UGV Electrical Architecture: Power Distribution and Motion Control
A UGV or mobile robot electrical system moves current from the battery to the drives and the payload, protects every branch, and reports faults over the vehicle network. This page describes a reference architecture and maps each block to Redler Technologies solid-state circuit breakers, smart PDUs and motor controllers (servo drives).
Subsystems of a UGV electrical system
Most UGVs and mobile robots share five electrical subsystems, whatever the chassis.
- Battery bus. The pack sets the nominal bus voltage, commonly 24 V or 48 V on small and mid-size platforms, with higher-voltage packs on heavier vehicles. Charging and regenerative braking push the bus above nominal.
- Power distribution and protection. The bus is split into branches, each with its own current limit, so one faulty load does not take down the vehicle.
- Traction drives. Motor controllers for the wheel or track motors. They carry the highest currents on the vehicle.
- Auxiliary actuators. Turret, pan-tilt, steering, mast or arm axes. Lower power than traction, often with precise position control.
- Vehicle network. CAN or J1939 carries commands, status and fault reports between the vehicle controller and every node above.
Reference architecture
Power flows from the battery through a main solid-state circuit breaker onto the DC bus. A smart PDU feeds the low-power loads, each on its own protected channel. Traction and actuator drives connect to the bus through branch breakers.
Drives usually connect through their own branch breaker rather than a PDU channel, because a drive's DC input current can exceed a PDU channel rating. Check each drive's DC input current against the channel rating before assigning it to a PDU channel.
The breakers, PDU and drives are all nodes on one CAN network, so the vehicle controller can command the drives and read status from the PDU and breakers.
From block to product
Each table value is taken from the product's published data. Open a product for the full specification.
Main and branch protection: Power Rider solid-state circuit breakers
Solid-state circuit breakers (SSCBs, also called SSPCs) interrupt faults electronically and report over CAN bus and RS485. The Power Rider 150A is listed as a circuit breaker, relay and contactor in one unit. Use the highest rating as main protection and the lower ratings on branches. The High Voltage model is for battery and energy-storage buses above the range of the other breakers.
| Product | Current | Supply voltage | Interfaces |
|---|---|---|---|
| Power Rider 150A | 150 A continuous | 9–48 VDC, absolute max 55 VDC | CAN, RS-485 |
| Power Rider 80A | Up to 80 A continuous | 9–48 VDC, absolute max 55 VDC | CAN, RS-485 |
| Power Rider 25A | Up to 25 A continuous | 9–48 VDC, absolute max 55 VDC | CAN, RS-485 |
| Power Rider High Voltage | On request | Up to 400 VDC | CAN, RS-485 |
Power distribution: Power Rider smart PDUs
Each PDU channel is individually configurable and protected, which suits computers, sensors, radios and small actuators. The standard 12- and 16-channel models list a 1 µs hardware cutoff. Standards are shown only where the product data lists them, as "designed to meet"; see the quality and compliance matrix for the full per-product list.
| Product | Channels and current | Supply voltage | Interfaces | MIL-STD (designed to meet) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power Rider 12 Channel PDU | 12 channels, up to 25 A per channel | 9–48 VDC | CAN, J1939, RS-422, RS-485, Ethernet | MIL-STD-1275F, MIL-STD-461G, MIL-STD-810F |
| Power Rider 12 Channel Military Grade PDU | 12 channels, up to 25 A per channel, up to 240 A total | 9–48 VDC | CAN, J1939, RS-422, RS-485, Ethernet (optional) | On request |
| Power Rider 16 Channel PDU | 16 channels, up to 25 A per channel (50 A paralleled), up to 240 A total | 9–48 VDC | CAN, J1939, RS-422 (optional), RS-485 (optional), Ethernet | MIL-STD-1275F, MIL-STD-461G, MIL-STD-810F |
| Power Rider 16 Channel PDU Military Grade | 16 channels, up to 25 A per channel (50 A paralleled), up to 240 A total | 9–48 VDC | CAN, J1939, RS-422, RS-485, Ethernet | MIL-STD-1275F, MIL-STD-461G, MIL-STD-810F |
Traction: high-current motor controllers
EV Rider 200 lists J1939 alongside CAN bus and CANopen and supports motors up to 10 kW; regenerative braking is among its listed features. Rayon 135 supports motors up to 6.7 kW and lists CAN bus with optional CANopen.
