Getting Started with the EV Traction Inverter Gen 3 SiC MOSFET Enablement Kit

2.1 SiC Enablement Kit Overview

The EV-INVERTERGEN3 is a reference design enablement kit containing NXP content to develop an EV 3-phase traction motor inverter. The system is designed to drive the Wolfspeed ECB2R1M12YM3L footprint module, Infineon® FS03MR12A6MA1B CoolSiC HybridPACK module, or Leapers Semiconductor DFS02FB12HDB1. PCB layout, schematics and Gerber files are available on an NXP secured website. Use the registration code provided in the hardware shipment to gain access to the secured site.

Customers must obtain the additional inverter components. These components include the SiC MOSFET or IGBT module, link capacitor, busbar, cooling plate, mounting hardware, and so on. Customers can select their own components when designing and assembling a complete ECU to work with the NXP S32K396-HPWR-MC and EV-POWEREVBHD2 boards.

2.2 EV Traction Inverter Gen 3 SiC MOSFET Enablement Kit Features

• S32K396 advanced motor control ASIL D MCU
• GD3162 isolated SiC MOSFET or IGBT ASIL D gate drivers with dynamic gate strength
• FS26XX robust ASIL D system basis chip (SBC)
• TJA1462AT/0Z redundant CAN bus interface
• TJA1103AHN/0Z IEEE 100BASE-T1 compliant Automotive Ethernet physical interface of the OSI model (PHY) transceiver interface
• Capability to connect Wolfspeed ECB2R1M12YM3L, StarPower MD816HTC120P6HE or Infineon FS03MR12A6MA1B CoolSiC HybridPACK, Leapers Semiconductor DFS02FB12HDB1 footprint power module for 3-phase evaluations and development

Figure 1. S32K396-HPWR-MC1 connectors – top of board

Figure 1. S32K396-HPWR-MC1 connectors – top of board

Figure 2. S32K396-HPWR-MC1 connectors–bottom

Figure 2. S32K396-HPWR-MC1 connectors–bottom

2.3 EV-POWEREVBHD2 Board

The EV-POWEREVBHD2 driver control board controls power to the SiC MOSFETs. The board features six NXP GD3162 single-channel gate drivers.

Figure 3. EV-POWEREVBHD2 Driver Control Board Connectors

Figure 3. EV-POWEREVBHD2 Driver Control Board Connectors

Table 1. Software descriptions

3.1 S32 Design Studio for S32 Platform

S32 Design Studio for the S32 platform is a complimentary, integrated development environment for automotive and ultrareliable MCUs that enables editing, compiling and debugging of designs.

1. Go to S32 Design Studio | NXP Semiconductors and download the S32 Design Studio for S32 Platform Installation User Guide.
2. Follow the instructions within the S32 Design Studio for S32 Platform Installation Guide
3. Run the S32 Design Studio by clicking the S32 Design Studio for S32 Platform icon
4. Before flashing the device, verify that the updates have been installed on the S32 design studio. To do so, go to Help and check for S32DS extensions and updates

5. Click Run > Flash from file...
6. Double-click the GDB PEmicro Interface Debugging icon
7. Change the name of the new configuration to S32K39x

8. Click the Debugger tab

9. Click the Device Name drop-down menu and select S32K396LS

10. Click Apply
11. Flash the .elf file

3.2 Installing the USB – CAN Interface Adapter

1. Browse to PCAN-USB: PEAK-System
2. Download the latest PEAC drivers for Windows and install them. The driver page is shown below

3. Connect the USB-CAN interface adapter to a USB port on the computer

Table 2. USB-CAN interface adapter pinning

3.3 FreeMASTER Setup

Refer to the ECU3 SW application note user guide for information on connecting to the ECU and using the FreeMASTER tool to monitor and control the inverter application demo.

The procedure for assembling an inverter platform that uses the EV Traction Inverter Gen 3 SiC MOSFET Enablement Kit differs depending on whether the Vepco ECU is employed or whether the customer has chosen to configure their own platform. The following sections cover both procedures.

4.1 Assembling the Hardware – Vepco Procedure

The assembly instructions in this section apply to users who have elected to use the Vepco ECU.

The following hardware, described in Section 2 "Getting to know the hardware", is required for this procedure.

