Infineon’s CoolSiC MOSFETs Used in EA Elektro-Automatik Power Supplies
EA Elektro-Automatik bidirectional laboratory power supplies are aimed at testing EV and HEV power components
Members of EA Elektro-Automatic’s PSB 10000 series deal with the troublesome issue of bidirectional energy flow engineers must contend with when testing EV drive trains. The devices’ efficiency of 96% and better is made possible through the use of 1200 volt CoolSiC MOSFETs from Infineon Technologies
The PSB-10000. Image courtesy of Infineon
The unit serves as an electronic load, with most of the energy needed for the testing process being fed back into the power grid. One advantage here is that and only a small amount of that energy ends up being dissipated as heat.
The power density, said to be industry-leading, is 30 kW. The PSB-10000 fits into standard 4U 19 inch rack housing.
Flexible Power
Typical programmable DC sources offer full output power only at maximum voltage and current. The PSB10000 can offer full power from as little as one-third of the output voltage or output current.
Charging or discharging a vehicle's lithium ion battery (LiB) is a case in point. As the battery voltage rises or falls, the current can automatically adjust and thus continue to provide full power. This type of flexibility can eliminate the need for ancillary equipment when testing power electronic components.
Key Specifications of the PSB-10000 Series
Taking the EA-PSB 10060-1000 4U 30000W as an example:
- Operates over a 342 to 528 VAC input range to accommodate 380, 400 and 489 volt grids
- Power rating of 30 kW, expandable to 1080 kW
- Voltage from 60 to 2000 volts
- Current from 40 to 1000 amps
- Protection circuits include OVP, OCP, OPP, OTP
- Analog Interface with galvanic isolation
- USB port
- Optional digital interface modules
- SCPI command language and ModBus RTU
- LabView support
An Example of Electric Motor and Drive Train Testing
EA Elektro-Automatik provides an example of testing the motor and controller of an EV using the company's PSB 9500-30 3U. The bi-directional nature of EA Elektro-Automatik power supplies eliminate the need for a separate DC source and load in parallel, needed to deal with bi-directional energy flow by reflecting the converted energy safely back into the power grid.
Thus, the damaging effect of this energy is avoided, without the need for separate units. Additionally, the time and expense of setting up a more complex test setup are avoided.
EV test setup using an EA Elektro-Automatik power supply. Image courtesy of EA Elektro-Automatik
In this example, an EV motor is spun up to 6,000 rpm, drawing 10 amps at 320 volts. After 100 msec, the controller turns the motor off, and current is safely dissipated through the PSB 9500-30 3U. In this example, even as the current shifts between approximately +10 amps to -4 amps, voltage remains stable at around 320.9 VDC.
The PSB 9000 3U itself is available in versions from 5 kW up to 480 kW. As is the case for most EA Elektro-Automatik power supplies, integration is made easier by available USB, RS232, Ethernet, GPIB, CAN Profibus, ProfiNet and ModBus interfaces.
About EA Elektro-Automatik
EA Elektro-Automatik GmbH & Co.KG is Germany’s leading manufacturer of laboratory power supplies and electronic loads. Its strong market position is the result of the successful company history and continuous development, driven by an exceptional pioneer in the field of power electronics, founder Helmut Nolden. From a family-led business, EA Elektro-Automatik has developed into a mid-size company with a global presence and a worldwide dealer network. Continuity, reliability, and modern switching concepts are the most important core factors of the business.
