Automotive high-side drivers from ST for stop-start vehicles

STMicroelectronics has introduced the industry’s first automotive high-side drivers to meet the stringent cold-cranking specification1 of the German car industry’s LV124 test schedule, making them ideal for vehicles with stop-start technology. The new VND7050AJ12 and VND7140AJ12 have minimum supply voltage of 3.2V, which is the best in the market, to keep essential equipment such as dashboard instruments operating as the vehicle battery voltage dips during engine cranking. The ST devices provide a compact and reliable replacement for electromechanical relays and associated circuitry, and are 40% smaller than the nearest competing high-side drivers. As the latest members of ST’s VIPower M0-7 family, the new drivers have built-in multiplexed current-sense diagnostics that provide precise analog load-current feedback. In addition, best-in-class EMI performance exceeds CISPR 252 specifications. Together these features minimize demand for external sensing and filtering components. Further advantages common to ST’s VIPower M0-7 devices include ultra-low quiescent current, which minimizes drain on the battery in idle mode, configurable auto-restart protection against hazardous conditions, and Grade-A short-circuit robustness up to one million cycles. The wide range of VIPower M0-7 drivers offers extensive package and pin compatibility, as well as low cost per channel, to simp...