The zonal architecture is a key bridge to transitioning light duty vehicles from the current 12V technology base to the future 48V state. OEMs and Tier 1’s face challenges in developing zonal power converters that are electrically efficient, bidirectional, compact, and are capable of effectively powering large loads with instant power draws.

Some of today’s most effective approaches to zonal architecture rely on large fields of discrete power switching components, which take up substantial space on the zonal ECU. This approach has excellent power efficiency, but limited bidirectional power conversion capacity. Additionally, this architecture requires up to 10,000 mm sq of board space and is more complicated to assemble and scale.

A better, alternate approach is one that delivers:
1. high power conversion efficiency
2. compact size, consuming minimal space on the zonal ECU board
3. very high current slew rates

One way to achieve this is using devices or power modules which leverage a soft switching topography and high switching frequencies to create complete DC-DC converters within a minimal footprint and provide power that is easy to scale up or down. The system will also benefit from a module that is symmetrically bidirectional, able to handle the same amount of power in either direction – allowing for an even more efficient system design. These converters also possess the highest current transient rates possible for these applications.

DC-DC modular converters leveraging a Sine Amplitude Conversion (SAC) methodology support the need for efficient, scalable solutions that can handle large current transients while occupying under 400 mm sq. of board space. The modules are designed to provide between 500 and 1000W of power without active cooling due to the thermal design of the innovative packaging of the product. The switching frequency of 1.6 MHz is leveraged to allow current level and direction changes at a slew rate > 8.0 M A/sec, enabling them to power bidirectional loads with the largest current draws. The SAC based modules are also designed for parallel operation, so that the power demands of the zone can scale by adding or subtracting modules for step level increases of power or to build redundancy into the power network.

We will explain how the main features of these converters enable the highest performing power delivery network when applied to an automotive zonal architecture. This top performing architecture is distinguished by:

1. power efficiency
2. symmetrical bidirectional power conversion
3. the industry’s fastest transient rates

There will be examples of multiple devices in an array which show the performance, scalability, and importance of these features. We will also show how the internal controls and overall design result in the installation to the zonal ECU with minimal additional external components that is compact and easier to design.