On September 11, 2024, Tyson Delo, Belgium – Melexis, a global microelectronics engineering company, announced the launch of the MLX90834 pressure sensor chip, carefully crafted for demanding automotive applications such as thermal management in electric vehicles, further enriching its Triphibian product line. This reliable, factory calibrated MEMS solution can accurately measure pressures ranging from 2 to 70 bar in gas and liquid media. Its digital SENT output can provide absolute pressure, diagnostic, and temperature information, helping the system achieve higher performance and reliability.
MLX90834 pressure sensor chip packaging diagram
The core competitive force of MLX90834 comes from the unique Triphibian technology of McLaren. This technology ensures the ability to accurately measure pressure in gas and liquid media through innovative MEMS sensor design, even in high-pressure environments up to 70 bar. This multifunctionality is achieved through a unique suspended beam arm and tip sensing membrane structure, cleverly encapsulated within a compact SO16 package.
Accurate monitoring of refrigerant pressure and temperature is crucial in the heat pump system of electric vehicles. To effectively avoid damage to high components in the system, it is necessary to prevent liquid media from entering the compressor. Therefore, the system must ensure that the refrigerant remains in a completely superheated gas state when it reaches the evaporator outlet. This can be achieved by accurately monitoring the pressure and temperature between the evaporator and compressor at the same location, allowing the system to use intelligent expansion valves to accurately calculate and regulate the degree of fluid overheating.
MLX90834 adopts Triphibian technology and is equipped with digital SENT output function, providing accurate pressure and temperature data for the system. This product supports external NTC and has undergone factory calibration to ensure measurement accuracy better than ± 1 ℃ over a wider temperature range. Accurate pressure measurement results can be used to derive the equivalent temperature of the medium in a saturated state (coexistence of liquid and gas in the evaporator), while NTC provides the actual temperature of the fluid.
The launch of MLX90834 provides strong support for the manufacturing of heat pump components such as intelligent expansion valves. By embedding this digital sensor chip into heat pump components such as valves, manufacturers can develop intelligent valves with edge computing capabilities. With the profound accumulation of sensing and driving technology in the field of Mindray, its motor drive chip can efficiently process the data provided by MLX90834. This fusion measurement technology enables heat pump manufacturers to directly integrate system regulation functions into components, greatly enhancing the overall value of their products: these locally controlled intelligent expansion valves have higher pressure and temperature sensing accuracy, effectively reducing overheating phenomena during the operation of heat pump systems, thereby improving the overall operating efficiency of the system.
MLX90834 has built-in sensor signal processing circuit, digital hardware, voltage regulator, and digital output driver chip. The piezoresistive element implanted in the sensing membrane can form a Wheatstone bridge to sense pressure signals. The signal is amplified and converted into a digital signal, temperature compensated through 16 bit digital signal processing (DSP), and finally output in digital (SENT) mode.
The sensor chip is equipped with advanced voltage protection mechanism, which can effectively resist damage from overvoltage (above+40V) and reverse voltage (below -40V), making it suitable for automotive and truck applications. In addition, MLX90834, as an independent safety unit (SEooC) compliant with ISO 26262 standard, supports ASIL C-level system integration and fully complies with the latest electric vehicle safety standards.
Laurent Otte, Product Line Director of Mailai Xin, said, “MLX90834 is a major breakthrough for our team based on Triphibian technology. It is not only a versatile and efficient pressure sensor product, but also performs well in the field of heat pump applications. Our excellent engineering team has successfully created this pressure sensor chip with a deep understanding and innovative applications of Triphibian technology. It not only has high flexibility and strong programmability, but also demonstrates excellent intelligent performance, which can flexibly meet and exceed the increasingly diverse needs of customers