Electric Vehicle Testing
Advancing the Future of E-mobility
What does the future hold for electric vehicles? How can the electric drive train be optimized? Are more powerful batteries and rapid charging solutions the key to the further development of electric mobility? Ultimately, the battery has a decisive effect on the vehicle's range and costs. How can the weight of vehicle components be optimized? These questions can only be answered by performing tests and measurement in the development of electrically operated vehicles. imc offers the ideal measurement solutions in order to do this.
Whitepaper Download
E-Mobility: Challenges for data acquisition technology
Innovative solutions for hybrid and electric vehicle testing
With its high-voltage measurement modules, highl isolation in the kV range, current measurement technology, test stands, mobile data acquisition systems and data analysis software, imc offers a broad portfolio to meet the challenges of measurement tasks in the field of electromobility. Whether the task is to measure electric motors, batteries, fuel cells or connectors and charging stations – profit from our expertise and learn more about high-voltage measurement technology solutions from imc.
What’s your measurement task?
Temperature measurement in HV environments (thermocouples, RTD sensors)
Voltage measurement in HV environments (battery cells, HV batteries, power bus, DC link)
Current measurement in HV environments (current transducers, clamps, sensor supply)
Determine efficiency / power analysis (electrical and mechanical)
Test electric motors (drive motor, small motors)
Test the conformity of vehicle electrical systems (certification measurement for LV124, etc.)
Wide range current measurement (ECUs, components)
NVH Measurement (body, chassis, powertrain)
Testing driving dynamics (measurement wheels for highly dynamic electric vehicles)
Measurement instrumentation for HV environments (HV accessories)
Temperature measurement in HV environments
Temperature measurement is carried out on a wide variety of components in the development of hybrid and electric vehicles. Applications range from the battery, connectors and power electronics through to measurements performed on the electric motor. Many of the measuring points have high potentials and must be robust in terms of EMC and ESD. imc offers both classic HV thermal measurement modules as well as innovative fiber-optic technology solutions.
High isolation measurement modules in the imc CANSASfit, CANSASflex and CANSAS-FBG series
Thermocouples at 1400 V potential
imc CANSASflex-HISO-T-8-2L
- 2 x LEMO.2P as common socket (4 channels at each 8-pin socket)
- Common mode voltage levels of up to 1400 V
- Per-channel isolated measurement inputs, individual filtering and ADCs
- Channel individual internal cold junction compensation
Thermocouples at 1000 V potential
imc CANSASfit-HISO-T-8-2L
- 8 thermocouples (type K)
- Multi channel plugs
- Common mode voltage level of up to 1000 V
PT100/PT1000 sensors at 1000 V potential
imc CANSASfit-HISO-UT-6-3L
- 6 x voltage, PT100 / PT1000, resistance, acceleration
- Multi channel plugs
- HV common mode levels of up to 1000 V.
Voltage measurement in HV environments
Whether low-voltage signals or voltage measurement in a high-voltage circuit, when measuring in a high voltage environment it is necessary to have high isolation measurement technology and the corresponding safety measures. Even when measurements are being made on components that are not directly carrying voltage, such as charging plugs, power semiconductors, etc., complete safety for measuring equipment and personnel must always be guaranteed in the event of an accident. With its HV measurement modules and high-voltage isolation in the kV range, imc allows safe measurements on HV components. The modules comply with the device safety standard EN 61010 and are isolated up to 1000 V CAT II.
Small Signals on HV Potential
Voltages up to 100 V at 800 V potential
imc CANSASflex-HISO8-L
- 8 voltages, PT100/PT1000, resistance, 20 mA
- Single channel plugs LEMO.1P
- HV common mode voltage level up to 800 V
- 1kHz sampling rate
Voltages up to 100 V at 1000 V potential
imc CANSASfit-HISO-UT-6-3L
- 6 voltages, PT100/PT1000,
Resistance, acceleration - Multi channel plugs LEMO.2P
- HV common mode levels up to 1000 V.
- 1kHz sampling rate
Voltages up to 100 V at 800 V potential
imc CRONOSflex-HISO-8
- 8 voltages, PT100/PT1000, resistance, 20 mA
- Single channel plugs LEMO
- HV common mode voltage level up to 800 V
- 100 kHz sampling rate
High Voltage
Voltages up to 800 V
imc CANSASflex-HV4
- 4 voltages up to 800 V
- measurement category 300 V CAT II
- Banana plugs
- 1kHz sampling rate
Voltages up to 1500 V
imc CANSASfit HISO-HV-4
- 4 voltages up to 1500 V
- measurement category 1000 V CAT II
- Banana plugs
- 1kHz sampling rate
Voltages up to 1000 V rms
imc CRONOSflex-HV2-4U
- 4 voltages up to 1000 V rms
- Measurement category 300 V CAT II
- Banana plugs
- 100 kHz sampling rate
Current measurement
Whether for power measurement, consumption assessment or investigation of charging processes: when testing hybrid and electric vehicles, highly accurate current measurement is often required. With imc CRONOSflex you have a comprehensive solution at your disposal. The modular concept can be adapted to a wide variety of tasks and numbers of channels. Isolated measurement amplifiers compatible with current probes, current transducers and shunts ensure precise results. And with the "CRFX/SEN-SUPPLY-4" supply module, fluxgate current probes and transducers be powered directly from the measuring system. This simplifies the measurement setup, especially in mobile use. We also offer a selection of well suited high-precision current transducers especially for e-mobility tests.
