Basic Architecture

of
Electric Drive Trains
The topics covered are as follows:

 Electric Vehicle (EV) Configuration

 EV alternatives based on drivetrains

 EV alternatives based on power source configuration

 Single and Multi-motor drives

 In wheel drives
Electric Vehicle (EV) Configurations:
Compared to HEV, the configuration of EV is flexible. The
reasons for this flexibility are:

 The energy flow in EV is mainly via flexible electrical wires

rather than bolted flanges or rigid shafts. Hence, distributed
subsystems in the EV are really achievable.

 The EVs allow different propulsion arrangements such as

independent four wheels and in wheel drives.
In Figure the general configuration of the EV is shown. The EV has
three major subsystems:

 Electric propulsion  Energy source  Auxiliary system

The electric propulsion subsystem comprises of:
 The electronic controller
 Power converter
 Electric Motor (EM)
 Mechanical transmission
 Driving wheels
The energy source subsystem consists of:
 The energy source (battery, fuel cell, ultracapacitor)
 Energy management unit
 Energy refueling unit
The auxiliary subsystem consists of:
 Power steering unit
 Temperature control unit
 Auxiliary power supply
 In Figure the black line represents the mechanical link, the green line
represents the electrical link and the blue line represents the control
information communication.

 Based on the control inputs from the brake and accelerator pedals, the
electronic controller provides proper control signals to switch on or off
the power converter which in turn regulates the power flow between the
electric motor and the energy source.

 The backward power flow is due to regenerative braking of the EV and

this regenerative energy can be stored provided the energy source is
receptive.

 The energy management unit cooperates with the electronic controller

to control regenerative braking and its energy recovery.

 It also works with the energy-refueling unit to control refueling and to

monitor usability of the energy source.

 The auxiliary power supply provides the necessary power with different
voltage levels for all EV auxiliaries, especially the temperature control
and power steering units.
In modern EV’s configuration:
 Three phase motors are generally used to provide the traction
force

 The power converter is a three-phase PWM (Pulse Width

Modulation) inverter

 Mechanical transmission is based on fixed gearing and a

differential

 Li-ion battery is typically selected as the energy source

Electric Vehicle (EV) Drivetrain Alternatives Based on Drivetrain
Configuration:

There are many possible EV configurations due the variations in

electric propulsion and energy sources. Based on these variations,
six alternatives are possible as shown in Figure (next slide). These
six alternatives are

 In Figure (a) a single EM configuration with gearbox (GB) and a

clutch is shown. It consists of an EM, a clutch (C), a gearbox, and a
differential (D).

 The clutch enables the connection or disconnection of power

flow from EM to the wheels.

 The gear consists of a set of gears with different gear ratios.

 With the use of clutch and gearbox, the driver can shift the gear
ratios and hence the torque going to the wheels can be changed.

 The wheels have high torque low speed in the lower gears and
high-speed low torque in the higher gears.
In Figure (b) a single EM configuration without the gearbox and the
clutch is shown. The advantage of this configuration is that the
weight of the transmission is reduced. However, this configuration
demands a more complex control of the EM to provide the
necessary torque to the wheels.

Figure (c) shows a configuration of EV using one EM. It is a

transverse front EM front wheel drive configuration. It has a fixed
gearing and differential and they are integrated into a single
assembly.

In Figure (d) a dual motor configuration is shown. In this

configuration the differential action of an EV when cornering can
be electronically provided by two electric motors.
In order to shorten the mechanical transmission path from the EM
to the driving wheel, the EM can be placed inside a wheel. This
configuration is called in-wheel drive. Figure (e) shows this
configuration in which fixed planetary gearing is employed to
reduce the motor speed to the desired wheel speed.

In Figure (f) an EV configuration without any mechanical gearing

is shown. By fully abandoning any mechanical gearing, the in-
wheel drive can be realized by installing a low speed outer-rotor
electric motor inside a wheel.
Electric Vehicle (EV) Drivetrain Alternatives Based on Power
Source Configuration:

Besides the variations in electric propulsion, there are other

EV configurations due to variations in energy sources. There are
five configurations possible and they are:

Configuration 1: It is a simple battery powered configuration,

Figure (a). The battery may be distributed around the vehicle,
packed together at the vehicle back or located beneath the
vehicle chassis. The battery in this case should have reasonable
specific energy and specific power and should be able to accept
regenerative energy during braking. In case of EVs, the battery
should have both high specific energy and specific power
because high specific power governs the driving range while the
high power density governs the acceleration rate and hill
climbing capability.
Configuration 2: Instead of two batteries, this design uses two
different batteries, Figure (b). One battery is optimized for high
specific energy and the other for high specific power.

