Converter with redundant circuit topology

• US 10,287,030 B2
• Filed: 05/29/2015
• Issued: 05/14/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/09/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rolls-Royce Deutschland Limited & Company KG (Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc)
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Lutze, Marcel, Pfeifer, Markus
• Primary Examiner(s): Kessie, Daniel
• Assistant Examiner(s): Willoughby, Terrence R
• Application Number:
  US15/324,540
• Publication Number:
  US 20170197730A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,446 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 2221/00 Electric power distribution systems onboard aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 27/026 comprising different types of power plants, e.g. combination of a piston engine and a gas-turbine Hybrid electric aircraft B64D27/33
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 27/24 using steam or spring force jet aircraft B64D27/16
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 47/00 Equipment not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: H02K 19/34 Generators with two or more outputs
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 1/0074 Plural converter units whose inputs are connected in series
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 1/325 with means for allowing continuous operation despite a fault, i.e. fault tolerant converters
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 3/1588 comprising at least one synchronous rectifier element H02M3/1582, H02M3/1584 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 5/458 using semiconductor devices only
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/25 arranged for operation in series, e.g. for multiplication of voltage
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/5387 in a bridge configuration
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 27/06 using dc to ac converters or inverters H02P27/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/10 Technologies improving the efficiency by using switched-mode power supplies [SMPS], i.e. efficient power electronics conversion e.g. power factor correction or reduction of losses in power supplies or efficient standby modes

Abstract

A converter for an aircraft includes an intermediate circuit for providing a DC voltage between a positive line and a negative line, at least two rectifiers connected to the intermediate circuit to produce the DC voltage from input AC voltages and at least two inverters connected to the intermediate circuit to produce AC output voltages from the DC voltage. The DC voltage terminals of the rectifiers are connected to a first series circuit and the DC voltage terminals of the inverters are connected to a second series circuit. The positive line and the negative line of the intermediate circuit are connected on an input side via the first series circuit and on the output side via the second series circuit. At least one of the DC voltage terminals includes a short circuit for short-circuiting terminal contacts by which the DC voltage terminal is connected to the respective series circuit.

Claims

1. A converter comprising:

a DC link for providing a DC voltage between a positive line and a negative line;

a battery connecting the positive line and the negative line in the DC link;

at least two rectifiers connected to the DC link for producing the DC voltage from polyphase input AC voltages by DC voltage connections of the rectifiers, said DC voltage connections of the rectifiers being interconnected so as to form a first series connection;

at least two inverters connected to the DC link for producing polyphase output AC voltages to a connected load from the DC voltage by DC voltage connections of the inverters, said DC voltage connections of the inverters being interconnected so as to form a second series connection, said positive line and said negative line of the DC link having their input sides connected to one another via the first series connection and said positive line and said negative line of the DC link having their output sides connected to one another via the second series connection; and

a short circuit in at least one of the DC voltage connections of the rectifiers or inverters for short-circuiting connection contacts by which the DC voltage connections of the rectifiers and the inverters are connected to the first and second series connections,

wherein the short circuit of at least one of the at least two inverters is formed by connecting the connection contacts of the at least one inverter by shorting second semiconductor switches of a half-bridge producing one of the polyphase output AC voltages, wherein a current to the load generated by the polyphase AC output voltages is blocked by a third semiconductor switch disposed between an polyphase AC output of the at least one inverter and the load when the second semiconductor switches are shorted.

2. The converter of claim 1, wherein the short circuit in at least one of the DC voltage connections of the rectifiers or inverters is formed by a first semiconductor switch which connects the connection contacts.

3. The converter of claim 2, wherein each of the first, second and third semiconductor switches is formed by an IGBT or a MOSFET.

4. The converter of claim 1, wherein at least one of the rectifiers and/or at least one of the inverters has the half-bridge with the second semiconductor switches, said converter further including a control device configured to detect a defective second semiconductor switch in the half-bridge such that the half-bridge remains permanently in an electrically conductive state, said control device further configured to activate the short circuit of a DC voltage connection which has the defective second semiconductor switch, said defective second semiconductor switch being connected by the DC voltage connection to one of the first or second series connections.

5. The converter of claim 4, wherein at least one of the DC voltage connections of the rectifiers or inverters has a decoupling circuit interconnected between one of the connection contacts of the DC voltage connections and the half-bridge of the rectifiers or inverters, said decoupling circuit being configured to block a current.

6. The converter of claim 5, wherein the control device is configured to provide a step-up converter mode or a step-down converter mode for the DC voltage connections which have both a short circuit and a decoupling circuit by alternately connecting the decoupling circuit and the short circuit.

7. The converter of claim 1, wherein the rectifiers and/or the inverters have each a smoothing capacitor.

8. An aircraft, comprising:

a polyphase electric drive motor for driving a propeller of the aircraft;

a polyphase electric generator; and

a converter configured to couple the electric generator to the electric drive motor, said converter including a DC link for providing a DC voltage between a positive line and a negative line, a battery connecting the positive line and the negative line in the DC link, at least two rectifiers connected to the DC link for producing the DC voltage from polyphase input AC voltages received from the polyphase electric generator by DC voltage connections of the rectifiers, said DC voltage connections of the rectifiers being interconnected so as to form a first series connection, at least two inverters connected to the DC link for producing polyphase output AC voltages for the polyphase electric drive motor connected to the inverters from the DC voltage by DC voltage connections of the inverters, said DC voltage connections of the inverters being interconnected so as to form a second series connection, said positive line and said negative line of the DC link having their input sides connected to one another via the first series connection and said positive line and said negative line of the DC link having their output sides connected to one another via the second series connection, and a short circuit in at least one of the DC voltage connections of the rectifiers or inverters for short-circuiting connection contacts by which the DC voltage connections of the rectifiers and the inverters are connected to the first and second series connections,

wherein the short circuit of at least one of the at least two inverters is formed by connecting the connection contacts of the at least one inverter by shorting second semiconductor switches of a half-bridge producing one of the polyphase output AC voltages, wherein a current to the polyphase electric drive motor generated by the polyphase AC output voltages is blocked by a third semiconductor switch disposed between an polyphase AC output of the at least one inverter and the polyphase electric drive motor when the second semiconductor switches are shorted.

9. The aircraft of claim 8, constructed as a fixed-wing aircraft.

10. The aircraft of claim 8, wherein the generator has at least two independent polyphase coil arrangements, said polyphase coil arrangements being connected to a different one of the rectifiers of the converter.

11. The aircraft of claim 8, wherein the electric drive motor has at least two independent polyphase coil arrangements, said polyphase coil arrangements being connected to a different one of inverters of the converter.