News: Microelectronics
4 May 2021
EPC9146 400W motor drive demonstration board launched
Efficient Power Conversion Corp (EPC) of El Segundo, CA, USA – which makes enhancement-mode gallium nitride on silicon (eGaN) power field-effect transistors (FETs) and integrated circuits for power management applications – has announced the availability of the EPC9146, a 400W motor drive demonstration. The EPC9146 power board contains three independently controlled half-bridge circuits, featuring the EPC2152 monolithic ePower Stage with integrated gate driver, 80V maximum device voltage, 15A (10ARMS) maximum output current. The inverter board measures just 81mm x 75mm and achieves an efficiency of greater than 98.4% at 400W output power.
The EPC9146 can be paired with individually designed mating boards, allowing the user to control the power board directly through various mainstream microcontroller boards leveraging existing resources for quick development. The EPC9146 can be configured to support multiple applications including three-phase motor drives for robotics, drones, e-bikes, e-scooters, multi-phase interleaving buck converters, and full-bridge converters.
“eGaN FETs and integrated circuits provide the fast switching, small size and low cost needed to further reduce the size and weight of BLDC motors, reduce audible noise, improve torque for faster reaction times, and increase efficiency,” says CEO Alex Lidow. “The EPC9146 is an ideal example of the capabilities of the integrated power stage, EPC2152, to expand the application areas that can take advantage of the design simplification and performance improvements that GaN offers.”
The EPC9146 demonstration board is priced at $326.52 each. The EPC9146KITA, which also includes the microcontroller mating board featuring Microchip’s dsPIC33EP- MC digital signal controller (DSC), is priced at $555.98 each.
