CONTINENTAL CONTROLS AND DESIGN, INC. — National Aeronautics and Space Administration SBIR Phase I: A1

CONTINENTAL CONTROLS AND DESIGN, INC. — SBIR Phase I award from National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Amount
$124,919
Agency
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Program / Phase
SBIR · Phase I
Topic
A1
Solicitation
SBIR_18_P1
NAICS
Place of performance
CA
Period
2018-07-27 → 2019-02-15

Description

<p><strong>Current prototype motors and inverters for small aircraft electric propulsion have impressive efficiency of about 95 and 97% &nbsp;and typical power density of a little over 2kw/kg and 5kw/kg respectively. We can improve each of these metrics with a rigid winding which is formed in situ to increase slot fill and a 99.5% efficient inverter based on massively parallel, wide bandgap power switches. With independent &ldquo;Brains&rdquo; and &ldquo;Brawn&rdquo; sections, the inverter is scalable and can be distributed within the motor case, allowing fault tolerance and thermal integration benefits. The reduced weight and cooling needs represent an effective range enhancement of about 8% when configured for the X-57 cruise motors.</strong></p>