Stellantis has shown off its IBIS battery tech in a prototype vehicle, with dramatically improved range, power, and charging speeds. Could this be another EV revolution?
Battery technology has evolved a lot in the last five years, but there are many more developments to come. Chemistries are arriving with improved energy density, there’s a switch from Nickel Manganese Cobalt to Lithium Iron Phosphate , and new methods of integration are optimizing weight and space.
There are other innovations on the horizon, too. Stellantis, which promises significant EV battery improvements. I talked to project leaders, Francis Roy and Clement Dumand about how the technology could take battery technology to a new level.. The key thing this technology does is negate the need for the AC-DC inverter or a charger in an electric vehicle. EV batteries provide direct current, but motors require alternating current, and your home charger will be AC too. The inverter handles switching AC to DC, or vice versa, and it needs to operate at 400V or even 800V while handling currents potentially over 1,000A. The IBIS innovation is to take a single battery cell or group of cells and provide circuitry that takes their DC power and converts it to AC more locally. Although this adds circuitry near the battery, the total weight across the entire pack isn’t as much as a single dedicated inverter. There are also efficiency benefits to be had as well.“There is a dedicated electronic circuit that we call an H bridge,” says Roy. “The output voltage that we produce by the control at the terminals of the bridge, it’s the voltage of the cells, zero volts, or minus the voltage of the cells.” This turns the DC output of the cells into a three-phase AC output.Stellantis claims that IBIS improves battery efficiency by 10%, while increasing power delivery by 15%. There’s a 10kg weight reduction from losing the inverter and charger, plus 30kg from not needing so many batteries to go the same distance. This also frees up 17 liters of space inside the vehicle. Charging times are reduced by 15%, due to a more efficient delivery of energy., where the technology was integrated within a 65kWh pack. The car normally comes with a 73kWh pack, but IBIS was able to make this battery match the range with a smaller capacity. This pack has three columns of eight modules, with 12 cells in each one. Stellantis groups the cells into sixes, each of which have their own circuitry. The IBIS technology could work with individual cells, and Stellantis had experimented with four cell groups before, but six ended up being the sweet spot. “There were too many components to have a control of each cell individually,” says Roy. This is a cost and space issue. “We found that six cells per cluster was the best trade off.” This was after considerable testing. “More than six could be good with other chemistry, for example, with LFP.” However, this is still a prototype, and Roy reckons further development could change the cluster number.Not only can IBIS technology cope with whole packs using different chemistry types, it can potentially combine them in a single pack. This isn’t a new idea, with China’s CATL already offering hybrid batteries combining sodium and lithium ion cells via its Freevoy technology , and NIO combining NMC and LFP. But Roy reckons that IBIS “has mixing chemistry in its genes.” This could take advantage of the durability of LFP alongside the power output of NMC. “But we can also evolve the chemistry over time. If you want to improve your car after six or eight years of use, you can do it by changing a few modules. A company doesn’t have to keep in production the same electrochemistry for many years, because when you have to repair your car, if the electrochemistry that was integrated in your car has disappeared off the market, you can integrate a new generation of electrochemistry instead. You can have the benefits of a new generation of electrometry with a better vehicle range.” The IBIS prototype currently uses a traditional module configuration, with cells built into modules built into packs. But automakers are now missing out some of these stages, such as the. According to Roy, IBIS will have no problem accommodating any of these designs. Cells can still be grouped together. However, Roy does think this could reduce repairability, because with the current design modules can quite easily be replaced.Another feature Stellantis suggested at the IBIS launch was the ability to support high power AC charging, suggesting up to 200kW would be possible. This isn’t something the current prototype can do, but the potential here is very efficient charging without the need to convert to DC from the grid’s AC that current rapid charging systems require.“It doesn’t exist yet,” says Dumand. “But in theory, IBIS could do that. The plugs do not exist, but high-power AC would save a lot of energy and cost and copper, because you directly connect without any transformation of the AC to DC to AC again. Every transformation means efficiency and energy losses. But in theory we could offer cheaper high-power charging.” Dumand also argues that as modules operate with AC rather than DC, giving them a second life as home or grid storage would also be easier because they should slot in without the need for separate inverters. The theory all sounds very promising, and the working Peugeot prototype shows that the benefits could be real. But unfortunately, we will have to wait a few years before IBIS enters production. “We are doing our best to make the technology available by the end of the decade,” says Roy. “But the decision is not taken yet, because we must improve its maturity. We need more demonstrations of functionality of vehicles in real and extreme life situations.” This will include applying IBIS to all-wheel-drive platforms. “It's early to say IBIS technology will be popping up everywhere,” says Dumand. “We see other company’s projects going in the same direction, but we have patents to protect our technology. We want to be the first with this technology in the automotive market, and it's too early to announce timing, but it's going to be a real game-changing solution.”
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Ducati’s Electric Motorcycle Now Carries The Battery Tech Of TomorrowThis special prototype has the same QuantumScape battery cells future VW cars will use
Read more »
iOS 26 might finally solve your iPhone's mysterious battery drainIzzy, a tech enthusiast and a key part of the PhoneArena team, specializes in delivering the latest mobile tech news and finding the best tech deals. Her interests extend to cybersecurity, phone design innovations, and camera capabilities.
Read more »
Hydrogen-powered vehicles gain boost from Japan’s 90 °C battery breakthroughJapan’s solid-state hydrogen battery avoids extreme cold or pressure, working safely at 90 °C while achieving record hydrogen capacity.
Read more »
Stellantis Creates An 'AC' BatteryStellantis has developed a new EV battery pack configuration that eliminates the separate power electronics module and on-board charger to cut cost and improve efficiency
Read more »
iPhone Air Vs. iPhone 17 Pro Max: The First Real-Life Battery Test Delivers Great ResultsChris started blogging about tech by accident when he figured out his passion for consumer electronics, especially mobile devices, and telling stories could be intertwined.
Read more »
Huawei’s Watch GT6 Pro, Watch Ultimate 2 Bring Advanced Cycling Tracking And Longest Battery LifeThe Watch GT6 Pro can last up to 21 days on a single charge, while the Watch Ultimate 2 can last 11 days. Both watches are constructed out of premium materials and feature beautiful OLED panels.
Read more »