Motor drivers

Comparison list of available DC motor controllers and AC motor inverters

This is a list of motor drivers (DC and AC) for electrical vehicle use (for BEVs, HEVs, PHEVs).

This information does not constitute an endorsement of any of these companies and products.
While the information presented here is believed to be accurate, We take no responsibility for any errors.
Please send us comments, corrections and additions.

Categorization of rotary electric motors

Table with full classification of rotary electric motors

Motor drivers for electric motors commonly used in EVs:

• PM (Permanent Magnet)
• series wound
• shunt wound
• External controller BLDC (Brush-less Direct Current)
• Induction

DC motor controllers for series, permanent magnet or integral controller DC brushless motors

These motor controllers have 1 DC output (2 wires) with a variable DC voltage.

This voltage is typically a PWM (Pulse Width Modulated) wave, not a filtered (flat) DC voltage. The motor itself, thanks to its inductance, tends to smooth the PWM voltage wave into a continuous current.

Most of these controllers are 1-quadrant: they can drive in one direction, and they cannot brake. With the addition of a set of reversing contactors, they can drive in either direction (but no braking). 2-quadrant motor drivers (they can also to regenerative braking. or they can drive in either direction) are not common. A few are 4-quadrant: they can drive or brake in either direction, without the need for reversing contactors.

In general, these motor controllers will work with these motor types:

• Brushed, series wound DC motors: the current flows through an armature winding to create the stator's magnetic field, and, through a commutator, to create the AC voltage powering the rotor
• Permanent magnet DC motors (PM): a magnet generates the stator's magnetic field; the current flows through a commutator, to create the AC voltage powering the rotor
• Integral controller DC Brushless motors: magnets generate the rotor's magnetic field; additional electronics inside the motor convert the DC voltage to AC to drive the windings in the stator
• Brushed, shunt wound DC motors: the voltage is applied in parallel to an armature winding (to create the stator's magnetic field), and, through a commutator (to create an AC voltage), to the the rotor

The first types two are common; the third type is not common at these power levels; the fourth type is available, but is typically powered by a Sepex driver (see next section).

Note that a Sepex driver (see next section) may also drive any of these motors.

Many of these DC motor controllers are for low voltage applications (12, 24 or 48 V), such as golf carts. Typically they are not isolated.

