IGBT Motor Drives in Hybrid & Electric Vehicles

The automotive industry, largest in the world, is fast-growing and diverse, with a wide range in customer preferences for design, comfort and technology. It is well recognized that gasoline power vehicles produce significant urban pollution while consuming a dwindling fossil fuel resource. A solution to this problem is the deployment of electric and hybrid-electric vehicles. The global goals to reduce emissions and fuel consumption, with pioneering efforts in developing electric vehicles (EVs) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), bring significant technology challenges. All hybrid-electric and electric cars that have been introduced into the market so far have relied up on IGBT-based motor drives. In new powertrain generations such as EVs and HEVs, IGBTs play the key role in order to drive the electric motor or store the energy. IGBTs run at very high frequencies and under high power which makes them vulnerable to thermal problems. Thermal characterization helps to optimize the IGBTs layout, structure and mounting to optimize its performance. After all we can say, the availableness of IGBTs has been diametrical to the advancement of the hybrid vehicles and to the expansion of the charging substructure for the electric vehicles. IGBTs will carry on playing a significant part in the availableness of expense reducing technology for the whole hybrid and electric vehicle business.