iliary resonant switches and
the main working switches for
each phase leg. Adjustments
are made on a cycle-by-cycle
basis.
When a switch turns from
on to off, it changes from hav-
ing a low voltage and high cur-
rent to having no current and
high voltage (and vice versa
when the switch turns on). In
hard-switching, there’s always
a brief overlap in voltage and
current waveforms that occurs
when one is rising and the oth-
er falling. This overlap is the
cause of switching losses. With
its AI algorithms, Pre-Switch
offsets the voltage and current
transitions to eliminate the
overlap, and thus eliminate the
switching losses. By adjust-
ing the timing of the auxil-
iary resonant switches in this
manner, Pre-Switch’s solution
eliminates up to 95 percent of
all switching losses.
Though originally designed
for insulated-gate bipolar
transistors (IGBTs), Pre-Switch
can be implemented no matter
the underlying switch technol-
ogy. “We’re device-agnostic,”
Renouard said. “We have a
different algorithm for silicon
carbide and a different algo-
rithm for IGBTs.”
Improving motor efficiency
By reducing switching losses as
drastically as it does, Pre-Switch
enables inverters to operate at
a higher switching frequency.
With hard-switching, the more
often you switch, the more
power you lose to switching
losses. But with that concern
eliminated, pre-switched invert-
The stage of the load cycle, potential, local concentration,
temperature, and direction of the current all affect the
aging and degradation of a battery cell. This is important to
consider when developing autonomous vehicles (AVs), which
rely on a large number of electronic components to function.
When designing long-lasting batteries that are powerful
enough to keep up with energy demands, engineers can turn
to simulation.The COMSOL Multiphysics® software is used for simulating
designs, devices, and processes in all fields of engineering,
manufacturing, and scientific research. See how you can
apply it to optimizing battery designs for self-driving cars.Autonomous vehicles require
batteries with lasting power.
comsol.blog/autonomous-vehicle-batteriesVisualization of the
temperature profile in a liquid-
cooled Li-ion battery pack.