BorgWarner EV Drive Module Claims Next Step For Powertrains

Paul Myles

TU-Editor

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24th January 2019

World renowned transmission specialist BorgWarner claims to have developed a new drive module that will take EV powertrains to the next step in efficiency.

Its fully integrated drive module (iDM) features specially unique power electronics and will become part of a family available in three different versions (iDM XS, iDM S, iDM M). It claims to be easy to integrate either at the front or the rear axle of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles depending on the architecture and the application.

The system will also be suitable for P4 hybrid vehicles, where the motor is located at the rear axle of the front-wheel-drive vehicle and employs the company’s bar wound stator solution to form “a scalable compact package”. In addition to its size, the company claims it boasts “full software functionality with an option for the high-level control of vehicle dynamics and energy management”. To handle the volume of data exchange in today’s vehicle systems, the system’s electronics can be used with a CAN or a CAN FD bus. Operating at 250 to 450 volts of direct current, the iDM claims torque and power densities ranging from 90 kW to 160 kW and 2,500 Nm to 3,800 Nm.

Dr Stefan Demmerle, president and general manager of BorgWarner PowerDrive Systems, said: “With the iDM, BorgWarner delivers a product family of highly integrated propulsion solutions to drive our customers’ hybrid and electric vehicles. At the same time, we are strengthening our position as the supplier of choice for hybrid and pure electric propulsion solutions. We deliver key elements for electric vehicles: the electric motor, the transmission, the power electronics and the thermal management system.”

— Paul Myles is a seasoned automotive journalist based in London. Follow him on Twitter @Paulmyles_