BMW "New Class": shift matrix and recycling

This year, the BMW iX3 will be the first vehicle in the New Class to go into series production at the Hungarian plant in Debrecen. What is new is that BMW has developed an intelligent control center, the "Energy Master". This is located on the high-voltage battery, which is produced at the Landshut plant. Production is scheduled to start in August 2025. According to BMW, the high-voltage battery of the 6th generation of BMW eDrive technology (Gen6) features 800-volt technology connected to the vehicle electrical system and is "fundamentally new and is used in all vehicle segments – right up to the high-performance models of BMW M GmbH," a spokesperson told heise online.

"The BMW Group is responsible for a whole series of new patent applications for the vehicle electrical system, including its electronic fuses," according to the BMW Group. A patent application has been filed for "the 800V/400V switching matrix" of the Energy Master. Depending on the charging station, the system then switches back to the required voltage. This alone is not a BMW invention, but is also used by other manufacturers. Among other things, the new Energy Master serves as an interface for the "high-voltage and low-voltage power supply as well as for the data from the high-voltage battery". This means that "the wiring of the cells can be changed as required", according to the spokesperson. Updates should also be possible remotely. By combining two different types of electric motor (ASM and SSM) and 800-volt technology, BMW wants to give its customers greater flexibility in the configuration of its electric vehicles – depending on requirements, the cars are then equipped with one, two, three or four electric motors.

The voltage level raised to 800 volts enables more power with the same amperage. At the same time, charging losses are reduced. The New Class will be the first BMW platform that can utilize these advantages. Up to now, 400 volts have been standard in all BMW electric cars. At peak times, up to 205 kW charging power was possible. In some cases, the competition is considerably faster. Smart promises up to 400 kW charging power in the recently launched E-SUV #5. Mercedes offers up to 320 kW in the new CLA. Both manufacturers rely on an 800-volt platform.

30 percent more charging power

The new high-voltage battery is said to charge 30 percent faster and provide 30 percent more range. BMW also promises a 20 percent higher energy density with the new round cells than with the fifth-generation prismatic cells. "The modules in which the prismatic cells of the Gen5 are bundled and integrated into the storage unit are no longer needed in the new concept," says a spokesperson. "Thanks to the new, even flatter design, the high-voltage battery can be integrated into various models regardless of the vehicle height. The high-voltage battery is a structural component in the body of the New Class ('pack-to-open-body'). The new round cells are integrated directly into the high-voltage battery ('cell-to-pack')," says the BMW Group press release. Bidirectional charging should also be possible with the new battery.

Recycling

BMW has entered into various partnerships for the recycling of high-voltage batteries, for example with the company SK tes from Singapore. The company wants to recover cobalt, nickel and lithium from the old batteries. The recovered raw materials will then be used to manufacture new batteries. The partnership is to be extended to regions in the USA, Mexico and Canada by 2026.

In Lower Bavaria, BMW is setting up a competence center for battery cell recycling with its joint venture "Encory", intends to research further recycling processes and put direct recycling into practice. In this process, residual materials from battery cell production and entire battery cells are mechanically broken down into their valuable components. According to BMW, the raw materials obtained in this way are directly reused in the pilot production of battery cells in the company's own competence centers.

(mack)