• Vepco power inverter module (ECU)
• High-voltage cables for inverter DC link supply (2-wire)
• High-voltage cables for motor phase connection (3-wire)
• Low-voltage 12 V power supply (inverter)
• High-voltage power supply (ECU DC link)
• 3-phase motor
• PEmicro multilink debugger probe
• PEAK USB - CAN interface adapter

Figure 4. Assembly procedure using the Vepco ECU with the EV-INVERTERGEN3

1. Turn the Vepco ECU upside down and remove the bottom plate. Removing this plate exposes the S32K396-HPWR-MC1 board with EV-POWEREVBHD2 board, link capacitors and power module mounted inside the unit.
2. Connect the PEmicro multilink debugger header to connector J6 on the S32K396-HPWR-MC1 with the pin 1 marks aligned. Connect a USB cable from the PEmicro multilink to the host PC. Both LED lights on the PEmicro multilink should be on, indicating that the JTAG bus is live and ready to communicate. For information on installing the PEmicro software and debugging with the PEmicro probe, consult the PEmicro documentation (available here)
3. Route the PEAK USB-CAN Interface Adapter from the 23-pin P1 connector on the bottom of the S32K396- HPWR-MC1 board to a USB port on the Windows PC. See Section 3.2 "Installing the USB – CAN interface adapter" for detailed instructions on making the connection
4. Install the software development tools. See Section 1.4 "Software"
5. Follow the instructions in the Vepco ECU documentation to make the following connections, see Figure 4
6. 3-phase motor
7. Low-voltage DC power supply
8. High-voltage DC power supply. Warning: HIGH DC VOLTAGES CAN BE FATAL. Use extreme caution

4.2 Assembling the Hardware – Non-Vepco Procedure

The following assembly instructions apply to users who have elected to design their own inverter control platform instead of using the Vepco module. The instructions cover electrical connectivity only. The customer is responsible for assembling the physical structures (busbar, mounting hardware, and so on) required to support and connect the components in their platform.

• EV-INVERTERGEN3 SiC MOSFET Enablement Kit
• StarPower P6HE module or Infineon CoolSiC HybridPACK module
• Cooling plate
• A busbar compatible with a HybridPACK module
• DC link capacitors
• High-voltage cables for inverter DC link supply (2)
• High-voltage cables for motor phase connection (3)
• High-voltage shielded cable (2-wire) for motor resolver connections
• Low-voltage shielded cable (21-wire) for motor resolver connections
• 23-position AMPSEAL signal connector (optional)
• Low-voltage 12 V power supply (inverter)
• High-voltage power supply (DC link)
• 40-pin flat ribbon cable with one male and one female connector (optional)
• Board stand-offs - 0.5 in (optional)
• Motor
• PEmicro multilink debugger probe
• PEAK USB - CAN interface adapter

Figure 5. Assembly procedure using the EV-INVERTERGEN3 with a non-Vepco HybridPACK module

1. Attach the ECB2R1M12YM3LlSiC power module to the cooling plate
2. Attach the DC link capacitors to the busbar
3. Connect the three positive DC power connectors on the power module to the corresponding connectors on the busbar. Connect the three negative DC power connectors on the power module to the corresponding connectors on the DC link busbar
4. Connect high-voltage cables to the 3-phase output connectors on the power module. Then route each wire through the one of the three motor phase current sensors (U13, U14, U15) on the S32K396-HPWR-MC11 board
5. Connect the 3-phase motor to the three cables that were routed through the current sensors in the previous step. Make sure that the U, V and W connections match
6. Connect the motor resolver to the 23-pin P1 connector on the S32K396-HPWR-MC11 board. The connections are made as follows:
   • Using the two-wire high-power shielded cable, connect pin 14 and pin 21 (resolver excitation signals) on the 23-pin P1 connector to the corresponding connections on the motor. Connect the shield ground to pin 6 on the 23-pin connector
   • Using the low-power cable, connect pins 8, 15, 22, and 23 (resolver sense signals) on the 23-pin connector to the corresponding connections on the motor. Connect the shield ground to pin 9 on the 23- pin connector
   • Using the low-power cable, make all remaining connections (CANH, CANL, and so on) according to Table 3 and Table 4
   • Connect the EXT_12V_UNSWTCHD to EXT_GND_12V_RETURN
7. Connect the two enablement kit boards. The connection can be made using two different methods:
   • Method A: Mount the S32K396-HPWR-MC11 board on top of the EV-POWEREVBHD2 board by directly connecting the 46-pin connectors (P3 and P4) and the +12 supply connectors (P4 and P2). Make sure that the pins on the lower board are completely inserted into the connectors on the upper board. Use stand-offs to provide structural support between the two boards. Notice that connecting the boards in this fashion blocks access to the test points and components on the top of the EV-POWEREVBHD2 board
   • Method B: Connect the two boards with cables. To do so, connect a 46-pin ribbon cable between the connector P3 on the S32K396-HPWR-MC11 board and connector P1 on the EV-POWEREVBHD2 board. In this configuration, the EV-POWEREVBHD2 board must be powered independently from the S32K396- HPWR-MC board. See step 9
8. Connect the EV-POWEREVBHD2 board to the power module. Aligning the power module is best done by aligning the pins on the surface of the power module with the power module connectors on the bottom of the EV-POWEREVBHD2 board (see Figure 3) and mounting the two units together
9. Connect the low-voltage DC power supply (12 V) to the connector P4 on the S32K396-HPWR-MC11 board. If Method B in step 7 was used to connect the S32K396-HPWR-MC1 board to the EV-POWEREVBHD2 board, an additional connection must be made from the low-voltage DC power supply to the +12 supply connector (P2) on the EV-POWEREVBHD2 board. (When the two boards are mounted, as in Method A, step 7, the EV-POWEREVBHD2 draws power directly through the +12 supply connector on the S32K396-HPWR-MC1 board)

