Canadian company Hillcrest Energy Technologies has filed for a patent for a system that would make it easier to charge electric vehicles while reducing their weight.
High Efficiency Transformer
Hillcrest plans to reuse high-efficiency inverter technology to simplify electric vehicle charging. The new solution will concern both AC connectivity and superchargers.
she had” Possibility to simplify the powertrain system and provide two-way universal charging while improving efficiency and performance ”, guarantees the communication service of the Canadian company.
However, innovation is currently at the level of laboratory experiments. The results seem encouraging enough to imagine real integration in connected cars. A partner is actively being sought to launch this new technology and develop a demonstrator to validate the concept in broad daylight next year.
Enhanced powertrain
It’s all about the driving force. Improved by Hillcrest, it is based on ” Bi-directional charging structure enhances the efficiency and high conversion frequency capabilities of the company’s highly efficient traction inverter The first effect of GMP simplification is that there is no need for an onboard charger for AC charging.
” Removing the onboard charger will allow AC charging of the electric vehicle to the maximum power capacity of the traction inverter or AC charging source (whichever is lower), regardless of system voltage. Explains the Canadian company’s communications department.
And for electric cars operating on 800 V, an additional device for powering DC 400 V chargers will also not be superfluous. And then weight gain. Hillcrest Energy Technologies innovations will also have the advantage of adapting equipped electric vehicles to future changes in the maximum power capacities of the traction inverter or charging source.
universal packaging
Ari Berger, Technical Director of Hillcrest Energy Technologies, sums up the solution under consideration at his company: An electric vehicle capable of accessing AC or DC power across a variety of voltage levels in a wired or wireless environment provides a new level of interoperability that is not currently available. “.
With effect on IRVE: ” It could fundamentally change the way we think about charging infrastructure and expand the charging options available to drivers today and in the future. “.
The company notes that its innovation could be of particular interest to Tesla, which does not want to switch to 800 V on its superchargers. CEO Don Curry said there would be no need to redesign the vehicle lines “to enable faster, higher voltage charging.”
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