Allegro introduces a new coreless Hall effect current sensor

     Allegro, a global leader in sensing technology and power semiconductor solutions for motion control and energy saving systems, announced the introduction of a new coreless Hall effect current sensor, the ACS37610, ideal for use in demanding automotive and industrial systems with increased accuracy and sensitivity. It also provides advanced fault detection and user programmability.

     The new current sensor, the ACS37610, along with the ACS37612, is the industry's first truly coreless Hall sensing solution family, capable of measuring currents from 100A to over 4000A flowing through a bus or PCB trace with typical accuracy of 1% and without the need for an external magnetic collector or U-shaped magnetic shield. These innovative solutions enable system designers to increase efficiency and power density while reducing system complexity, BOM costs, footprint, and weight.

     Shaun Milano, Director of Current Sensors at Allegro, said: "Allegro has been a leading innovator in electroflumetry solutions for more than 20 years and pioneered codeless differential Hall effect electroflumetry technology. Our new ACS37610 enables customers to accurately measure hundreds or thousands of amps of current in a very cost-effective and simple way. Allegro's Hall effection-based differential sensors have excellent anti-stray field capabilities without the shielding required by competing solutions that slow down response and increase nonlinear errors in the system."

     The ACS37610 is the perfect choice for applications such as high-voltage traction motor inverters, 48V/12V auxiliary inverters, heterogeneous redundant battery monitoring, overcurrent detection, intelligent insurance, distribution units (PDUs), and power supplies for electric vehicles. The ACS37610 has a 250kHz bandwidth, dedicated over current and over heat fault pins, and full built-in diagnostics, making it ideal for safety-critical applications.

     The ACS37610 uses advanced differential sensing technology to improve the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) by 2.5 times and reduce noise by 2 times compared to the ACS37612. Lower noise provides the high resolution required for precise torque control, while the ACS37610's 4x sensitivity range enables flexible bus and PCB designs.

     As a non-mandatory measure, the shallow slot design of the bus or PCB copper wiring can further improve the signal-to-noise ratio of the system. The ACS37610 has a larger Hall element pitch of 2.5mm (compared to 1.8mm for the ACS37612), allowing for wider shallow slots with few problems such as thermal degradation and hot spots. Compared to the bus, the ACS37610 can be mounted horizontally or vertically, allowing for very high flexibility in mechanical assembly.