08/03/2019 Mild Hybrid Electric Vehicle (MHEV) – electrical architecture – x-engineer.

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Mild Hybrid Electric Vehicle

(MHEV) – electrical
architecture
In this article (tutorial) we are going to discuss about the  electrical
architecture  of a  mild hybrid electric vehicle (MHEV). By electrical
architecture (also called electrical topology) we understand the high
level overview of the electrical components and the connections
between them.

Before going through this article, for a better understanding of hybrid

electric vehicles (HEVs) in general and MHEVs in particular, read the
following articles:

Understanding micro, mild, full and plug-in hybrid electric

vehicles
Mild Hybrid Electric Vehicle (MHEV) – introduction
Mild Hybrid Electric Vehicle (MHEV) – architectures
Mild Hybrid Electric Vehicle (MHEV) – components
(Continental)

12V electric system architecture

The electrical architecture of a classic 12V (non hybrid) road vehicle
consists mainly of:

a source of energy (battery)

a starter
a generator
several electrical loads

The battery needs to supply all the required electrical energy during

the engine start, which includes the starter, ignition system, fuel
injection system, various electronic control units, safety and comfort
electronic devices, lighting, and any other electrical equipment.

Image: 12V electric system architecture – engine start (example)

The  starter  can be also considered as a load, becasue it’s only

consuming electrical energy during engine start-up phases.

After the engine has been started and it runs autonomous, the
generator needs to supply all the electrical energy to the loads and
also charge the 12V battery.
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Depending on the operating conditions of the vehicle and engine, the

amount of electrical current drawn from the battery varies, as
described in the table below.

Vehicle state Current drawn from the battery [A]

Stationary with the 0.01 … 0.05 (e.g. for clock, the antitheft alarm
engine off system or the remote-controlled central locking
system)

Stationary with 20 … 70
engine idle (or
slowly driven)

Engine start 300 (for 0.3 to 3 s) with peaks of 1000 A

Source: Bosch

The lower the engine temperature, during starting, the higher the
friction torque, the higher the current drawn from the battery. At low
temperature, the starting current can be around 600 A with peaks of
1000 A.

Image: 12V electric system architecture – engine running (example)

For example, let’s assume that during engine start the battery voltage
U is 12 V and the current I is 410 A. The electrical power P [W]
required will be:

P = U ⋅ I = 12 ⋅ 400 = 4920 W = 4.92 kW

12-48 V MHEV electric system architecture

If we had to provide the same electrical power 4.92 kW (during engine
start), from a 48 V electrical network, the required battery current
would be:

P 4920
I= = = 102.5 A
U 48
As you can see, a 48 V electrical network can provide the same
electrical power but with a lower current. The advantage is that the
conductors (wires) will require a smaller diameter (lower mass) and
the losses (joule effect) will be reduced as well.

It’s obvious that, the higher the voltage of an electrical system, the
higher the efficiency and performance. On the other hand, higher
voltages could trigger electric shocks for the human user. Voltages
under 50 V are considered safe from the electric shock point of view
and do not require special treatment compared with 12 V systems.

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European Union has adopted the Low Voltage Directive (LVD)

2014/35/EU, which ensures that electrical equipment within certain
voltage limits, provides a high level of protection for European
citizens, and benefits fully from the Single Market. Electrical
equipment under the LVD covers a wide range of consumer and
professional products e.g. household appliances, cables, power
supply units, laser equipment and some components such as fuses.

The LVD covers all health and safety risks of electrical equipment
operating with a voltage between 50 and 1000 V for alternating
current and between 75 and 1500 V for direct current. These voltage
ratings refer to the voltage of the electrical input or output, not to
voltages that may appear inside the equipment.

Source: ec.europa.eu/growth/sectors/electrical-engineering/lvd-directive_en

Electric systems operating at 48 V will not add additional health and

risk requirements for the vehicle manufacturers and, in the same
time, will provide clear benefits in terms of maximum available
electrical power, high efficiency and lower mass.

The German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA – Verband

der Automobilindustrie) has defined a standard (VDA
Recommendation 320) which covers the electric and electronic
systems in motor vehicle with 48 V power supply.

The document defines the functional requirements for the electric

system as well as the test scenarios and tests performed on electric,
electronic and mechatronic components and systems for use in road
vehicles with a 48 V on-board power supply. The standard is also
defining the voltage ranges for 48 V electric systems.

