High-side gate driver protects wires in automotive power distribution
One of the biggest challenges for designers today is to reduce the cost, length, weight and complexity of the wire harness in a vehicle which power the advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) in vehicles, explained Infineon Technologies at the launch of the EiceDriver 2ED2410-EM high side MOSFET gate driver. It is for 12 / 24V automotive applications with integrated wire protection, such as safety-critical ADAS and automated driving functions which require fast failure isolation in less than 100 microseconds. This cannot be met by fuses, hence the use of a partial or full electrification of the primary power distribution, added the company.
The EiceDrover 2ED2410-EM smart, high side MOSFET gate driver is suitable for use with Infineon’s 40/ 60V OptiMOS MOSFETs.
The gate driver features two output channels for either back-to-back common source with a pre-charging path, or a common drain MOSFET structure. The enhanced driver capability to turn on and turn off allows it to scale up the amount of MOSFETs to manage larger load currents. According to Infineon, it ensures fast switch off within microseconds even up to several hundred Amps, whereas fuses only disconnect in milliseconds. The gate driver can be operated down to 3.0V which can occur in a short circuit until the faulty load is disconnected.
The EiceDriver 2ED2410-EM protects via three analogue measurement interfaces and four integrated comparators, enabling adjustable I-t wire protection, over-current protection, over / under-voltage protection, for example. Currents can be measured in both directions and the drain source voltage is monitored to identify conditions such as an open load at the output.
The adjustable wire protection feature helps select the smallest possible wire cross section for the corresponding load behaviour. Previously, wires had to be designed with a diameter margin of up to 30 per cent compared to the actual requirements, in order to consider the tolerance and aging effect of classical fuses. To minimise the discharge of the battery when the vehicle is parked, the device has a low quiescent current consumption of only a few tenths of a microA.
The 2ED2410-EM is in production now. It is PRO-SIL ISO26262-ready and comes with a safety application note to support evaluation of hardware elements according to ISO 26262. Evaluation boards, including the EB 2ED2410 3M are available for order.
