Inverter

By reimagining the way power inverters relay the current from the battery to the motor in electric vehicles, scientists at Fraunhofer have conjured up a new design they say works much more efficiently and could improve EV range as much as six percent.

A new power inverter developed at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory marries advances in 3D printing and wide-band semiconductor technology to deliver significantly improved performance in a smaller, lighter package.

Google and the IEEE have launched the Little Box Challenge, offering a US$1 million first prize for an innovative electronic design to shrink power inverters down from their current bigger-than-a-bread-box size to something less than the size of a small laptop.