Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials IFAM
Electric drive technology focuses on the conception, design, prototypical construction and testing of electrical machines and their components. In addition, new approaches to production engineering implementation as well as to control and regulation are developed. The focus is on increasing power, torque density and efficiency as well as the further development of established or new manufacturing techniques for electric drives.
Electric drives are indispensable both in industry and in the private sector. Their reliability and the efficiencies that can be achieved are decisive for their use in industrial machines and systems. They also play a decisive role in securing the energy supply, both in conventional power plants and for renewable energies.
With hybrid and electric vehicles, new solutions with electric drives are coming into use. In all application areas, for example automotive technology or agricultural machinery, electric drives face the challenges of energy efficiency, increased power and torque, cost reduction, and reliability.
Fraunhofer IFAM, with its interdisciplinary team, therefore concentrates on the entire development chain from the conception to the manufacture and testing of prototype drives. Unique to this is the close connection with large-scale production technologies such as adhesive bonding technology and foundry technology.
The main fields of activity are
- Design and development of compact electric drives with high torque and power density
- Development of new manufacturing processes for electric drives, e.g. cast coils
- Hardware and software development for control units, e.g. for efficiency-optimized drive control as well as for vehicle control
- Construction and testing of prototypes and functional samples, e.g. wheel hub drives