RICHTEK: Reshaping the Small E-Drive Industry Landscape with hairpin motors

1

The Emergence of a Game Changer

RICHTEK's Ambition and the Industry Shift

As the wave of electrification sweeps across the globe, an energy efficiency revolution in small and micro mobility is quietly unfolding. In a market long dominated by traditional round wire motors, issues like low efficiency, large size, and poor heat dissipation have persistently constrained industry development. RICHTEK, leveraging its forward-looking technology strategy and two decades of industry experience, is launching a powerful assault on this sector using "hairpin motors" as its breakthrough point.

According to data from the globally renowned consulting firm Frost & Sullivan, the global small and micro e-drive market reached $32 billion in 2023, with electric two-wheelers, electric tricycles, and low-speed electric vehicles accounting for over 45%. However, under the traditional technology roadmap, bottlenecks such as range anxiety, power performance, and reliability under complex operating conditions for these vehicles have never been fundamentally solved. RICHTEK's entry coincides with a critical juncture where the industry urgently needs technological innovation. The RICHTEK 100, 128, and 145 series hairpin motors not only increase power density to 1.5 times that of traditional products and reduce system volume by 30% through highly integrated design, but also drastically reduce the motor burn-out rate through the golden combination of hairpin motors and self-developed controllers, directly addressing key market pain points.

2

Ingenuity Heritage

Two Decades of Accumulation Leading to a Major Leap

As early as 2004, RICHTEK was involved in the micro motor field. The experience accumulated in micro-precision manufacturing became the fulcrum for today's industry transformation. From electric air pump motors to industrial-grade micro drive motors, RICHTEK has established a complete technology map in areas such as rotor mechanics, electromagnetic optimization, structural lightweighting, and quality control for ultra-high-volume production.

"We observed two key trends: the adoption of hairpin motors in new energy vehicles, and the rapid electrification in the motorcycle sector," revealed a RICHTEK engineer. These signals prompted the company to migrate its twenty years of technical reserves to the R&D of small flat wire e-drive systems, leading to the establishment of Dongguan RICHTEK New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. Through dedicated R&D by the RICHTEK team and industry-academia collaboration with several renowned universities and institutions, RICHTEK achieved breakthroughs in key technologies like electromagnetic design and winding topology optimization. The slot fill rate of its first-generation hairpin motor reached 80%, with motor efficiency as high as 96%, far exceeding the industry average.

3

Technology Revolution

The Disruptive Advantage of hairpin motors

At a road test site in a mountainous area of Chongqing, a comparative test is underway: A vehicle equipped with a RICHTEK 145 series hairpin motor shows a 22% increase in range with the same battery capacity, a 35% improvement in climbing ability, while the motor volume is reduced by 30%. This data visually reveals the performance leap brought by the technology generation gap.

From a technical principle perspective, the advantages of hairpin motors over traditional round wire motors are overwhelming:

★ Efficiency Leap: Flat wire winding increases conductor cross-sectional area by 20%, reduces copper loss by 10-15%, and pushes system efficiency beyond the 95% mark.

★ Heat Dissipation Revolution: The regular winding structure increases heat dissipation area by 50%, reduces temperature rise by 25%, and completely resolves the overheating problem common in small motors.

★ Space Liberation: Power density reaches 4.5kW/kg, a 40% increase compared to round wire motors, freeing up valuable space for the layout of other vehicle components.

Just as Tesla promoted the adoption of hairpin motors in the automotive field, RICHTEK is replicating this path in the electric motorcycle and tricycle sectors. Estimates suggest that when the cost of hairpin motors drops to 1.1 times that of round wire motors, market penetration will show exponential growth, and RICHTEK's intelligent manufacturing system is accelerating the arrival of this tipping point.

4

Product Matrix

Precise Coverage for All Scenarios

In the product display area of RICHTEK's Chongqing R&D Center, three major motor series form a complete product matrix:

★ 100 Series (Peak Power 800W-1500W): Meets the design requirements for light electric bicycles, leisure tricycles, and special equipment. Maximum speed 8000rpm, weight only 3.2kg.