| Product | Motor current | Supply voltage | Interfaces |
|---|---|---|---|
| EV Rider 200 Motor Controller | 200 A continuous, 350 A peak (RMS) | 24–96 VDC | CAN, CANopen, J1939 |
| Rayon 135 Motor Controller | 135 A continuous, 220 A peak (RMS) | 12–58 VDC (optional extension to 96 VDC) | CAN, CANopen (optional), RS-232, RS-422 |
Auxiliary actuators: turret, pan-tilt and steering drives
Choose by motor power and package size. Rayon 70 supports motors up to 3.5 kW, Rayon Single Board up to 800 W, Micro Rayon up to 450 W in a 30.4 × 25 × 9.6 mm package, and TMC III up to 355 W in 53 × 33 × 11 mm. All four list Hall sensor, incremental encoder and absolute (or SSI) encoder feedback.
| Product | Motor current | Supply voltage | Interfaces |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rayon 70 Motor Controller | 70 A continuous, 120 A peak (RMS) | 12–58 VDC | CAN, CANopen (optional), RS-232, RS-422 |
| Rayon Single Board Motor Controller | 16 A continuous, 40 A peak (RMS) | 12–58 VDC | CAN, CANopen (optional), RS-232, RS-422 |
| Micro Rayon Motor Controller | 10 A continuous, 20 A peak (RMS) | 12–28 VDC | CANopen, RS-232, RS-422 |
| TMC III | 12.5 A continuous, 25 A peak (RMS) | 12–28 VDC | CAN, CANopen (optional), RS-232, RS-422 |
Why one supplier for the electrical architecture
- One network. Every product on this page lists a CAN-based interface (CAN bus, CANopen or J1939). J1939 is listed for the PDUs and EV Rider 200. Interfaces differ by product, so confirm the profile against each datasheet before fixing your message map.
- One integration contact. Wiring, protocol and protection-coordination questions go to one engineering team instead of three vendors.
- One listed temperature range. Every product on this page lists −40 °C to +85 °C operating temperature in its data. This is a product-level figure, not a system qualification: the assembled vehicle still has to be tested against its own requirements.
Voltage classes: 24 V, 48 V and high-voltage buses
The table groups the products by the highest operating voltage in their data. Products listed to 28 VDC are for 24 V nominal buses. Those listed to 48 VDC or more also run on 24 V and suit 48 V nominal buses within the limits noted below. The High Voltage breaker is the only product here listed above 96 VDC.
| Highest listed supply | Products |
|---|---|
| 28 VDC | Micro Rayon Motor Controller, TMC III |
| 48 VDC | Power Rider 150A (55 VDC absolute max), Power Rider 80A (55 VDC absolute max), Power Rider 25A (55 VDC absolute max), Power Rider 12 Channel PDU, Power Rider 12 Channel Military Grade PDU, Power Rider 16 Channel PDU, Power Rider 16 Channel PDU Military Grade |
| 58 VDC | Rayon 135 Motor Controller (96 VDC with option), Rayon 70 Motor Controller, Rayon Single Board Motor Controller |
| 96 VDC | EV Rider 200 Motor Controller |
| 400 VDC | Power Rider High Voltage |
Check the bus maximum. A nominal 48 V pack can charge above 48 V, and regenerative braking can raise the bus further. Compare the pack's maximum voltage, including charge and regeneration transients, with each product's upper limit. Products listed to 58 VDC leave more headroom than those listed to 48 VDC. For a bus above 96 VDC that needs PDUs or drives, ask about a custom design.
Discuss your vehicle architecture
Send the battery voltage, traction and actuator currents, number of PDU loads and network protocol. We will propose a matching set of breakers, PDU and drives, and discuss a custom build where the standard products do not fit.
Related: Quality and compliance · Robotics and AGV solutions · Defense solutions