Measure power & determine efficiency
Power measurement in electric vehicles
With the HV measurement modules from imc, voltages of up to 1000 V can be measured directly. Furthermore, there are inputs for current probes, Rogowski coils and also for measurement shunts. A 1-, 2- or 3-phase power calculation is performed online within the logging system, including effective power, apparent power, reactive power and power factor.
Telemetric mechanical power measurement
The power transmitted in real driving conditions is an important parameter to quantify the efficiency of drive trains. The drive power is calculated from the torque and rpm of the shaft. For this purpose, imc offers an innovative and robust measurement solution: the system combines telemetry electronics, MEMS-based speed sensors and inductive power supply in an easily assembled shaft housing. The system calculates the power online from torque and rpm, and outputs it as an additional result variable.s.
Testing electric motors
»Electric motors ubiquitous in modern vehicle engineering. Besides their application in drive designs for electric and hybrid vehicles, electric motors also play an important role in safety systems, driving assistance and vehicle comfort components. In order to achieve the best possible results and guarantee the highest quality, comprehensive motor diagnostics are required in development and series production.
imc has already implemented test stands to cover the entire electromotive drive train (motor, inverter and battery) in development and tests under climatic ambient conditions. In various applications 100 kW drive power and associated components have been safely and precisely controlled and tested using imc measurement and control technology.
imc has been supporting developers and manufacturers of motors for over 30 years with test stands for development, components, service life and end-of-lines.
Together with its partner imx Solutions GmbH, imc has been supporting developers and manufacturers of engines for over 30 years with development, component, service life and end-of-line test benches.
More information about electric motor testing at our partner imx Solutions GmbH »
LV test system (certification measurement according to LV124, LV123, LV148)
Test automotive components for vehicle electrical systems conformity
Automobiles in general, and electric vehicles and hybrids in particular, are complex networked systems consisting of ECU control units, sensors and actuators with power and data lines running to kilometres in length. Reliable operation of such systems requires extensive testing of all possible events that may occur in the life of the vehicle at a later time. All electrical components therefore must undergo extensive certification. As a specialist in measurement and testing technology, imc is your reliable partner when it comes to analyzing automotive components according to international standards, as well as manufacturer-specific test specifications.
Important standards such as LV 124 and LV 148 in 12V and 48V electrical systems, LV 123 in the high-voltage network and many others, are standards that imc reliably masters in test environments and test stands.
More about testing automotive components for vehicle electrical systems conformity
Wide range current measurement
Modern hybrid and electric vehicles use complex power management in order to precisely control and optimize energy flows. In addition to the electric drive, infotainment systems, actuators and ECU control units must also be supplied – even when the vehicle is stationary. It is therefore important – especially for optimizing vehicle range – to carry out comprehensive assessments of energy flows and power consumptions within the vehicle electrical system. Extreme dynamics between idle and operating currents require very wide measuring ranges in order to analyse power under all operating scenarios.
The imc CANSAS-IHR measurement module is a CAN-based wide-range current sensor that enables high-precision, uninterrupted measurement of current sequences from 50 nA to 50 A. This makes it possible, for example, to record and analyze transitions between idle ("sleep mode") and operating states in automotive components, ECUs and subsystems without interruption, in one single continuous measurement. Two measurement shunts with different dimensions account for the high range dynamics (HR = High Resolution). They are dynamically switched in an auto-ranging process depending on the actual level of the current.
What does the electric vehicle of the future sound like?
For decades, drive trains and auxiliary units in vehicles with combustion engines have been optimized with regard to NVH (Noise, Vibration, Harshness). Electrification is a major challenge here. The lack of masking combustion engine noise reveals new types of noise that vehicle developers did not have to deal with beforehand. The removal of background noises or disturbing vibrations is the main area of activity and will remain the focus of acoustics development. It is also important to meet the legal requirements accordingly.
New acoustically relevant phenomena from different electric motor concepts to the mapping of magnetostriction and the vibration issues arising from electronic components such as coils or capacitors in power electronics are the issues of acoustics development.
High performance measurement wheels for e-vehicles
Due to the extreme acceleration capability of the electric drive, new electric vehicle concepts are extending driving dynamics to levels that were previously unheard of. The resulting increased loads and stress must of course be evaluated in the development process, which poses completely new challenges for the performance of measurement equipment.
The measurement wheels used in this area must be capable of recording increased forces and torques and be robust not only mechanically, but also in terms of electromagnetic interference. The extensive portfolio of telemetric vehicle dynamics sensor systems from imc has been designed and foreseen precisely for this purpose.
Measurement system for wheel brake development in e-vehicles
Due to the recuperation of braking energy in electric vehicles, braking systems are structured differently from those in cars with combustion engines. A large part of the braking energy is fed back into the drive battery. This is why the wheel brakes are applied only for comparatively severe manoeuvres or as a redundant safety system. The imc brake measurement system is a comprehensive test solution and consists of a modular data acquisition system that includes optional sensors and wheel telemetry.
