BRUSA Doubles Inductive Charging Power Density
BRUSA Elektronik AG (Switzerland) is best known for its power-electronics solutions for the automotive sector.
Recently BRUSA has started developing the next generation of its Inductive Charging System (ICS). With the increasing capacity of electric-vehicle batteries and given the power-grid characteristics in North America and Asia at 7.2 kW, the ICS 2 will have twice the charging power - with the same footprint the company says. This increase in power density has been achieved due to technology patented by BRUSA. An initial prototype of the second-generation ICS is to be presented publicly in autumn 2014, with a launch date scheduled for 2017.
Development of the first generation also continues. As the power electronics are fully integrated, the BRUSA ICS comprises two components. The two primary and secondary coil housings contain all the AC/DC converters as well as the communications and safety equipment for vehicle positioning and foreign-object detection. This means no external wall box or HF cabling is required "“ a first for inductive charging systems the company believes. BRUSA says it has achieved a power-transfer efficiency of over 90 percent, making it almost "lossless".
Currently, BRUSA is working on making the ICS ready for mass production, with testing also taking place under everyday conditions as part of a small fleet trial.