Manuf	Location	Models	Nominal voltage [Vdc]	Contin. current [Arms]	Peak current [Arms]	Notes	Lithiumate compatible (8)
							Wire	CAN
4QD	UK	1QD	12~48	100	20	(1)	✓
		2QD	10~56		50~100	(1)(5)	✓
		4QD	18~66		210~320	(1)(6)	✓
		Porter	12~48	30		(1)(5)	✓
		Pro 120	12~36	115	30	(1)(6)	✓
		Pro 150	16~48	60	150	(1)(6)	✓
		Unispeed	12~48	30	85	(1)	✓
		Vortex	12~36		55~110	(1)(6)	✓
Alltrax	US	AXE	12~72	200~400	300~650	(1)	✓
		NPX	24~48	125~135	300~400	(1)	✓
Baldor	US	Various	Line voltage			(7)	✓
Belktronix	US	500 A	120~144	300	500		✓
		800 A	120~144	500	800		✓
Cafe Electric	US	Zilla Z1K-LV	72~156		1000	(4)	✓
		Zilla Z1K-EHV	72~300		1000~2000	(4)	✓
		Zilla Z1K-HV	72~375		1000~2000	(4)	✓
		Zilla Z2K	72~156		2000	(4)	✓
		Zilla Z2K-HV	72~375		2000	(4)	✓
		Zilla Z2K-EHV	400		2000	(4)	✓
Manuf	Location	Models	Nominal voltage [Vdc]	Contin. current [Arms]	Peak current [Arms]	Notes	Lithiumate compatible (8)
							Wire	CAN
Curtis	US	1204, 1205	36~72		275~500		✓
		1207	24		250~300		✓
		1209B	24~72		400~500		✓
		1221C	72~144		500~550		✓
		1231C	72~120		400		✓
		1253	48~80		600		✓
		1254C	24~80		400~700		✓
		1210	24		45~70		✓
		1212	24		45~70		✓
		1214	24~48		400~600		✓
		1228	24~36		70~110		✓
		1225/1235	24~36		90~125		✓
		1227/1237	24~48		100~250		✓
DCP	US	Raptor	48~156		600 / 1200	(1)(4)	✓
Evnetics	US	Soliton JR	9~342	500	600		✓
		Soliton 1	9~342	1000	1000		✓
Kelly	US	KDZ	12~72	80~200	100~500	(1)	✓
		KDC	24~120	160~320	400~800	(1)	✓
		PM	12~120	40~200	100~500	(1)(3)(6)	✓
		HPM	24~144	135~450	300~900	(3)(6)	✓
		KDH	24~156	90~900	200~1800	(3)	✓
		HSR	72~144	135~405	300~900	(3)	✓
Manuf	Location	Models	Nominal voltage [Vdc]	Contin. current [Arms]	Peak current [Arms]	Notes	Lithiumate compatible (8)
							Wire	CAN
Logisystems	US	?	?	?	?	(4)	✓
Navitas ASI	Canada	TSE	24~96	325	1000	(1)	✓
		CTL	12~48		450	(1)	✓
		TSP	12~48		400	(1)	✓
		BAC500	21~48		60		✓
		BAC1000	21~72		120	(3)	✓
		BAC2000	30~60	75	120	(2)(3)	✓	VCU
		BAC3000	21~72		240	(3)	✓
		TPM100	24~48	30	100	(2)(3)(6)	✓	VCU
		TPM100	24~48	200	400	(2)(3)(6)	✓	VCU
NetGain Controls	US	WarP-Drive	160~360		1000~1400	(2)	✓	✓Direct
Piktronik	Slovenia	PD3	24~48		260		✓
PG drives	UK	SigmaDrive SRT865L	72~80	240	650		✓
		SigmaDrive SRT850M	72~80	120	500		✓
		SigmaDrive SRT465M	24~48	260	650		✓
		SigmaDrive SRT445M	24~48	180	450		✓
		SigmaDrive SRT425S	24~48	80	250		✓
		SigmaDrive PMT835M	72~80	120	350		✓
		SigmaDrive PMT465L	24~48	260	650		✓
		SigmaDrive PMT445M	24~48	180	450		✓
		SigmaDrive PMT425S	24~48	80	250		✓
Sevcon	UK	SC1000	24~48		180~250		✓
		SC1200	24~36		180	(5)	✓
		SC1400	24~36		75~100	(6)	✓
		Millipak 4Q	48		300	(6)	✓
		Powerpak	24~80		300~600		✓
Synkro Motive	US	un-named	24~156	400	700		✓
Zapi	US	H0	24~36		180~230		✓
		PM-4Q	24~36		70~90	(6)	✓
		H-1	24~48		150~300		✓
		HP-CAN	24~80		450~500	(2)	✓	VCU
		H-2	24~120		?		✓
		H-3	36~120		800~1000		✓
		DUALPM-X	24~48		2x70 ~ 2x120		✓
		DUALPM-O	24~48		2x90 ~ 2x160		✓
Manuf	Location	Models	Nominal voltage [Vdc]	Contin. current [Arms]	Peak current [Arms]	Notes	Lithiumate compatible (8)
							Wire	CAN

1. non-isolated
2. CAN available
3. regen available
4. questionable availability
5. 2-quadrant, PM
6. 4-quadrant, PM
7. AC-powered, industrial grade (not for automotive)
8. CAN compatibility:
   • Direct: plug-in compatible
   • VCU: the motor controller requires a Vehicle Control Unit to interface to other components on CAN bus
   • VCL: Curtis controller needs to be programmed using its Vehicle Control Language

Open source, Do It Yourself, motor drivers

These motor drivers are made available to everyone.

