The electric motor is more than 150 years old.

Siemens is now redesigning it from the ground

up for use in electric vehicles. The companys focus is on increased power.
It sounds like an inventors dream: A motor that converts nearly 100 percent of energy input into
motion, accelerates a vehicle smoothly and evenly, and is so compact that it doesnt require an engine
compartment but is instead mounted on an axle or wheel. This is no dream, however; its already close
to reality in cars powered by electric motors rather than internal combustion engines.
Perfect Drive System
Electric motors are the perfect drive system, says Dr. Karsten Michels, Head of Development at the
Siemens Inside e-Car unit. Nevertheless, developing electric motors is not straightforward. Although
Siemens has been building electric motors for around 150 years now, its simply not possible to pick
an industrial motor off the shelf and install it in a production car. Automakers are very demanding, and
the motors have to be suitable for installation in tens of thousands of vehicles by a highly automated
process. Such motors need to have a high output yet weigh as little as possible. They also have to
operate as efficiently as possible and function properly even during extreme temperature fluctuations.
Determining which development goal should be given top priority depends on an automakers unique
mix of requirements. Just as there are gasoline and diesel engines, there are also many variations of
electric motors. Almost every electric motor used in vehicles today is either an electrically excited
asynchronous machine or a permanently excited synchronous motor. An asynchronous machine is
around 1015 percent heavier and larger than a synchronous motor with the same output, and its
power density is lower. Nevertheless, it does offer a strategic advantage in that it doesnt require
permanent magnets because the flow of current itself creates a magnetic field. The lack of permanent
magnets eliminates the need for rare earth metals such as neodymium. As a result, companies that
manufacture asynchronous machines dont have to rely on China, the main supplier of rare earth
metals, and they also dont need to worry about sharply rising prices for key materials.

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A characteristic feature of asynchronous machines is that their torque diminishes more strongly at
higher rotation speeds than is the case with synchronous motors. The main objective with regard to
future asynchronous machines is to further increase their power density. For example, researchers are
working on using new sheet metal with improved magnetic and mechanical properties, and on
optimizing cooling systems. Unlike a combustion engine, an electric motor has a maximum output
thats much higher than its average output. For example, a 50-kilowatt motor can easily produce 120
kilowatts of power for a short time. The length of time this electric turbo feature can remain on
depends mostly on the type of cooling system used.
Close to 97 Percent Efficiency
Todays electric motors are surrounded by a water jacket. A better cooling approach would be to
extract additional heat directly from the inside of the motor. But the idea of snaking water lines through
a rotating electric machine isnt as risky as it sounds. Motors that weve put on our test rig show that
this can be done in electric vehicles, says Michels. Asynchronous machines would benefit from this
approach because heat losses are higher in their current-carrying rotors.
Theres no doubt that permanently excited synchronous motors are the best-performing electric
machines. They are already close to achieving efficiencies of 97 percent. In a synchronous motor, the
rotor always moves precisely in line with the magnetic field created by the stator, which means theres
no slip. Their electric losses are also lower than those of asynchronous machines. Development
engineers are therefore very interested in them if they can minimize their use of rare earth metals. One
way of achieving this would be to utilize a hybrid motor that operates like a permanent magnet under
partial load but can also cover higher output requirements using separate excitation of the magnetic
field.

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The team at Inside e-Car is not only looking to develop new motor concepts but also to optimize the
overall drive system. The objective is to carry out customer projects by adapting proven industrial drive
system technology to the requirements of automobiles. This applies especially to the inverter, which

converts direct current from the battery into the alternating current the electric motor runs on. The
inverter also makes it possible to store the electricity from braking energy that the electric motor
produces when operating in the generator mode. Here, the difference in requirements between
industrial and automotive applications is even greater than it is with motors, says Michels.

The heavy batteries in electric cars make every extra kilo and liter an issue.
For one thing, the heavy batteries in electric cars make every kilo of weight and every liter of volume a
major issue. An automotive inverters service life of around 8,000 hours is lower than in industry, but
the inverter also has to withstand both bitter cold temperatures and extreme heat. Industrial inverters
are often air cooled, but the power density needed for an automotive application can only be achieved
with water cooling. Industrial inverters are nevertheless a good foundation for us to build on,
especially in terms of control accuracy and overall precision, Michels explains. We can also utilize
the broad range of motor-control expertise Siemens has accumulated over many years with the
regulation of multi-axis machine tools.
Inductive Battery Charging
Inside e-Car will use other new ideas in future projects. For example, its now working on wireless
solutions for inductive battery charging like those used today with electric toothbrushes. The
foundation for these solutions was developed by CT, which passed the technology on to Inside e-Car
after success-fully testing it. Power electronics and electric motors will also merge in the future to
create compact motor/drive system units. There are many options here, and were looking at all of
them, says Michels.
Anything that makes electric drives lighter, more efficient, and more comfortable can speed up the
market success of electric cars. According to International Energy Agency forecasts, more than 120
million vehicles will be manufactured in 2030, and half of them will be electric models. That would
correspond to a global market volume of at least 60 million electric motors, although many vehicles will
actually be equipped with more than one drive system motor.
Johannes Winterhagen