Hillcrest is trading control for reach, licensing ZVS to Equipmake to tap a ready-made manufacturing and sales operation
Hillcrest Energy Technologies has signed its first definitive licensing deal to co-develop an 800-volt traction inverter with UK drivetrain maker Equipmake for heavy trucks, buses and off-highway machinery. If the unit passes acceptance tests, Equipmake gains exclusive rights to build and sell it in those segments and pays Hillcrest royalties.
The design rests on zero voltage switching (ZVS), Hillcrest’s method for curbing energy losses, electrical noise and voltage spikes. Over long, high-power duty cycles, those losses bear directly on range, battery size and running costs.
Hillcrest says a ZVS inverter converted 99.7% of input power at peak in tests at automaker and tier one supplier sites, while bench trials cut motor-terminal voltage overshoot by over 90%. Heavy-duty trials must now confirm them.
Work begins once a technical specification is agreed, within six months, and runs through two prototype stages. Exclusivity is worldwide for six years after final acceptance, renewing while sales targets are met, and royalties start only with commercial sales.
In a statement, Ian Foley, Founder and Chief Executive of Equipmake, said: “Our customers need drivetrains that are efficient, durable and cost-effective over long duty cycles. Hillcrest’s ZVS technology has the potential to improve on all three. Integrating it into our inverter platform, with exclusive rights in our core markets, positions us to offer that advantage to our existing customers and to win new ones.”
Source: Hillcrest Energy Technologies
Source: www.automotiveworld.com
