In electric vehicles, a large battery pack combined in a sealed package is used to achieve the operating voltage and current required to power the vehicle’s electric motor. Currently, the two main issues in the EV/HEV space are energy storage and driving range. OEMs are addressing these issues in two ways: by making larger batteries for greater range, and by making more powerful batteries for faster charging. Both approaches have challenges. Yes, batteries can get bigger, but they can only reach a certain size before they become too expensive and heavy to be a viable solution.
Traditional wiring is not the first place people usually look for EV innovation, but recent advances have had a major impact on the EV story because they give OEMs two things they desperately need in EV architectures: less quality and more space. One way to free up space and reduce mass is to move from round wiring to flat conductors. This is what the busbar does.
Bus bars are flat conductors that are becoming part of the architecture of electric vehicles. Busbars are usually installed in switchgear, switchboards and busway enclosures for local high current distribution. They are also used to connect high-voltage equipment in electrical switchyards and low-voltage equipment in battery packs.