Guest Editorial Special Issue on Electric Machine Drives and Converters for Automotive Applications

The automotive industry is in the midst of a historically disruptive revolution. The electrification of the vehicle propulsion system was initiated by the shared global need to address climate change and the pace of this revolution has picked up speed as customers become more aware and costs decrease. Whether it be through hybridization or full electrification, all types and segments of automobiles are expected to shift primarily to electrified products within the next 10 to 20 years. With this growth, the automobile industry will foreseeably become one of the largest producers and users of electric machines, power electronic converters, and related components. Besides the primary propulsion of the vehicle (electric machines and drives), an even greater opportunity for innovation exists in the auxiliary systems that either enable (chargers, dc/dc converters, etc.) or are enabled (autonomy, accessory systems, V2X exportable power, etc.) by electrification. This broad application is expected to drive significant amounts of innovation and cost reduction that will have farreaching impacts on other power electronic applications.