“Revolutionary AC Battery Technology without Inverters: ABT e-Line and Bavertis Team Up”

In cooperation with the Munich start-up Bavertis, ABT e-Line wants to make inverters in electric drives superfluous through innovative “multilevel technology”. This works by intelligently reconfiguring the battery cells several thousand times per second.

The energy storage in battery electric vehicles usually generates direct current (DC). Before this can provide propulsion via the electric motor, it must be converted into alternating current (AC). A so-called inverter takes care of this. This electronic component also controls the engine speed. With the new system and the special control of the individual battery cells, the battery should be able to deliver alternating current directly, which is why the system is also called an AC battery.

Together with Bavertis and other partners, ABT e-Line intends to develop battery modules and systems for its own products, but also to act as a supplier for the automotive industry. The Bavarian company is developing a battery module with which, according to a press release, “any AC or DC voltage between 3.6V and 300V can be generated directly from the battery”. With additional modules, the voltage can be increased up to 1000V.

Bavertis is responsible for the electronics. As an intelligent solution, this should ensure the optimal use of energy in the batteries of electric vehicles. This improved use of energy should lead to longer ranges, faster charging processes and a longer service life.

“Higher performance and efficiency” is mentioned as an advantage of the technology, and safety is said to be “significantly increased through active intervention in individual cells”. In the event of an error, individual cells should be able to be switched off better than the entire module.

“With more than a decade of experience in battery development, ABT e-Line is taking on the role of system integrator in this cooperation,” says Eric Plekkepoel, CEO of ABT e-Line. The modular design of these batteries makes it possible to drive various motors and other AC or DC devices through to bidirectional charging directly from the AC power grid.