireless communication is challenging. The
cellular network signal can fluctuate with the
weather, network load, and the availability
of the required network (LTE, 5G …).
Simulating the world ‘virtually’ in a lab
is one solution to obtain reproducible
results. It also cuts the cost and time
required to validate releases before
going to the road. Road testing is still
seen as essential but is now considered
the last step of testing, as virtual testing
becomes more realistic and capable.
Open loop versus Close loop
Traditionally, connected cars have been
tested in labs the same way as a smartphone.
Building on a suite of predefined test cases
that can be run sequentially, providing a
known sequence of inputs and ensuring
that results fall within the expected range
or follow an expected behaviour. This
is referred to as open loop testing.
Considering the life cycle and importance
of reliability, security and longevity, it has
become apparent that this is not enough.
A better representation of the real world is
needed, moving away from predefined test
cases and user scenarios. This is why virtual
driving is becoming an essential tool for
pre-validation. In a virtual world scenario
testing starts with the same initial conditions,
but the responses made by the vehicle can
feedback and change the test inputs in
real time. This is referred to as closed loop
testing. How the vehicle responds to the test
environment will then dynamically change
the test configuration. For example, if the
vehicle under test decides to change lane
due to lane closure ahead, then surrounding
vehicles can also respond to avoid a crash.
Software in the Loop and
Hardware in the loop
This methodology from the automotive
world is named ‘Software in the Loop
(SiL)’ or ‘Hardware in the Loop (HiL)’.
In both cases, a closed loop 3D world
is created and test scenarios used.
Software in the Loop provides a pure
software simulation environment, where
a software algorithm can be tested and
is provided by inputs and feedback loops
in a ‘software only’ environment.
Hardware in the Loop goes a step beyond
the software simulation, by testing algorithms
running on real hardware and providing
actual hardware signals to/from the
e-mobility Technology International 124 125
Summer 2020

Bonding and Welding
with Ultrasonic
hardware platform running the algorithm.
Example of Virtual World used
in SiL and HiL (dSPACE)
Currently, ‘Software in the Loop’ represent
95% of the virtual driving for autonomous
cars. Only 5% is done with ‘Hardware in the
Loop’. The trends in the testing industry
indicates that more testing is needed when
hardware is used, as this validates the
algorithm in a more realistic environment.
Testing telematics connectivity
to the cloud in HiL
The closed loop approach for telematics
testing, proposed in this article is new to the
industry. The approach is to equip a HiL test
station with a mobile network simulator that
provides a realistic test network, consisting
of base stations (radio access network)
and a mobile radio core network. The HIL
simulation can be used to
validate the entire chain of effects, from the
application in the vehicle to the realistic
communication to the cloud service.
This article presents a use case from
e-mobility Technology International 126
the collaboration between two industry
leaders, dSPACE for the HiL system, and
Anritsu for the simulator (2G/3G/LTE/5G).
The Anritsu simulator can be connected
directly to the Internet or a back-end server,
and it exchanges data between the cloud
service and the tested application in the
vehicle. Wires or antennas can connect the
simulator to the communication unit.
The mobile network simulator is controlled
from the HIL test bench using a Simulink
blockset. This allows configuration of the
mobile network to change data throughput
and latency, for example. It also supports
mobility scenarios such as a handover
(changing from one cell site to another).
During a virtual test drive, the radio link
is transferred from one base station to
the next without losing the data link.
Another key test case is signal loss, where
the radio signal becomes increasingly
weaker and even breaks off completely
during a drive. The blockset supports the
Anritsu MD8475B Signalling Tester (2G/3G/
Battery Connections
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KERAFOL ®
Gap Filler Liquids
LTE) and is 5G ready for use in combination
with the 5G Communication Tester MT8000A.
5G deployments are expected to use more
network features such as Network Slicing,
and Mobile Edge Computing (MEC). The
combination of these features in the network
will affect reliability, quality, and latency, as
they aim to optimise these parameters for
specific applications such as automotive. So,
the ability to simulate the impact of availability
and performance of these network features
will further push the testing requirements,
as scenarios with or without these features
need to be validated. A HIL system using
the MT8000A network simulator can support
such ‘end to end Network Slicing and MEC’
configurations that are expected to be an
important element of 5G automotive use cases.
Virtual Driving paving the way
for validation and approval
The Automotive industries are actively defining
the scenarios needed to validate
the functions in autonomous cars, reducing
the infinite set of combinations encountered
on the road to a subset of essential
scenarios is a crucial job. This subset will
pave the way for the industry to build an
approval framework to validate the safety
of ADAS systems and autonomous vehicles.
For now, scenarios focus on environmental
conditions that would impact the current
sensor inputs such as Radar/video/ Lidar.
In addition, it is expected cellular connectivity
will play an increasing role in the sensor fusion
decision-making of autonomous cars in the
future. With the evolution of wireless networks
in 5G providing specific automotive functions,
more and more features such as Cellular Vehicleto-Everything
(C-V2X) will become important.
Two of the most exciting use cases for 5G
are sensor sharing and remote driving. The
sensor sharing use case requires connection
to/from central server to enrich and augment
the vehicle’s own local data with situational
awareness data. For remote driving, the
requirements on reliability and low latency
for the radio connection are critical to
ensure safe remote driving. A ‘Hardware in
Loop’ system with cellular connectivity is the
perfect test bed for research, prototyping
and validating behaviour and performance
when adding these cellular connectivity
features into the vehicle control systems. •
Development.
Production.
Consulting.
As a specialist in Thermal Management
we are providing solutions with
Thermal Interface Materials
and also technical support in
the field of dispensing technology.
Keramische Folien GmbH & Co. KG
e-mobility Technology International 128
KERAFOL ®
Keramische Folien GmbH & Co. KG
Koppe-Platz 1
D-92676 Eschenbach i.d. OPf. | Germany
www.kerafol.com

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