Danfoss Editron ED3 onboard charger and ePTO now available for off-highway electric vehicles

Danfoss Group has announced that it now offers the Editron ED3 for off-highway electric vehicles. Its three-in-one functionality—AC charger, DC ePTO, and AC ePTO—is designed to reduce complexity and streamline machine design and integration.

“The ED3 enables rapid overnight and opportunity charging for heavy-duty electric machinery using readily available AC chargers,” the company said in making the announcement. The new off-highway capabilities make it “a game changer,” the company added.

The ED3 provides off-highway vehicle manufacturers with flexibility in designing vehicle system architectures. Because it was designed as a three-in-one unit, the ED3 can reduce the number of high-voltage components and cables needed, resulting in the use of less space, lower weight, and cost savings.

The presence of high-power AC and DC electric power take-off (ePTO) will further simplify integration with a vehicle.

Key features include an onboard charger up to 44 kW for high-voltage battery-electric vehicles and off-highway machinery, AC ePTO for inductive single- and three-phase auxiliary loads during vehicle operation, and DC ePTO for HVAC or heaters during vehicle operation.

To reduce complexity, Danfoss has standardized the ED3 with communication protocols, software, and documentation designed specifically for off-highway applications.

The system was initially designed to be used with on-highway applications and is currently in use in thousands of Volvo electric trucks.

To delve into greater detail, the ED3’s high-power DC and AC electric power take-off simplifies machine design and integration, according to Danfoss. It pulls power directly from the main high-voltage battery in order to provide up to 44 kW of DC power to auxiliary units such as high-voltage compressors, pumps and motor controllers. The device is also capable of converting power and can deliver 43.6 kilovolt-amperes of single- or three-phase current in order to create an AC microgrid to support plug-in functions in the field.

The power level that the ED3 provides is capable of fully charging heavy-duty electric vehicles overnight using AC chargers, eliminating the need to invest in far more expensive DC chargers.    

Danfoss Group, which was founded by Mads Clausen in 1939 when he established the Dansk Køleautomatik og Apparatfabrik, is owned by Danfoss A/S, an unlisted family and foundation-owned private company

Source: Danfoss Group.