With EV rising to the fore as the next sustainable mode of transport, the experts can’t not stop paying attention to the challenges also it brings along. One of the most significant ones that the sector is facing is “safety”. Over the recent months, the EV industry in undergoing lot of deliberations making the authorities & industry thought leaders highlight the need for stronger safety measures and checks on electric vehicles. This has led to a considerable rise in conversations around the options and arrangements of electronic components used in the battery pack of the electric vehicle.
The heart of an EV vehicle is the EV battery pack which comprises of multiple battery cells and a Battery Management System (BMS). The BMS manages rechargeable batteries ensuring that they operate efficiently and safely. Its circuit board, comprising of several electronic components, takes care of the ambient temperatures of the battery pack. This entire mechanism works in a confined space, thus making heat management an important prerequisite and important factor for ensuring vehicle safety.
Hence, taking the recent incidents and technological challenges into consideration, it is imperative to improve the cooling mechanisms to address the heat management issues inside the battery pack. One way of doing this is to use superior electronic components that emit lesser heat and thus reducing the number of accessories required to cool the system.
DC Power Relays are used in electric and hybrid four-wheelers extensively and it’s time that the growing EV two-wheeler industry also starts to use them for more applications. It is recognized that the battery space designated for four-wheelers is much bigger than two-wheelers thus, making the DC power relays more suitable for bigger vehicles however, we must also note that DC power relays can also adjust to smaller spaces.
Talking about OMRON’s Automotive DC Power Relays, they offer many advantages that make them the right fit for the EV industry. To share a few:
Compact: 70% lesser volume than conventional solutions such as contractors
Ambient Temperature: Can handle temperatures of up to 85 degrees C
Power Saving: 30% Less Power consumption.
Operating Noise: 50% less operating noise
Gas-cooled arc: High-pressure inert gas filling in the hermetically sealed chamber helps to quench the arc faster and conduct the heat more efficiently due to the high thermal conductivity of the gases.
Magnetic arc control: By using permanent magnets, the arc can be pushed away from the contact due to electromagnetic force based on Fleming’s left-hand rule.
Household electricity storage systems & bidirectional EV charging stations can also be equipped with DC Power Relays to store and encourage the safe exchange of electricity from home to vehicle and vehicle to home. To sum up, the adoption of EVs is being encouraged by the government to safeguard the environment. The need of the hour is to realize which technologies can contribute towards this with safety.
