Toyota, in conjunction with supplier Denso, has developed a new semiconductor for use in hybrid and fuel cell vehicles said to greatly improve efficiency while being smaller in size as compared to current units.
The new silicon carbide (SiC) semiconductors were developed for use in power control units (PCUs), which govern the flow of electricity from the battery to the electric motor and vice versa. They control vehicle speed and also return charge to the batteries during the regenerative braking process.
The traditional array of semiconductors in PCUs is estimated to account for 20 percent of electrical power loss in hybrid vehicles. Using SiC semiconductors, Toyota and Denso were able to improve hybrid fuel efficiency by over five percent during prototype testing, but the companies think they can increase overall hybrid efficiency by 10 percent while reducing the PCU’s size by a whopping 80 percent.
Toyota and Denso began basic research in the 1980s, and as of last year the automaker has dedicated a clean room at its Hirose plant soley for the purpose of SiC semiconductor development.
Toyota is unveiling the technology at the Automotive Engineering Expo in Yokohama, Japan this weekend. Watch the video below for an explanation.
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