Ramping Up Power Electronics For EVs


The rapid acceleration of the power devices used in electric vehicles (EVs) is challenging chipmakers to adequately screen the ICs that power these vehicles.[1] While progress toward autonomous driving is grabbing the public’s attention, the electrification of transportation systems is progressing quietly. For the automotive industry, this shift involves a mix of electronic components. Amo... » read more

3 Key Automotive Technology Advances To Watch


What we’ve been witnessing in the past few years—particularly with automakers and Tier 1 suppliers investing in software-defined vehicle development—means the automotive industry will grow tremendously both upward in the total number of vehicles as well as horizontally with different innovations in the space coming to fruition. The only way forward is for technology firms and automakers t... » read more

Brrraaap: Full Throttle On Dirt Bike Electrification


On a dirt bike almost any terrain is fair game. Once you hit the back roads, course correcting through open fields or wooded areas to get where you’re going (or not) is easy. These powerful-yet-agile gravel-and-dirt surfing, rock-hopping machines have been identified by some as the undisputed off-road champions — perfect for exploration in places larger vehicles simply can’t go. Dirt b... » read more

Formula 1: Riding The Sustainability Wave To Full Electrification


Ferdinand Porsche once said, "The perfect race car crosses the finish line 1st and then crumbles into its individual parts." What a take, right? Well, in the 90s, that's the best they could hope for. Let's go back to the 1990s of Formula 1 (F1). The time was marked by extreme competition among racing teams. There was more freedom in the engine you could run, meaning that teams could choose b... » read more

Long-Haul Trucking With Fewer Drivers


The trucking industry is betting heavily on increasing levels of autonomy and electrification to reduce the cost of moving goods and to overcome persistent problems. The economics of autonomous driving are compelling, not least of which is an almost perpetual shortage of qualified drivers. But there also are a number of technical hurdles to making this work. On top of the challenges facing t... » read more

Automotive Innovations In Semiconductors


By Jeff Barnum, Janay Camp, and Cathy Perry Sullivan The semiconductor industry performed better than expected in 2020 despite the impact of COVID-19 on the global economy and is preparing for accelerated growth in 2021 and beyond. The global coronavirus pandemic significantly increased demand for communications electronics and fueled the growth in cloud computing to support remote work and ... » read more

Problems In The Power Grid


The gap is widening between power availability and peak demand. Ritesh Tyagi, head of innovation and growth strategy at Infineon Technologies, talks about what needs to be done to fix the power grid, particularly as more cars are electrified and more electronic devices are mobile. While there currently is a surplus in power being generated on a macro level in the United States, for example, it�... » read more

Simulation-driven EV Battery Pack Design And Manufacturing In The Decade Of Vehicle Electrification


In the last decade, the electric vehicle (EV) industry has grown tremendously from just few offerings to today, when every automaker is working to electrify its vehicle portfolio. A lion’s share of this growth can be attributed to the advancements in lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery technology. Since 2010, Li-ion battery costs have come down by 87% [1] and energy density has tripled [2]. Automake... » read more

Adjusting The Finish Line In Auto Electronics


There are two big hurdles in automotive electronics. One is developing autonomous vehicles, and the other is the electrification of those vehicles. In both cases, the development time may be a lot longer and more costly than anyone expected, and the impact may be much more far-reaching than the initial effort would suggest. For automakers, the key question in all of this is how they will dif... » read more

Automotive Trends Create New Challenges For Wiring Harness Development


The rapid introduction of new technologies and the influx of automotive start-ups into the market has led to a multitude of challenges for harness development. OEMs and startups alike must consider the number and sophistication of technology features they integrate into their vehicles as they have a direct effect on harness weight, bundle diameter, and cost. Electrification, autonomous drive an... » read more

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