Using the two-wire high-voltage cable, connect the positive connector on the high-voltage/high-current DC supply to the positive DC link capacitor connectors on the busbar. Then connect the negative connector on the high-voltage/high current DC supply to the negative DC link capacitor connectors on the busbar. Warning: HIGH DC VOLTAGES CAN BE FATAL. Use extreme caution.

Before applying high voltage (>300 V) to the DC connection, use a current limited (1 A) power supply and apply 15 V to 30 V to the DC connection to make sure that there is no excessive leakage current.

1. Connect the 20-pin PEmicro multilink debugger header to connector J6 on the S32K396-HPWR-MC1 with the pin 1 marks aligned. Connect a USB cable from the PEmicro multilink to the host PC. Both LED lights on the PEmicro multilink should be on, indicating that the JTAG bus is live and ready to communicate. For information on installing the PEmicro software and debugging with the PEmicro probe, consult the PEmicro documentation (available here)
2. Attach the PEAK Leaf Light USB-CAN Interface Adapter to the 23-pin connector on the bottom of the S32K396-HPWR-MC1 board and a USB port on the Windows PC. See Section 3.2 "Installing the USB - CAN interface adapter" for detailed instructions on making the connection
3. Install the software development tools. See Section 1.4 "Software"

4.3 Using a Motor not from Vepco Technologies

The application software in the ECU was developed for a 4-pole pair, 3-phase permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM). The ECU expects a 4-pole 6-wire position resolver sensor to provide the rotor position information. If the custom motor is the same configuration, then the speed and position information in the software are correct.

If there is a different number of pole pairs or resolver configurations, reconfigure or rewrite the appconfig.h or use MCAT for sensor parameters modifications.

The connectors shown in Figure 6 and in Table 3 and Table 4 are used to bring in signals from CAN, the resolver, and the motor.

Note: Depending on how the motor is wound, the positive direction of the motor may be different from the definition of the ECU.

• Calibration table
  A custom motor table is often required for optimization. The format of the table is presented in main.c. The lookup tables are two-dimensional (2D) tables. These tables describe dependencies Ld, Lq and Lambda and Id, Iq currents; each output has its own table
• Faults and warnings
  The faults and warnings are handled in the MCAT

Figure 6. 23-position signal connector

The EV-interface 23-pin connector is used to bring in signals from the CAN, resolver, and motor. Connections for the 23-position signal connector on the backside of the S32K396-HPWR-MC1 are described in Table 3.

1. Unlatch the handle, insert the cable assembly into the header, and relatch the handle

Note: Depending on how the motor is wound, the positive direction of the motor may be different from the definition of the ECU.

2. The ECU3 is preloaded with demo software that does not require resolver and motor current feedback signals to be connected. The demo software runs open-loop controls once the logic power is supplied
3. The following are required connections for the demo software:
   • Ground: EXT_12V_UNSWTCHD must be connected to EXT_GND_12V_RETURN
   • Power supply: EXT_12V_UNSWTCHD unswitched 12 V and ignition EXT_12V_IGNIT may be tied together

Table 3. S32K396-HPWR-MC1 bottom interface connections

Connector: TE Connectivity Ltd. 4 mm, 2 3 plug

Refer to Table 4 for connections. For advanced operation of the ECU, it is required to have a motor with a resolver and resistance temperature detector (RTD) sensing connections. Connect CANA_H CANA_L resolver signals to x6 RTD1 signals for proper operation of the ECU.

Table 4. Optional connections

Board Information

• EV-INVERTERGEN3 Design Files
• EV-INVERTERGEN3 Schematics
• UM12210, EV Traction Inverter Gen 3 SiC MOSFET Enablement Kit User Manual

References

In addition to our EV-INVERTERGEN3 page, you may also want to visit:

• Vepco Technologies
• GD3160, Advanced High Voltage Isolated Gate Driver with Segmented Drive for SiC MOSFETs
• MPC5775B-E, MPC5775B and MPC5775E Microcontrollers for Battery Management Systems (BMS) and Inverter Applications
• FS6500, Grade 1 and Grade 0 Safety Power System Basis Chip with CAN Flexible Data Transceiver
• TJA1462, CAN Signal Improvement Capability Transceiver with Standby Mode
• EV Traction Inverter Control Reference Design Gen 3
• PCAN-USB CAN Interface for USB
• PEmicro multilink debug probe
• DC link capacitor
• 23-position signal connector