DIRECT-CURRENT POWER SUPPLY SYSTEM

• US 3,740,569 A
• Filed: 08/26/1971
• Issued: 06/19/1973
• Est. Priority Date: 08/26/1971
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hernando J. Carcia
• Original Assignee: Hernando J. Carcia
• Inventors: Carcia, Hernando J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shoop, Jr., William M.
• Application Number:
  US05/175,305
• Time in Patent Office: 663 Days
• Field of Search: 307/11,12,18,24,28,29,32,33,38,43,48,52,53,55 320/48 321/27 323/4,23,25
• US Class Current: 307/11
• CPC Class Codes: G05F 1/569 for protection
• CPC Class Codes: G05F 1/577 for plural loads
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 19/08 with current supply sources at the substations generating ringing current H04M19/04
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 320/19 Charger status, e.g. voltmeter

Abstract

A plurality of voltage regulator circuits are connected to a battery for producing regulated positive and negative output voltages of different values. A warning circuit is provided for causing a light emitting diode to blink when the battery voltage falls below a first value. An automatic shutdown circuit is provided for disabling the regulator circuits when the battery voltage falls below a second and lower value. An overload circuit is provided for rapidly blowing a protective fuse when the output voltage of one of the regulator circuits exceeds a desired value.

Claims

1. A direct-current power supply system comprising:

a pair of terminal means adapted to be connected to a battery of predetermined voltage value, one of such terminal means being grounded to circuit ground;

switching-type regulator circuit means coupled to the ungrounded battery terminal means for supplying to a load a regulated direct-current voltage of lesser value and of the same polarity as the voltage at the ungrounded battery terminal, such switching-type regulator circuit means including switching circuit means for converting the battery voltage into a pulsating voltage, filter circuit means for smoothing the pulsating voltage and supplying the smoothed voltage to a load and control circuit means responsive to the magnitude of the load voltage for controlling the switching circuit means for regulating the magnitude of the smoothed voltage supplied to the load; and

second regulator circuit means coupled to the ungrounded battery terminal means and including capacitor means, charging circuit means responsive to the switching regulator pulsating voltage for producing across the capacitor means a directcurrent voltage of polarity opposite to the polarity of the voltage at the ungrounded battery terminal means and circuit means for supplying the opposite polarity capacitor voltage to a load.

2. A direct-current power supply system in accordance with claim 1 and including warning circuit means comprising light emitting means and level sensitive oscillator circuit means coupled to the ungrounded battery terminal means and to the light emitting means and responsive to the battery voltage level for causing the light emitting means to blink when such battery voltage level falls below a predetermined value.

3. A direct-current power supply system in accordance with claim 1 and including circuit means coupled to the ungrounded battery terminal means and responsive to the battery voltage for disabling the switching circuit means in the switching-type regulator circuit means when the battery voltage falls below a predetermined level.

4. A direct-current power supply system in accordance with claim 1 wherein a protective fuse is connected in series between the ungrounded battery terminal means and the regulator circuit means and wherein the system includes overload circuit means connected to the regulator side of the fuse and responsive to the load voltage produced by one of the regulator circuit means for rapidly blowing the fuse when this load voltage exceeds a predetermined value.

5. A direct-current power supply system in accordance with claim 4 and including:

warning circuit means comprising light emitting means and level sensitive oscillator circuit means coupled to the ungrounded battery terminal means and to the light emitting means and responsive to the battery voltage for causing the light emitting means to blink when such battery voltage falls below a first predetermined level; and

circuit means coupled to the ungrounded battery terminal means and responsive to the battery voltage for disabling the switching circuit means in the switching-type regulator circuit means when the battery voltage falls below a second predetermined level which is less than the predetermined level for the warning circuit means.

6. A direct-current power supply system comprising:

circuit means for supplying a direct-current voltage of a particular polarity with respect to a point of fixed reference potential;

oscillator circuit means for producing a pulsating signal;

capaciTor means; and

charging circuit means coupled to the direct-current voltage supply circuit means and responsive to the oscillator pulsating signal for producing across the capacitor means a direct-current voltage of opposite polarity with respect to the point of fixed reference potential.

7. A direct-current power supply system comprising:

circuit means for supplying a direct-current voltage of a particular polarity with respect to a point of fixed reference potential;

oscillator circuit means for producing a pulsating signal;

first and second capacitor means; and

switching circuit means coupled to the direct-current voltage supply circuit means and to the capacitor means and responsive to the oscillator pulsating signal for alternately charging the first capacitor from the direct-current voltage supply means and discharging the first capacitor through the second capacitor for producing across the latter a direct-current voltage of opposite polarity with respect to the point of fixed reference potential.

8. A direct-current power supply system comprising:

a pair of terminal means adapted to be connected to a battery;

a first capacitor and a first diode connected in series with one another;

a second capacitor and a second diode connected in series with one another, this series combination being connected in parallel with the first diode;

a first transistor connected by its emitter and collector electrodes in parallel with the series connected first capacitor and first diode;

a second transistor connected by its emitter and collector electrodes in series between one of the battery terminal means and one end of the circuit branch formed by the series connected first capacitor and first diode, the other end of this circuit branch being connected to the other of the battery terminal means; and

oscillator circuit means coupled to the base electrodes of both transistors for supplying thereto a pulsating voltage for repetitively turning the transistors on and off with one transistor being on when the other is off and vice versa.

9. A direct-current power supply system comprising:

a battery for supplying direct-current power to a load;

light emitting means; and

level sensitive oscillator circuit means coupled to the battery and to the light emitting means and responsive to the battery voltage level for causing the light emitting means to blink when such battery voltage level falls below a predetermined value.

10. A direct-current power supply system in accordance with claim 9 and including circuit means for supplying a reference voltage and wherein the level sensitive oscillator circuit means includes:

comparator circuit means responsive to the reference voltage and to the battery voltage for producing a difference voltage when the battery voltage falls below a predetermined value; and

relaxation oscillator circuit means responsive to the difference voltage for causing the light emitting means to blink at a rate which increases as the battery voltage decreases.