The transition to electric road transport technologies requires electric traction drive systems to offer improved performances and capabilities, such as fuel efficiency (in terms of MPGe, i.e., miles per gallon of gasoline-equivalent), extended range, and fast-charging options. The enhanced electrification and transformed mobility are translating to a demand for higher power and more efficient electric traction drive systems that lead to better fuel economy for a given battery charge. To accelerate the mass-market adoption of electrified transportation, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), in collaboration with the automotive industry, has announced the technical targets for light-duty electric vehicles (EVs) for 2025. This article discusses the electric drive technology trends for passenger electric and hybrid EVs with commercially available solutions in terms of materials, electric machine and inverter designs, maximum speed, component cooling, power density, and performance. The emerging materials and technologies for power electronics and electric motors are presented, identifying the challenges and opportunities for even more aggressive designs to meet the need for next-generation EVs. Some innovative drive and motor designs with the potential to meet the DOE 2025 targets are also discussed.

This paper presents an improved position-sensorless field-oriented control strategy for a surface-mount permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM). In this algorithm, a high-pass filter (HPF) has been applied to the rotor flux estimation to solve the DC drift or offset problem caused by the integration part. The rotor position and speed signal extraction is achieved by mean of a phase-lock loop (PLL) as well as a phase compensation unit. This paper explains the design details of the adopted position-sensorless methodology. On the basis of this method, PMSM field orientation control strategy has been implemented to verify its correctness and reliability. Simulation has been carried out with MATLAB/Simulink. And a motor-generator experimental prototype setup has been built in the laboratory to testify its performance. Simulation and experimental results consistently prove the feasibility and precision of this estimation method.

Vehicle electrification is envisioned to be a significant component of the forthcoming smart grid. In this paper, a smart grid vision of the electric vehicles for the next 30 years and beyond is presented from six perspectives pertinent to intelligent transportation systems: 1) vehicles; 2) infrastructure; 3) travelers; 4) systems, operations, and scenarios; 5) communications; and 6) social, economic, and political.