Eaton recently display technologies to support the zero emissions journey in the commercial vehicle market at the IAA Transportation show in Hannover, Germany. 

“We are helping our customers around the globe with technologies that solve some of the toughest challenges throughout the electrified vehicle (EV) ecosystem,” said Scott Adams, president, Eaton’s eMobility business. “Eaton provides a vast portfolio of EV technologies for full battery electric, fuel cell and hybrid commercial vehicles, as well as EV charging infrastructure solutions.”

Eaton’s eMobility business offers a new Flex Power Distribution Unit (PDU) for high voltage electrified commercial vehicles that is uniquely designed to handle multiple load requirements. 

The Flex PDU integrates Eaton’s Breaktor circuit protection technology, which improves vehicle safety and protects components from any level of overcurrent condition more effectively than traditional circuit protection methods. The Breaktor circuit protection solution is resettable like a circuit breaker, enabling reactivation of the device following a functionality check and reducing cost for both the OEM and consumer.

The Flex PDU also leverages sealed and corrosion-resistant terminals and connectors from Royal Power Solutions, a global leader in power distribution and transmission solutions that Eaton acquired earlier this year. Eaton’s Bussmann series fuses are also integrated to meet the requirements for use in the latest high-powered electrified vehicles with ratings up to 1,000 volts of direct current (VDC) and 600 amps.

Eaton’s Flex PDU protects vital components and occupants and is also an intelligent unit that provides the OEM diagnostic information, including where the most power is being consumed, to maximize performance and efficiency. Its integrated and optimized design reduces the number of components, lessening complexity. 

Eaton’s new 4-speed transmissions provide superior performance on grades and acceleration for electrified commercial vehicles while offering more flexible gear ratios compared to competitive technologies. The compact 4-speed transmissions for medium- and heavy-duty electrified commercial vehicles also improve system efficiency, enabling longer vehicle range and battery life. 

“We supply transmissions for multiple global commercial vehicle manufacturers, and many more are interested,” Adams said. “With decades of experience, we continue to build on our heritage as a top supplier of commercial vehicle transmissions.”

Eaton recently introduced a 48-volt DC-DC converter to power accessories such as antilock brakes and lighting for commercial vehicles with 48-volt electrical systems. Unlike competitive offerings, Eaton’s DC-DC converters are operational in ambient temperatures up to 85 degrees Celsius and boast 97 percent design efficiency.

Eaton’s DC-DC converter portfolio covers a spectrum of power requirements, ranging from low- to high-voltage systems, depending on customer specifications. The converters can be tuned for duty cycles via their advanced digital control architecture, enabling flexible control modes through firmware adaptation.

In March 2021, Eaton acquired Switzerland-based Green Motion SA, a leading designer and manufacturer of electric vehicle charging hardware and related software. Eaton’s efficient electric vehicle charging infrastructure expertise includes the production and operation of charging stations, designing management software for charging networks, and serving as an electric mobility service provider.  

Many workplaces host vehicle fleets, such as cars for the salesforce and vans for deliveries. Fleet managers switching to EVs, either now or in the future, will want to electrify their fleet while ensuring business continuity. Eaton’s “Buildings as a Grid” approach helps fleet managers devise an EV charging strategy that is fast to implement, cybersecure and scalable so that they can add more EV charging capacity when needed. 

The strategy may include EV charging infrastructure at their site or depot, on-site renewables like solar panels on buildings, and options for fleet drivers to charge at home and when they are traveling. Eaton’s digital and physical infrastructure transforms a workplace or depot into an energy hub, and because it is a gateway to electrifying the entire functionality of the site, it is also an investment in the energy transition.