• Open Revolt

Separate exitation (Sepex, SEM) DC motor controllers for shunt motors

These motor controllers have 2 DC outputs (3 or 4 wires):

• A 2-wire, high power output with a variable DC voltage, for the rotor
• A 2-wire, lower power output, with a (usually fixed) DC voltage, for the armature

With the addition of 2 sets of reversing contactors, these controllers can be easily used in 4-quadrant operation: they can drive or brake in either direction.

These motor controllers will work with this motor type:

• Brushed, shunt wound DC motors: the armature voltage is applied to an armature winding (to create the stator's magnetic field); the main voltage, through a commutator (to create an AC voltage), is apllied to the the rotor
• Any other DC motor (see previous section)

1. non-isolated
2. CAN available
3. regen available
4. CAN compatibility:
   • Direct: plug-in compatible
   • VCU: the motor controller requires a Vehicle Control Unit to interface to other components on CAN bus
   • VCL: Curtis controller needs to be programmed using its Vehicle Control Language

Motor controllers for controller-less brushless motors (BLDC)

There is nothing that is DC in these motors: these are truly AC motors, so we should really call them BLAC instead. However, the name BLAC is used for slightly different motors, with a sinusoidal magnetic field, instead of trapezoidal.

These motor controllers have 3 AC outputs (3 wires). They output a 3-phase, PWM (Pulse Width Modulated) output, to power the 3 phases of a controller-less brushless motor (BLDC).

Inherently, these controllers can work in 4-quadrant operation: they can drive or brake in either direction.

These motor controllers will work with this motor type:

• Controller-less Brushless motors: magnets generate the rotor's magnetic field; the AC from the motor driver drives the armature (stator) windings in synchronization with the rotor's position; there are no electronics inside the motor.

1. non-isolated
2. regen available

Motor inverters for induction AC motors

These motor controllers have 3 AC outputs (3 wires). They output a 3-phase, PWM (Pulse Width Modulated) output, emulating 3 sine waves 120 degrees apart, to power the 3 phases of an AC induction motor.

Inherently, these controllers work in 4-quadrant operation: they can drive or brake in either direction.

These motor controllers will work with this motor type:

• AC induction motors: induced currents in the rotor's winding generate the rotor's magnetic field; the AC from the motor driver drives the armature (stator) windings at a rotational speed that is typically higher than the rotational speed of the rotor (but not always).

Most of these AC motor inverters are for high voltage applications (> 100 V), such as passenger vehicles, heavy duty and industrial.

Most of these AC motor inverters are isolated, and they typically have a CAN bus interface.

Originally, the "inverter" name referred to deviced to convert DC to a fixed line frequency (50 / 60 Hz) and a fixed line voltage (110, 220, 400... Vac) Eventually, the name was applied also to AC motor drivers, even though their voltage and frequency vary considerably.