Configuration 3: In this arrangement fuel cell is used, Figure (c).

The battery is an energy storage device, whereas the fuel cell
is an energy generation device. The operation principle of fuel
cells is a reverse process of electrolysis. In reverse and
electrolysis, hydrogen and oxygen gases combine to form
electricity and water. The hydrogen gas used by the fuel cell
can be stored in an on-board tank whereas oxygen gas is
extracted from air. Since fuel cell can offer high specific energy
but cannot accept regenerative energy, it is preferable to
combine it with battery with high specific power and high-
energy receptivity.
Configuration 4: Rather than storing it as a compressed gas, a
liquid or a metal hydride, hydrogen can be can be generated on-
board using liquid fuels such as methanol, Figure (d). In this
case a mini reformer is installed in the EV to produce necessary
hydrogen gas for the fuel cell.

Configuration 5: In fuel cell and battery combination, the battery

is selected to provide high specific power and high-energy
receptivity. In this configuration a battery and supercapacitor
combination is used as an energy source, Figure (e). The battery
used in this configuration is a high energy density device
whereas the supercapacitor provides high specific power and
energy receptivity. Usually, the supercapacitors are of relatively
low voltage levels, an additional dc-dc power converter is
needed to interface between the battery and capacitor
terminals.
Single and Multi-motor Drives:
A differential is a standard component for conventional vehicles.
When a vehicle is rounding a curved road, the outer wheel needs to
travel on a larger radius than the inner wheel.
Thus, the differential adjusts the relative speeds of the wheels. If
relative speeds of the wheels are not adjusted, then the wheels will slip
and result in tire wear, steering difficulties and poor road holding.
In case of EVs, it is possible to dispense the mechanical differential
by using two or even four EMs. With the use of multiple EMs, each wheel
can be coupled to an EM and this will enable independent control of
speed of each wheel in such a way that the differential action can be
electronically achieved. In Figure, a typical dual motor drive with an
electronic differential is shown.
In Wheel Drives :
By placing an electric motor inside
the wheel, the in wheel motor has the
advantage that the mechanical
transmission path between the electric
motor and the wheel can be minimized.
Two possible configurations for in
wheel drives are:

 When a high-speed inner-rotor motor

is used (Figure) then a fixed speed-
reduction gear becomes necessary to
attain a realistic wheel speed. In
general, speed reduction is achieved
using a planetary gear set. This
planetary gear is mounted between the
motor shaft and the wheel rim. Usually
this motor is designed to operate up to
1000 rpm so as to give high power
density.
 In case outer rotor motor is used (Figure 6b), then the
transmission can be totally removed and the outer rotor acts as
the wheel rim and the motor speed is equivalent to the wheel
speed and no gears are required.
The tradeoffs of the high-speed inner rotor motor are:

 It has the advantage of smaller size, lighter weight and lower

cost

 Needs additional planetary gearset

The tradeoffs of outer-rotor motor are:

 Low speed and hence does not need additional gears

 The drawbacks are larger size, weight and cost because of

the low speed design.
Considerations of EMs used in EVs
The requirements of EMs used in EVs are:

 Frequent start/stop

 High rate of acceleration and deceleration

 High torque low speed hill climbing

 Low torque cruising

 Very wide speed range of operation

The EMs for EVs are unique and their major differences with
respect to industrial motors in load requirement, performance
specification and operating environment are as follows:

 EV motors need to produce the maximum torque that is four to

five times of the rated torque for acceleration and hill climbing,
while industrial motors generally offer the maximum torque that
is twice of the rated torque for overload operation
 EV motors need to achieve four to five times the base speed
for highway cruising, while industrial motors generally achieve
up to twice the base speed for constant power operation
 EV motors require high power density as well as good
efficiency map (high efficiency over wide speed and torque
ranges), while industrial motors are generally optimized to give
high efficiency at a rated point.
 EV motors need to be installed in mobile vehicles with harsh
operating conditions such as high temperature, bad weather and
frequent vibration, while industrial motors are generally located
in fixed places.
Thanks…