Texas Instruments (TI) has maximized the driving range of hybrid and electric vehicles by reducing the size of power solutions by half through easy-to-use bias power modules.

TI held an online press conference on the 30th and announced the launch of the industry's smallest and most accurate 1.5W isolated DC/DC bias supply module.

The newly announced UCC14240-Q1 uses TI's proprietary integrated transformer technology that enables designers to reduce the size of power solutions by half for use in high-voltage environments such as electric vehicles (EVs), hybrid EVs, motor drive systems, and grid-tie inverters.

The UCC14240-Q1 offers advantages in size and efficiency, and can increase the driving range of electric vehicles by increasing power density and system efficiency. Additionally, with a height of 3.5 mm and a small footprint, it can reduce the volume of the power solution by up to 50%, allowing it to deliver higher power in half the size. Its low height provides engineers with the flexibility to place modules on both sides of a printed circuit board (PCB).

In addition, it achieves 60% efficiency, which is double that of conventional bias supply, doubling power density and extending vehicle driving range. Furthermore, since it can provide more than 1.5W at a temperature of 105°C, the UCC14240-Q1 enables engineers to drive insulated gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs), silicon carbide (SiC), and gallium nitride (GaN) switches at high frequencies.

In addition, TI’s proprietary integrated transformer technology with 3.5pF primary-to-secondary capacitance is applied to mitigate EMI generated by high-speed switching and easily achieve common-mode transient immunity (CMTI) performance of over 150V/ns.

In addition, it features characteristics such as soft switching, spread spectrum modulation, shielding, and low parasitic activity, which allows designers to more easily meet the electromagnetic compatibility requirements of CISPR 25 and CISPR 32 and shorten time-to-market.

Regarding temperature and insulation, it maintains ±1.0% accuracy over a temperature range of -40°C to 150°C, including closed-loop control. The device's strict tolerances allow for the use of smaller power switches while enhancing overcurrent protection. Furthermore, it includes various protection functions such as fault monitoring, overcurrent protection, overpower protection, and overheating protection. In addition, the UCC14240-Q1 provides 3kVrms insulation performance certified by an external agency and features industry-leading vibration immunity with an ultra-low weight and a height of 3.5mm.

Meanwhile, as the electric vehicle market accelerates rapidly, vehicle design engineers are seeking ways to reduce the weight of the powertrain, the heaviest component of an electric vehicle, while increasing efficiency and reliability.

As smaller and more reliable systems are required to increase the driving range of electric vehicles, there is a transition to distributed power architectures where all isolated gate drivers are equipped with their own bias supplies.

This architecture improves the way the system responds to a single point of failure (SPOF), ensuring that even if a fault occurs in one bias supply, the other bias power supplies continue to operate—just like their paired gate drivers—helping the vehicle continue to drive safely.