★ 128 Series (Peak Power 6kW-15kW): Designed specifically for electric motorcycles and electric tricycles. Peak torque 55N·m, maximum speed 8000 RPM, maximum vehicle speed up to 75km/h.

★ 145 Series (Peak Power 10kW-30kW): Targets high-end electric motorcycles, heavy-duty tricycles, and electric equipment.

Particularly noteworthy is the flagship 145 series hairpin motor: Within a compact diameter of 145mm, it achieves a maximum speed of 10000rpm and a powerful torque of 85N·m, enabling a top speed of 150km/h when installed on an electric motorcycle. Coupled with an IP67 protection rating and an operating temperature range of -40°C to 220°C, it completely shatters the traditional perception of small motors being "delicate".

5

Intelligent Manufacturing

Redefining Production Standards

Entering RICHTEK's smart workshop would overturn one's perception of traditional motor manufacturing. Dozens of automated equipment units form the stator production line, completing the core hairpin forming process at a speed of one hairpin every 3 seconds. The production data management system here monitors every process in real-time; any deviation triggers an automatic correction procedure.

"We introduced manufacturing concepts from the automotive industry," explained the production manager, pointing to a laser welding machine. "This equipment can complete welding for 96 points at a speed of 0.4 seconds per point, with the heat-affected zone controlled within 0.3mm. This is a precision unattainable by manual operation." In the testing phase, the motor comprehensive test bench can simulate full working condition tests from -40°C extreme cold to Gobi desert heat. Every motor undergoes more than ten rigorous tests before leaving the factory. This automated production line at RICHTEK allows 600 hairpin motors to go through the entire process and be stored in the warehouse daily.

6

Dual-Core Drive

Deep Integration of the Motor and Control System

In a vehicle dispatch center of a Southeast Asian government's sanitation department, technicians are debugging electric sanitation tricycles equipped with RICHTEK's fully integrated drive system. "The matching degree between the motor and controller reaches 98%, and the acceleration response time is shortened by 0.3 seconds. This is crucial for urban cleaning work with frequent starts and stops." Measured data from the center shows that the integrated system can reduce energy consumption by a further 8%.

RICHTEK's competitive advantage lies not only in the motor itself. Its self-developed FOC vector controllers, with high-end series products using automotive-grade MOSFETs, support CAN/LIN dual communication protocols. The specially developed Eco mode can extend range by 15%. More importantly, the system-level optimization brought by the joint calibration of the motor and controller creates a performance advantage and customization responsiveness that third-party products find difficult to replicate.

7

Quality Commitment

Building the Foundation of Technical Trust

Benefiting from two decades of deep cultivation in the automotive industry, RICHTEK possesses comprehensive quality system certifications such as IATF 16949 and ISO 9001. These quality management systems, originating from the automotive industry, require a PPM (defects per million) rate of less than 200 from suppliers.

"We dare to offer a three-year warranty, stemming from our extreme control over every link," said the quality director, presenting a test report. A motor housing that underwent a 200-hour salt spray test could still function normally. This reliability enabled vehicles of a Southeast Asian client, after being submerged in floodwater during the typhoon season, to have their motors still operating normally.

Conclusion

Redefining Industry Possibilities

While the industry is still watching the market prospects of hairpin motors, RICHTEK is fully prepared for the impending flat wire storm, with Phase I production capacity of 150,000 units, rapidly expandable to over 500,000 units based on global user demand. From passenger tricycles on the North China Plain to heavy-duty tricycles in the southwestern mountains, from commuter electric motorcycles in Vietnam to taxi electric motorcycles in Africa, its products are writing new application paradigms in diverse global scenarios.

This industry transformation driven by technology is perhaps just like the tireless intelligent equipment in RICHTEK's factory – precise, efficient, and steadfastly advancing towards the set goal. In the field of small e-drives, a new era of Chinese intelligent manufacturing is gradually becoming a reality as the flat wire windings are layered into place.