Manuf	Location	Models	Nominal voltage [Vdc]	Contin. current [Arms]	Peak current [Arms]	Notes	Lithiumate compatible (5)
							Wire	CAN
AC Propulsion	US	AC-150 Gen-2	336~360	200	580	(2)(3)	✓	VCU
Azure Dynamics	US	DMOC445	100~400	140	280	(2)	✓	VCU
		DMOC645	100~400	212	414	(2)	✓	VCU
Baldor	US	Various	Line voltage			(4)	✓
CalMotors	US	GP450	240~820	225	450	(1)(2)	✓	✓Direct
		GP1000	200~820	670	1000	(2)	✓	✓Direct
Centric Automotive	The Netherlands	Thrust | 200	200~750	300	350	(1)	✓	✓Direct
Curtis	US	1230	24		150~200		✓	VCL
		1232	24		150~250		✓	VCL
		1234	24~48		200~350		✓	VCL
		1236	24~80		300~500		✓	VCL
		1238	24~80		550~800		✓	VCL
		1238R	72~96		550~650		✓	VCL
		1298	24		200~300		✓	VCL
Eaton	US	Various				(4)	✓
FZ Sonick S.A Formerly MES-DEA	Italy / Switzerland	TIM 300	80~450	140	210		✓	VCU
		TIM 400	80~450	186	280		✓	VCU
		TIM 600	80~450	266	400		✓	VCU
Manuf	Location	Models	Nominal voltage [Vdc]	Contin. current [Arms]	Peak current [Arms]	Notes	Lithiumate compatible (5)
							Wire	CAN
TM4	Canada	80 kW	220~400			(2)	✓	VCU
		200 kW	200~400			(2)	✓	VCU
Piktronik	Slovenia	SAC1	24~48	50	110		✓	VCU
		SAC1-75A	24~48	75	110		✓	VCU
		SAC4	24~60	200	300		✓	VCU
		SAC4W	24~60	240	280		✓	VCU
		SAC41	96~290	250	280		✓	VCU
		SAC50	96~370				✓	VCU
		SAC60	96~240	320	400		✓	VCU
Rinehart Motion (RMS)	US	PM100DX	160~360	300			✓	VCU
		PM100DZ	300~720	150			✓	VCU
PG drives	UK	SigmaDrive ACT865L	72~80	240	460		✓	VCU
		SigmaDrive ACT835M	72~80	120	250		✓	VCU
		SigmaDrive ACT817S	72~80	70	120		✓	VCU
		SigmaDrive ACT465L	24~48	180	320		✓	VCU
		SigmaDrive ACT445M	24~48	180	320		✓	VCU
		SigmaDrive ACT425S	24~48	80	180		✓	VCU
		SigmaDrive ACT225S	24	80	180		✓	VCU
Manuf	Location	Models	Nominal voltage [Vdc]	Contin. current [Arms]	Peak current [Arms]	Notes	Lithiumate compatible (5)
							Wire	CAN
Sevcon	UK	Gen4	24~80	75~260	215~780		✓	VCU
		Gen4 size8	128~400	200	240		✓	VCU
		Nano	24~80		300~450		✓	VCU
		GpAC	150~350		800		✓	VCU
Siemens	Germany	Various				(4)	✓
Tritium	Australia	WaveSculptor22	160		100		✓	VCU
		Wavesculptor200	450		300		✓	VCU
UQM	US	HiTor	250~430	69	116	(2)	✓	VCU
		PowerPhase 125	250~430	172	290	(2)	✓	VCU
		PowerPhase 145	250~430	200	336	(2)	✓	VCU
		PowerPhase 150	250~430	207	348	(2)	✓	VCU
		PowerPhase 200	250~430	276	464	(2)	✓	VCU
		PowerPhase 75	250~430	103	174	(2)	✓	VCU
Zapi	US	CombiAC-0	24~80		180~320		✓	VCU
		CombiAC-1	24~80		225~350		✓	VCU
		AC-1	24~80		160~250		✓	VCU
		AC-2	24~120		300~550		✓	VCU
		AC-3	36~120		450~600		✓	VCU
		AC-4	36~96		550~750		✓	VCU
		AC-5	36~120		750~1000		✓	VCU
		DualAC-2	24~80		300~500		✓	VCU
Manuf	Location	Models	Nominal voltage [Vdc]	Contin. current [Arms]	Peak current [Arms]	Notes	Lithiumate compatible (5)
							Wire	CAN

1. Includes Vehicle Control Unit (VCU)
2. Includes motor
3. Includes charger, DC-DC, V2G
4. AC-powered, industrial grade (not for automotive)
5. CAN compatibility:
   • Direct: plug-in compatible
   • VCU: the motor controller requires a Vehicle Control Unit to interface to other components on CAN bus
   • VCL: Curtis controller needs to be programmed using its Vehicle Control Language