Image: Definitions of voltage ranges for 48V systems according to VDA 320
Credit: VDA

The voltage limits are explained in the table below:

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Voltage limits Description

U48r – U48r,dyn Voltage tolerance (2 V)

U48max,unlimited – Upper limited operation range (intended for

U48max,high.limited calibrating the storage medium and for the uptake
of recovered energy)

U48min,unlimited – Unlimited operation range (allows the

U48max,unlimited components to operate without restriction)

U48min,low,limited– Lower limited operation range (the system may

U48min,unlimited operate only temporarily in this range;
countermeasures should be taken to return to the
unlimited operation voltage range)

below Undervoltage
U48min,low,limited

below Storage protection voltage

U48stopprotect

Source: ZVEI – German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturer’s Association

The maximum voltage (60 V) is  the  maximum permissible contact

voltage safe for human operators therefore the system is not
classified as “high voltage” with the risk of electrical shock. Standard
48 V electrical systems used in MHEVs are considered to be
reasonably safe for most people under normal conditions.

A mild hybrid electric vehicle (MHEV) has a dual electrical

architecture, which consists of a 12 V network connected through a
DCDC to a 48 V network.

Image: MHEV 12-48V electric system architecture

The main difference is that the 12 V generator doesn’t exist anymore

since its function is taken over by the 48 V electric machine. All the
energy required by the 12 V network to operate is supplied from the
48 V network through the DCDC converter.

Most of the 48 V MHEV still use a 12 V starter, even if the 48 V

electric machine can provide faster engine starts. There are two
reasons behind this. First, during engine start, at low temperature, the
belt of the 48 V BiSG might slip, therefore cold engine starts are
performed with 12 V starter. Second, in case of a failure of the 48 V,
the engine stop & start sequences are going to be fulfilled by the 12 V
system.

The 48 V electric machine requires a 3-phase alternating current (AC),

therefore an inverter is integrated with the electric machine.

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Image: Electrical architecture of a dual voltage board net with a 48 V system

Credit: Continental

where:

AC – Alternatinc Current
DC – Direct Current
IBat [A] – battery current
Iph [A] – phase current
L1, L2, L3 – phases
PDC [W] – inverter input power
Pel [W] – electrical power of the motor
Pme [W] – mechanical power of the motor
R1 [Ω] – battery internal resistance
RL0 [Ω] – resistance of the wiring harness
RL1, RL2, RL3 [Ω] – resistance of the phases
U0 [V] – battery internal voltage
UBat [V] – battery output voltage
UL-L [V] – voltage drop between two phases

The inverter input power  is equal with the battery power minus the
DCDC input power.

P DC = P Bat − P DCDCin = UBat ⋅ I Bat – ηDCDC ⋅ P DCDCout (1)

where:

PDCDCin [W] – DCDC input power

PDCDCout [W] – DCDC output power
ηDCDC [-] – DCDC efficiency

The electrical power of the motor is equal with:

P el = P DC ⋅ ηinv (2)
where:

ηinv [-] – inverter efficiency

The mechanical power of the motor is equal to:

P me = P el ⋅ ηem (3)
where:

ηem [-] – electric machine efficiency

The BiSG power that is supplied to the crankshaft is equal to:

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P BiSG = P me ⋅ ηbelt (4)

where:

ηbelt [-] – efficiency of the belt and pulley mechanism

Replacing (1) in (2) in (3) in (4) gives the expression of the  BiSG
power at the crankshaft function of battery power and components
efficiency:

P el = ηbelt ⋅ ηem ⋅ ηinv ⋅ (UBat ⋅ I Bat – ηDCDC ⋅ P DCDCout )

The electric system of a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) has to perform
the following main functions:

output electric energy to the powertrain during motoring phases

store the electrical energy during reccuperation/regeneration
phases
supply electrical energy to the consumers (loads), both 12 V
and 48 V

The high voltage electrical system has a high voltage battery with a
precharging circuit, an electric machine with an integrated inverter
and a DCDC converter with a DC link capacitor.

Image: Electrical system topology (architecture) of a MHEV

where:

1. 48 V electric machine (motor-generator)

2. inverter (power electronics)
3. DC link capacitor
4. pre-charging capacitor
5. main contactors
6. pre-charging resistor
7. high voltage battery (48 V)
8. 12 V starter (motor)
9. electrical loads
10. low voltage battery (12 V)
11. DCDC converter

The DC link capacitor is used to stabilize the DC voltage in case of

sudden load variations (caused by the inverter).

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