Sensata Technologies Introduces FaultBreak to Revolutionize Resettable High-Voltage Contactor for Electric Vehicles
Published: 06 Mar 2026
Author: Precedence Research
The FaultBreak high-voltage contactor is the innovation that has been announced by Sensata Technologies to power the systems of electric vehicles (EVs). This apparatus combines the safety measures of a fuse and a conventional contactor into one unit. They are simplifying the management of faults at high voltages and increasing the reliability and efficiency of the system. The FaultBreak is designed for the harsh environment of modern EV architectures and provides resettable passive fault protection. This allows temporary faults to be quickly cleared without replacement, unlike traditional one-use fuses. The solution will help simplify the overall power system architecture by reducing component complexity, enabling it to meet ISO-26262-compliant functional safety requirements.
FaultBreak capabilities have been highly tested, and the fault-clearing performance has been proven to 16 kA at 1 kV. The contactor also has very low contact resistance, minimizing power consumption in normal operation and enhancing the efficiency of the system. FaultBreak enables EV designers to optimize their designs for high voltages and higher-performance architectures without compromising safety by removing single-use fuses and simplifying system recovery. The FaultBreak helps achieve safety and system hardiness in general throughout the EV. High-voltage EV designs are frequently required to deal with sudden surges or faults that are hard to control, and which may damage delicate components or involve complex fault detection electronics.
The FaultBreak solves these problems by offering a safe, self-blastocast mechanism, which could safely cope with high-magnitude fault currents. This minimizes the complexity of the monitoring and control circuits and minimizes the design risk. Furthermore, the provided development highlights the interest of Sensata in innovation within the fast-moving EV market, which combats the technical and functional issues and paves the way for further evolution of the high-voltage vehicle structure.
Executives Statement
Markus Schwabe, EVP, Automotive, Sensata Technologies
“Our FaultBreak contactor represents an important advancement in high-voltage protection. It helps our customers build electric vehicles that are safer, more dependable, and more economical to produce and maintain. By integrating fault protection and contactor functions into a single device, we are reducing complexity, improving uptime, and enabling higher-voltage EV architectures that meet the demands of the modern automotive market.”