Benzinga | Jul 20, 2021 08:37AM EDT

Ideal Power Reports Will Sample Its B-TRAN Bi-Directional Power Switches For Electric Vehicle Drivetrain, Power Conversion, Circuit Protection With Top 10 Global Automaker, No Terms Disclosed

Ideal Power Inc. (NASDAQ:IPWR), pioneering the development and commercialization of highly efficient and broadly patented B-TRAN(tm) bi-directional power switches, today announced that a top 10 global automaker will be sampling B-TRAN(tm) devices for electric vehicle (EV) drivetrain, power conversion, circuit protection and other EV applications. This represents Ideal Power's first sampling announcement in the EV space, already the largest segment in the $6 billion power switch market, a market forecasted to grow to $11 billion by 2026.

After substantial technical and commercial briefings on B-TRAN(tm) and its capabilities, the global automaker will bring resources from their advanced technology engineering team to test and evaluate B-TRAN(tm) and its driver for EV applications. The feedback and data from this testing will be shared with Ideal Power for incorporation into our commercial intelligent power module and potentially custom modules for EV applications.

"We are excited to make the first of what we expect to be several announcements for the evaluation and potential adoption of B-TRAN(tm) for electric vehicle applications," stated Dan Brdar, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ideal Power. "Based on our discussions with large global automobile manufacturers and their Tier 1 suppliers, we believe B-TRAN(tm) can have a meaningful impact on the drivetrain efficiency and range of electric vehicles and potentially enable more economic and efficient new drivetrain architectures. As B-TRAN(tm) can offer substantial performance improvements over conventional power semiconductors in applications across many sectors, we are also engaged in ongoing engineering sampling discussions with power equipment manufacturers, both large and small, in renewable energy, data centers and other industrial and utility applications."

Ideal Power's patented semiconductor power switch, the Bi-directional Bipolar Junction Transistor, or B-TRAN(tm), reduces power losses by 50% or more over conventional power switches, depending on the application. B-TRAN(tm)'s higher efficiency results in less heat being generated and therefore significantly lower thermal management requirements, requiring significantly smaller surface area to dissipate heat and giving rise to potentially smaller OEM products. B-TRAN(tm) offers the industry's only symmetric bi-directional operation, reducing the number of components required for application by 75% as compared to a conventional bi-directional switch utilizing IGBTs and diodes. This highly efficient and unique symmetric operation provides a strong competitive advantage in bi-directional applications, which are growing rapidly as transportation electrifies and power generation shifts to renewable energy coupled with energy storage.