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LEM has launched the new SMU family of sensors, designed to bring cutting-edge performance to electric vehicle (EV) battery management systems (BMS). These sensors are optimized for Full Hybrid Electric Vehicles (FHEVs), Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs), and Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs). The SMU continuously monitors crucial parameters such as battery performance and safety, improving both the driving range and operational safety of EVs. It also ensures compliance with regulatory standards. By offering highly accurate State of Charge (SOC) estimation, this sensor helps prolong battery life and boosts energy efficiency, making it a game-changer for BMS designers.
Key Highlights:
- Compact Design: The SMU measures just 29.1mm (H) x 35.5mm (W) x 49.9mm (L), ensuring that EVs can maintain a lightweight profile and maximize driving range.
- Accurate SOC Estimation: Precision in determining battery charge helps optimize performance, extend battery life, and prevent unexpected power loss.
- Advanced Technology: Built with Hall effect sensor technology, the SMU uses the LEM9 ASIC to ensure top-tier performance, especially in harsh environments.
- High Current Range: Handles currents up to +/-1500A, ideal for BMS applications.
- Safety and Diagnostics: Features include end-to-end protection, diagnostic warnings, and a built-in algorithm to correct magnetic offset errors, ensuring reliable operation even in extreme conditions.
- Functional Safety: Complies with Automotive Safety Integrity Level (ASIL) standards, offering ASIL B readiness with potential upgrades to ASIL C for higher safety risks.
The SMU family is designed for the evolving needs of the EV industry, where efficiency, safety, and compact design are critical. By incorporating LEM’s advanced sensor technology, this product addresses the industry’s demands for more accurate SOC estimation and enhanced safety mechanisms.
The SMU sensor also stands out with its digital calibration, ensuring end-to-end (E2E) protection. It features advanced software algorithms that correct data inaccuracies caused by mechanical stresses, achieving an accuracy of up to 1% at 1300A and <1.7% at 1500A. Additionally, the sensor’s safe state mode prevents malfunctions by automatically addressing temperature errors, sensitivity drift, and memory issues.
Another key advantage of the SMU sensor is its robust isolation capabilities, which enable it to withstand voltage differences greater than 800V. This feature significantly improves safety and minimizes the risk of electrical interference or component damage.
Unlike competing products, the SMU family is compliant with ISO 26262 standards for functional safety, ensuring that it meets ASIL requirements. The initial release is ASIL B ready, with the potential for future upgrades to ASIL C for applications requiring higher safety levels.
LEM’s Global Product Manager, Jérémie Piro, emphasized the importance of accurate SOC estimation for EVs, stating: “It’s widely understood that the EV industry is continually looking to maximize driving range. BMS designers will welcome a new sensor that is not just compact but also ensures accurate SOC estimation.”
Through innovations like the SMU family, LEM continues to lead in the field of electrical measurement solutions, helping to drive the EV industry forward toward greater efficiency and safety.
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