US IC manufacturer Microchip Technology has released a high-voltage circuit protection board for 400-800 V batteries with a current rating of up to 30 amps for hybrid and electric vehicles.

Due to its high-voltage solid-state architecture and silicon carbide (SiC) technology, the six-variant E-Fuse Demonstrator Board can detect and interrupt fault currents in microseconds, which is 100-500 times quicker than mechanical methods, according to Microchip. The fast response time decreases peak short-circuit currents from tens of kiloamps to hundreds of amps, preventing a fault from causing a hard failure. 

The E-Fuse Demonstrator’s resettable feature allows designers to package an E-Fuse in the vehicle without design-for-serviceability limits. It also reports diagnostic status and features a built-in Local Interconnect Network communication interface for configuring over-current trip characteristics without hardware modifications.

“The E-Fuse demonstrator provides EV OEM designers with a SiC-based technology solution to jumpstart their development process with a faster, more reliable method for protecting power electronics,” said Clayton Pillion, VP of Microchip’s silicon carbide business unit. “The E-Fuse solid-state design also alleviates long-term reliability concerns about electromechanical devices because there is no degradation from mechanical shock, arcing or contact bounce.”

Source: Microchip