STMicroelectronics and Sanken Electric Co., Ltd announced collaboration to unleash the performance and practical advantages of intelligent power modules (IPM) in high-voltage, high-power equipment designs.

The two companies are developing and will jointly market 650V/50A and 1200V/10A industrial modules, which simplify design challenges and shrink the bill of materials for HVAC systems, industrial servo drives, industrial washing machines, and general-purpose inverters over 3 kW. The ST/Sanken IPM product roadmap will continue with 650V/50A automotive-grade modules for high-voltage compressors, pumps, and cooling fans.

“With ST and Sanken contributing their strengths, we can bring these new high-voltage, high-power IPMs to industrial and automotive markets, ensuring superior performance, efficiency, and reliability,” said Masao Hoshino, Director and Head of Device Business Corporate Headquarters of Sanken.

Marco Monti, President, Automotive and Discrete Group, STMicroelectronics, said, “These new devices extend our established STPOWER SLLIMM™ portfolio with a High-Power (HP) product line to address applications over 3 kW and introduce our first automotive-grade IPMs that permit sleeker designs and greater reliability.”

IPMs let designers replace traditional power circuits built using discrete components with a compact, integrated device that simplifies circuit layout and PCB design. This helps accelerate time to market and improve cost-effectiveness and reliability. Leveraging easier manufacturing, faster assembly, and bill-of-materials savings, designers of high-voltage equipment can create new generations of power products that are space-saving, economical, energy-efficient, and robust.

Engineering samples of the industrial IPMs will be available in March 2021 and production will begin soon afterwards. Samples of the automotive-grade devices will be available in second half of 2021.