With its MLX91207 sensor, Melexis takes another step toward making cars more environmentally friendly by opening up new opportunities for contactless current sensing in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEVs) and Electric Vehicles (EVs), as well as in renewable energy applications. The MLX91207 is a fully customer-programmable monolithic IC sensor in a standard SO-8 package. The Hall effect sensor provides a high-speed analog output signal proportional to the applied external flux density. The MLX91207 allows users to create a robust current sensor solution with fast response times. The MLX91207 also features an additional thermometer output. It is suitable for DC and/or AC current measurements up to 70 kHz with ohmic isolation, very low insertion loss, fast response time, small package size, and minimal assembly cost requirements. The SO-8 package is machine-mountable and offers greater reliability than SIP packages.
Designed to meet the power management demands of widespread electronics use, the MLX91207 is suitable for automotive applications, renewable power conversion (solar and wind), power supplies, motor control, and overload protection. Typical applications include battery current control, solar power converters, and automotive inverters that drive the traction motor in hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs). The MLX91207 features overvoltage and reverse voltage protection, including broken trace diagnostics, and can therefore be used as a standalone current sensor connected directly to a wire.
The MLX91207 detects current by converting the magnetic field generated by currents flowing through a conductor into a voltage proportional to the field. The MLX91207's transfer characteristic is fully programmable by the customer (offset, gain, level settings, and more). The linear analog output allows the sensor to be used in applications requiring a very fast response time of <10 µs. An additional thermometer output signal helps monitor the ambient temperature in the application.
Custom calibration can be performed on-site after the sensor is mounted relative to the current conductor and ferromagnetic core, thus achieving calibrated current sensitivity. The typical accuracy of a current sensing system based on the MLX91207 is better than +/-1% at room temperature or +/-2.5% over the full temperature range (-40 to +125°C) with an in-line calibration circuit.
