HORIBA, Ltd. (hereinafter, “HORIBA”) is launching its Vehicle Thermal Management System Evaluation Facility solution (hereinafter, “the facility”) at full scale.
Vehicle thermal management is a technology that controls and optimizes temperature by exchanging heat among systems such as the cooling and temperature control systems for motors and batteries inside a vehicle, as well as the cabin air-conditioning system. As greater energy efficiency is increasingly required to help realize a decarbonized society, the importance of thermal management continues to grow in the automotive industry. Thermal management is particularly important for electric vehicles and is gaining attention as a technology that helps extend driving range and prolong battery life.
The facility is designed to evaluate advanced thermal management systems required for EVs and hybrid vehicles. By combining “emulators” that emulate the heat generated by batteries, motors, inverters, and cabin air-conditioning systems with an “environmental chamber”*1 that replicates temperatures ranging from low-temperature environments (-30°C) to high-temperature environments (50°C)*2, the facility enables comprehensive testing that reproduces thermal conditions inside and outside a vehicle. Developers can evaluate how an EV’s complex thermal management system functions from the early stages of development even before all components are available by recreating temperature changes and heat transfer conditions close to an actual vehicle. By using this facility for tests that were previously conducted with prototype vehicles, HORIBA helps shorten development periods through front-loading and reduce the number of prototype vehicles required, thereby contributing to cost reduction.
HORIBA has also applied its vehicle development test automation system, “STARS Automation”, which automates testing for vehicles, engines, and other components, to this facility. This enables integrated control of the evaluation facility and the vehicle thermal management system, as well as automated testing. By centralizing measurement and control, test data acquisition, and safety monitoring, and by monitoring heat transfer among components and the behavior of the cabin air-conditioning system in real time, HORIBA supports the development of optimal thermal management systems that improve vehicle performance.
In addition, and in conjunction with the full-scale launch of this facility in May 2026, HORIBA partially renovated its automotive development test facility, “E-LAB”, located at its production, and research and development site, “HORIBA BIWAKO E-HARBOR” in Shiga Prefecture. Visitors can experience the latest vehicle thermal management system evaluation capabilities through demonstrations for customers considering installation, as well as training for customers that have already adopted the facility. HORIBA will also work to develop new solutions by combining the facility with existing battery evaluation equipment and other testing systems.
Kazuya Tsurumi, Junior Corporate Officer and General Manager of the Energy & Environment Technology Division at HORIBA Ltd, says, “In the automotive industry, the spread of electric and hybrid vehicles has made thermal management, which enhances comfort and vehicle performance, increasingly important. At the same time, challenges have also become more apparent, including the need to develop complex technologies that efficiently manage heat among components such as batteries and cabin air-conditioning systems, as well as the significant time and cost required to prepare prototype vehicles.
Against this backdrop, HORIBA developed the Vehicle Thermal Management System Evaluation Facility by combining HORIBA MIRA, Ltd.’s expertise in thermal management development, cultivated over many years in the UK, with HORIBA’s system integration technologies. Through the provision of this facility, HORIBA will help address challenges at automotive development sites and drive technological innovation.”
*1 Various conditions, including temperature, can be customized according to customer requirements. The facility installed at E-LAB can reproduce temperatures from −20°C to 50°C (ambient temperature up to 40°C and cabin temperature up to 50°C).
*2 A device used to maintain a specific temperature at a constant level. It is widely used in various fields, including product evaluation.
