ECM’s 5kW, Unum Potentia controller (seen here fully integrated within an electric motor) was developed to maximize the benefits of the Boston-based startup’s PrintStator Motor CAD platform and PCB Stator innovation. (Image courtesy ECM)
ECM PCB Stator Tech’s 5kW Unum Potentia controller provides greater optimization in a smaller package and at a fraction of the cost, the company said.
NEEDHAM, Mass.—The U.S. electric motor design and software company ECM PCB Stator Tech recently introduced a fully integrated, customizable electric motor controller that is reported to facilitate “premium system efficiencies.”
The company’s 5kW, Unum Potentia controller was developed to maximize the benefits of ECM’s PrintStator Motor CAD platform and PCB Stator innovation. In addition to premium efficiency, the new motor controller further advances the form factor and design optimization capabilities of ECM’s PrintStator Motor CAD, ECM said in a release.
ECM said its new motor controller is customizable via PrintStator and fully integrated, structurally and thermally, to the resulting motor housing. This is said to provide the most compact footprint possible. Pairing the controller to ECM’s PrintStator CAD platform enables full motor system optimization.
As a unit, the controller is reported to deliver a measured efficiency of 98 percent. When combined with a PrintStator-designed PCB Stator machine, ECM’s new controller enables “IE5 ultra-efficiency performance in electric motor systems,” the company said.
“The unit efficiency of this ECM controller is what’s driving greater overall system efficiency,” said ECM CEO Brian Casey, in the release. “With a near 100 percent efficient controller, versus one in the 80s or low 90s, you’re drawing less system energy to compensate for an inefficient controller.”
As a software platform, PrintStator is said to power the custom design, manufacture, and integration of PCB Stator electric motors to precise performance and form factor requirements.
ECM said its software is capable of outputting motor tuning parameters and translating those into a code file that uploads to the controller. This makes ECM’s motor system design capabilities truly plug-and-play, the company said.
The controller schematic is equipped to run motors from 3kW up to 8kW, based on components changes. However, the board itself and its footprint stay the same.
The company said its new motor controller will be available to ECM’s PrintStator SaaS clients—and partners that work with ECM to create optimized PCB Stator electric motor systems—for roughly one-tenth the cost of controllers that support similar electric motor kW ranges.
“With this controller, ECM customers will now have the ability to pursue fully integrated design on our PrintStator platform,” said Casey. “Not only can you customize and optimize your PCB Stator motor, you can now design a drive-controller perfectly tuned to your full electric system.”
ECM PCB Stator Tech uses advanced motor CAD and patented PCB Stator—printed circuit board—technology to create next generation electric motors for multiple applications. The company’s PrintStator software powers the design, manufacture, and integration of PCB Stator motors that are said to be lighter, quieter, and more energy- and space-efficient across a broad range of use cases. ECM-designed motors are reported to achieve efficiencies in excess of 90 percent while requiring up to 70 percent less raw materials to produce.
The company has partnered with multiple organizations to create optimized motors across verticals that include HVAC, consumer electronics, e-mobility, fitness, medical, robotics, renewable energy, and aerospace and defense, among others. Its design partners are reported to include aerospace and defense innovator L3 Harris, global electronics manufacturer Celestica, and consumer electronics startup Nodo Film Systems.
ECM is a winner of four 2023 International SaaS Awards, including SaaS Solution of the Year, Best SaaS Product for CSR, Sustainability, and ESG, and Best SaaS Product for Engineering Management, PLM, Or CAD.