Making Driving Greener is a focus of car manufacturers today and it is one of ST’s Smart Driving goals. Most of the general public’s focus today relates to the ever-increasing numbers of electric and hybrid vehicles in production and on the road. In this, they miss the excitement and most of the innovation happening in other automotive applications. Many of these are already playing a key role in saving energy and reducing emissions. Many more will make future vehicles even more thrifty. For example, one of these applications is invisible to drivers but vital in every vehicle – automotive pumps. Whether the pump is pushing water, coolants or fuel around the car, the trend is the same: electric pumps are replacing mechanical ones and for good reason.
Mechanical vs. Electric Pumps
Mechanical pumps are less energy efficient than their low-friction electric counterparts and they have higher hydraulic losses. In contrast, electric pumps are independent of the combustion engine operation, can be controlled with much greater precision, and can be used only when required (pumping on demand). When these benefits are used in a fuel pump. they translate into a measurable reduction in fuel consumption and lower emissions. When used in water and coolant pumps, the added efficiency and controllability reduces power consumption while also improving thermal control of the engine.
The ST Solution
ST’s broad automotive product portfolio enables us to provide a complete set of solutions for automotive pumps. Our multifunction and scalable solutions are ideal for automotive-pump applications requiring brushless DC motor control that are cost-effective, yet compliant with stringent automotive quality requirements.
ST’s Automotive Pump Solutions
ST’s scalable solution is built around the L99ASC03G integrated 3-phase BLDC driver connected to a power stage containing six STripFET F7 low-voltage MOSFETs. The sensorless system features enhanced power management power-supply functions including various standby modes, which can be controlled by a variety of ST’s SPC5 or STM8 automotive microcontrollers and networked using our CAN/LIN interfaces.
Get Started
Getting started couldn’t be easier for system developers who need to evaluate brushless DC motor control solutions for a variety of circulation and booster pump applications for coolant, water, fuel or oil lines.
ST’s EVAL-L99ASC03 evaluation board uses an STM8 microcontroller to monitor and drive the L99ASC03G 3-phase motor pre-driver assembled on a daughterboard. Included in the kit is a dedicated user-friendly software package, with a Graphic User Interface (GUI). This enables the user to set L99ASC03G parameters and at the same time, it shows real-time device information such as the current evolution, motor speed (RPM), the fault flags, the board temperature and much more.
Order an EVAL-L99ASC03 here
