Converter

• US 10,238,014 B2
• Filed: 09/08/2017
• Issued: 03/19/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/2016
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Schulz, Martin
• Primary Examiner(s): Vortman, Anatoly
• Application Number:
  US15/699,285
• Publication Number:
  US 20180084666A1
• Time in Patent Office: 557 Days
• Field of Search: 361716
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/36 Selection of materials, or shaping, to facilitate cooling or heating, e.g. heatsinks H01L23/28, H01L23/40, H01L23/42, H01L23/44, H01L23/46 take precedence; heating H01L23/345
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/367 Cooling facilitated by shape of device H01L23/38, H01L23/40, H01L23/42, H01L23/44, H01L23/46 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 1/327 against abnormal temperatures
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/003 Constructional details, e.g. physical layout, assembly, wiring or busbar connections
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/48 using discharge tubes with control electrode or semiconductor devices with control electrode
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/4835 comprising two or more cells, each including a switchable capacitor, the capacitors having a nominal charge voltage which corresponds to a given fraction of the input voltage, and the capacitors being selectively connected in series to determine the instantaneous output voltage
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/1432 specially adapted for power drive units or power converters
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/14329 specially adapted for the configuration of power bus bars
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/209 Heat transfer by conduction from internal heat source to heat radiating structure H05K7/20909 takes precedence

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to converters. Embodiments of the teachings herein may be employed for converting an input voltage present between two input terminals into an alternating voltage with a prespecified amplitude and frequency for the activation of a single or multiphase load. For example, a converter may include: at least two submodules of an inverter arm connected in series with one another and a heat sink. Each of the submodules may include: a circuit carrier; at least two controllable switching elements electrically connected on the circuit carrier; and a first and a second terminal. The first main terminals of the controllable switching elements may be connected thermally to a cooling surface of the heat sink. The heat sink may include a number of heat sink parts electrically insulated from one another. An electrical connection of the second submodule terminal of the first submodule to the first submodule terminal of the second submodule may include a respective assigned heat sink part.

Claims

1. A converter for converting an input voltage between two input terminals into an alternating voltage with a prespecified amplitude and frequency for the activation of a single or multiphase load, the converter comprising:

at least two submodules of an inverter arm connected in series with one another; and

a heat sink;

wherein each of the submodules comprises;

a circuit carrier;

at least two controllable switching elements electrically connected to one another on the circuit carrier;

a first submodule terminal; and

a second submodule terminal;

a set of first main terminals of the controllable switching elements of the at least two submodules connected thermally over their surface to a cooling surface of the heat sink;

wherein the heat sink comprises a number of heat sink parts electrically insulated from one another; and

an electrical connection of the second submodule terminal of the first submodule to the first submodule terminal of the second submodule includes a respective assigned heat sink part of the heat sink.

2. The converter as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first main terminals of the switching elements comprise flat contacts attached by their full surface to the respective assigned heat sink part.

3. The converter as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first main terminals of the switching elements are connected by a force fit or a material-to-material fit to the respective assigned heat sink part.

4. The converter as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first main terminals of the switching elements are connected directly to the assigned heat sink part.

5. The converter as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first main terminals of the switching elements are connected via a conductive layer attached to the respective assigned heat sink part to said part.

6. The converter as claimed in claim 5, wherein the conductive layer comprises a metal rail.

7. The converter as claimed in claim 1, comprising exactly one more heat sink than a number of half bridge submodules present in the converter.

8. The converter as claimed in claim 1, wherein the heat sink parts comprise cooling surfaces.

9. The converter as claimed in claim 1, wherein the heat sink parts are arranged in one plane.

10. The converter as claimed in claim 1, wherein the heat sink parts of the heat sink are arranged above one another;

and

the switching elements assigned to a heat sink part are arranged on main surfaces of the assigned heat sink part lying opposite one another.

11. The converter as claimed in claim 1, wherein an electrical connection between a second main terminal of the first switching element and a first main terminal of the second switching element of a half bridge submodule includes one or more conductor tracks of the circuit carrier of the half bridge submodule.

12. The converter as claimed in claim 1, wherein two inverter arms are connected in series between the two input terminals per phase;

and

a node point is coupled between the two inverter arms to an output terminal of an inverter phase.

13. The converter as claimed in claim 12, further comprising at least two submodules per inverter arm and phase.

14. The converter as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

a respective submodule comprises a half bridge with two controllable and series-interconnected switching elements;

each of the at least two switching elements comprises a respective first main terminal and a respective second main terminal;

the first submodule terminal is connected electrically to the first main terminal of one of the first of the at least two switching elements;

the second submodule terminal is connected electrically to a node point of the second main terminal of the first switching element and the first main terminal of a second of the at least two switching elements.

15. The converter as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the submodule comprises a full bridge with two half bridges interconnected in parallel;

in a first of the half bridges a first and a second switching element are interconnected in series and in a second of the half bridges a third and a fourth switching element are interconnected in series;

the first switching element comprises a first main terminal and a second main terminal having a node point;

the first submodule terminal is connected electrically to the node point of the second main terminal of the first switching element and the first main terminal of the second switching element;

the second submodule terminal is connected electrically to a node point of a second main terminal of the third switching element and a first main terminal of the fourth switching element;

the first main terminals of the first and third switching element are electrically connected to one another via a further heat sink part of the heat sink.