Loss Minimization of Traction Systems in Battery Electric Vehicles Using Variable DC-link Voltage Technique -- Experimental Study

A novel variable dc-link voltage technique is proposed to reduce the traction losses for electrical drive applications. A 100-unit cascaded multilevel converter is developed to generate the variable dc-link voltage. Experimental measurement shows that the machine additional losses and IGBT-inverter losses are reduced substantially. The system efficiency enhancement is at least 2%.