About 5 km in length, 50 kg in weight, 1000 individual wires and 1500 contacts - these are the key data of a wire harness in today's mid-range passenger car. The requirements on the wire harness are versatile: reliable transmission of data between control units, sensors or cameras, but also, for example, the low-resistance transport of electrical currents.
In addition, the current 12 V vehicle electrical systems are increasingly being replaced by high-current and high-voltage vehicle electrical systems in fully electric and/or autonomous vehicles. Li-Ion batteries are used as energy storage devices. The energy flow to the battery (charging process) or from the battery to the electric motor must be controlled and regulated. Among other things, power electronics modules are of decisive importance here.
Regardless of whether cable harnesses, Li-ion batteries or power electronics modules are manufactured, ultrasonic metal welding is the key technology for manufacturing these components in all areas and thus a central technology on the road to e-mobility.
Please read our article in ATZproduktion, issue November 2018.