Optiphase and Opal-RT collaborate on real-time simulation for 5-phase EV motors

Optiphase Drive Systems and OPAL-RT, a specialist in simulation and hardware-in-the-loop testing, have formed a strategic alliance to offer real-time simulation capabilities for vehicle designers that integrate Optiphase’s 5-phase electric motor and drive system.

Optiphase says it developed its 5-phase electric power and control technologies to overcome the limitations and workarounds inherent to 3-phase systems. “When you look at the research and testing data, 5 phases provide the optimal balance of power and reliability with minimized cost and complexity,” said Siavash Sadeghi, CTO for Optiphase. “Even the most innovative 3-phase systems in the market today still use technology from the last century and require redundancy, stacking, or other workarounds to meet the demanding requirements of advanced vehicles.”

Optiphase designs offer outputs from <5 kW to over +1 MW, specific power in excess of 8 kW/kg, and shaft speeds from 1,000 RPM to over 100,000 RPM.

“This collaboration unlocks greater access for advanced vehicle designers to the groundbreaking advantages of 5-phase electric motor technology,” said Daniel Vicario, CEO of Optiphase.

Source: Optiphase Drive Systems

Source: Electric Vehicles Magazine

Thomas Built Buses delivers its 1,000th electric school bus

US school bus manufacturer Thomas Built Buses, a brand of the Daimler Group, has delivered its 1,000th Saf-T-Liner C2 Jouley battery-electric school bus as part of an order for eight of the buses placed by Meriwether County School System (MCSS) in Georgia.

The new buses are fully funded through the EPA’s Clean School Bus grant program. They are MCSS’s first electric models and will replace some of its current diesel fleet of 46 buses.

The Saf-T-Liner C2 Jouley has a maximum passenger capacity of 81. It delivers 295 peak horsepower, has a standard battery capacity of 244 kWh, and has a range of up to 150 miles.

“Jouley was a natural choice because of the available long-term battery energy, access to fast DC charging and safety-first construction,” said Robert Griffin, MCSS superintendent.

Source: Thomas Built Buses

Source: Electric Vehicles Magazine

Volvo Cars invests in Breathe Battery Technologies fast charging software

Volvo Cars has partnered with UK-based EV charging management software developer Breathe to become the first automaker to access the latest version of its Breathe Charge software, for use in its new generation of electric cars.

Volvo will integrate the software with its own in-house-developed battery management platform to optimize performance and reduce charging times. Based on tests, Volvo says that the time to charge from a 10% to an 80% charging state is reduced by between 15% and 30% across the full life cycle of the battery, without affecting its health status.

Volvo says Breathe’s software uses adaptive charging to control the battery in real time, rather than traditional stepped charging based on predetermined rules, reducing charging times. Algorithms manage the charging process in accordance with battery health and help avoid the risk of harmful lithium plating.

“Faster charging times, in the range where customers typically fast charge, represent a major step in the right direction as we continue to boost electric mobility and make it available to more people,” says Volvo Cars Tech Fund CEO Ann-Sofie Ekberg.

Source: Volvo

Source: Electric Vehicles Magazine