HELLA Has Major Role At SAE Energy Management Symposium

PLYMOUTH, MI--Oct. 16, 2013: HELLA, a leading global supplier of automotive lighting and electronic components and systems, will have a major presence at the first SAE Energy Management Symposium taking place Oct. 21-22 in Dearborn, Michigan.

Topics covered at the inaugural two-day program will include new-hybrid vehicle technologies, energy harvesting, powertrain trends, connectivity and total-vehicle energy management.

Dr. Marc Rosenmayr, vice president of program management at HELLA Electronics, one of the program's organizers, will chair sessions on energy management challenges and connectivity trends. Other HELLA speakers will include Dr. Carsten Hoff, vice president of Energy Management, and Product Director Mark Weier.

Leaders from Ford, Honda, General Motors, FEV, Henkel, IAV, Johnson Controls, MAHLE and Michelin, along with several major universities and industry agencies, will be among the groundbreaking program's speakers and panelists. Dr. Martin Pischinger, FEV's vice president of Electronics and Controls, will deliver the keynote speech.

On the first day of the program, Hoff will discuss a new lithium ion battery management system based on a "daisy chain" architecture developed by HELLA. The technology offers significant benefits compared to traditional methods, including optimal packaging, fewer components and cost optimization.

"In order to make electric vehicles more affordable, the price of battery systems must continue to fall," Hoff points out. "New technologies and battery communication architectures such as our 'daisy chain' approach offer cost savings that also will lead to increased levels of standardization."

Weir's second-day presentation on the benefits of electrification compares the performance of electric vacuum pumps to mechanical pumps. The last day of the symposium features discussions on energy harvesting and savings.

"As fuel efficiency and emission regulations become more stringent, all areas for improvement need to be explored," Weier says. "That includes advanced technologies, as well as those tried and true approaches that have been underutilized in the past."

The conference's final session on "Connectivity Trends" will be led by Rosenmayr, who has spoken at a number of technical forums, including a session on energy management at the annual SAE World Congress in April.

"Energy management plays a critical role in the industry's on-going battle to meet stringent standards for fuel efficiency and emissions reduction," explains Rosenmayr. "The 2013 SAE Energy Management Symposium focuses on solutions automakers and suppliers are developing to address these issues.

"This type of program already has already become an annual event in Europe, allowing the automotive engineering community to discuss the urgent need to align today's vehicle technologies with future energy consumption standards. It would be great if such an activity could become an established event in the U.S. since our industry is facing very similar challenges."

HELLA is focused on creating innovative technologies to help vehicle manufacturers achieve aggressive fuel-economy and emission-based targets. The company's product portfolio includes a wide variety of powertrain and propulsion-based components, including intelligent battery sensors; DC/DC converters and storage modules for electric and hybrid vehicles; engine sensors and actuators, fuel-pump control modules and vacuum pumps for standard and downsized engines; and steering, throttle-valve and accelerator-pedal sensors for a wide variety of systems to provide optimal vehicle performance.

For more information about the SAE Energy Management Symposium visit: SAE Events