Modular solid state power controller with microcontroller
First Claim
1. A modular power controller for selectively controlling the supply of electrical power to a plurality of separate electrical loads, comprising:
- master digital microcontroller means, including master program means and memory means containing load command information for each of said electrical loads;
serial data bus means;
said master digital microcontroller means being located at a first location having a first serial output port connected to said serial data bus for selectively issuing load command information in digital serial form onto said serial data bus for each of said plurality of electrical loads;
a plurality of load control means, said load control means being spaced from one another and positioned at other locations spaced from said master controller means;
each said load control means being connected to said serial data bus for receiving said command information;
each of said load control means comprising;
slave microcomputer means, including slave program means;
a plurality of electrical load circuits associated with said microcomputer means;
said slave microcomputer means for receiving said load command information in serial form transmitted by said master digital microcontroller means via said serial bus and processing said received command information, and said slave microcomputer means selectively providing power to respective ones of said plurality of electrical load circuits based upon the processed load command information.
0 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An improved modular solid power controller includes low cost low speed microcomputers embedded within the load cards to control a number of semiconductor power switches associated with corresponding electrical load circuits. A master controller microcomputer on the controller card communicates bilaterally with each of such slave microcomputers via a serial data path that extends along the backplane card and interconnects the former computer with each of the load cards, issuing commands in serial form and in high level language that is received by the addressed slave microprocessor, interpreted and acted upon by controlling the semiconductor power switches associated with the respective slave card.
-
Citations
28 Claims
-
1. A modular power controller for selectively controlling the supply of electrical power to a plurality of separate electrical loads, comprising:
-
master digital microcontroller means, including master program means and memory means containing load command information for each of said electrical loads; serial data bus means; said master digital microcontroller means being located at a first location having a first serial output port connected to said serial data bus for selectively issuing load command information in digital serial form onto said serial data bus for each of said plurality of electrical loads; a plurality of load control means, said load control means being spaced from one another and positioned at other locations spaced from said master controller means; each said load control means being connected to said serial data bus for receiving said command information; each of said load control means comprising; slave microcomputer means, including slave program means; a plurality of electrical load circuits associated with said microcomputer means; said slave microcomputer means for receiving said load command information in serial form transmitted by said master digital microcontroller means via said serial bus and processing said received command information, and said slave microcomputer means selectively providing power to respective ones of said plurality of electrical load circuits based upon the processed load command information. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
-
-
14. In a modular power controller of the type containing a controller card, a plurality of load cards and a backplane card in which each of said controller cards and load cards are interconnected in circuit by means of said backplane card, wherein said modular power controller selectively controls the supply of electrical power to a plurality of separate electrical loads, the improvement therein wherein said controller card issues command information selectively in serial digital form onto said backplane card for each of said load cards;
- and wherein each said load card includes a plurality of semiconductor power switches and an embedded microprocessor, said embedded microprocessor for receiving command information in serial form transmitted from said controller card via said backplane card, for interpreting and processing said received command information and for selectively controlling the electrical state of said semiconductor power switches associated therewith responsive to said interpreted processed received information, whereby each load card individually controls a plurality of electrical load circuits.
-
15. In a modular power controller of the type containing a controller card, a plurality of load cards and a backplane card in which each of said controller cards and load cards are interconnected in circuit by means of said backplane card, wherein said modular power controller selectively controls the supply of electrical power to a plurality of separate electrical loads, the improvement therein wherein said controller card issues command information selectively in serial digital form onto said backplane card for each of said load cards;
- and wherein each said load card includes a plurality of semiconductor power switches and an embedded microprocessor, said embedded microprocessor for receiving command information in serial form transmitted from said controller card via said backplane card, for interpreting and processing said received command information and for selectively controlling the electrical state of said semiconductor power switches associated therewith responsive to said interpreted processed received information, whereby each load card individually controls a plurality of electrical load circuits; and
wherein said controller card contains a default command output for providing default command information;
wherein each said load card contains a daisy chain input and a daisy chain output connected respectively to said backplane card; and
wherein said backplane card includes circuit means for connecting said daisy chain input of a first one of said plurality of said load cards to a verify output of said controller card and for connecting said daisy chain input of each of said remaining load cards to said daisy chain output of the respective preceding load card in said daisy chain; and
wherein each said load card further includes;a plurality of prioritizing means, each said prioritizing means having at least two priority inputs for passing only the signal at the input having the highest priority, each of said plurality of prioritizing means being associated with a respective one of said plurality of semiconductor switch means on said load card; semiconductor registering means for receiving said command information at said daisy chain input and passing said command information to said daisy chain output, wherein said command information is passed to the next successive load card in said daisy chain, and for outputting said received command information to a first input of each of said plurality of associated comparison means; each said comparison means having a second of said inputs coupled to an output of said embedded microcontroller for receiving low level command information from said microcontroller; and wherein each of said plurality of semiconductor switch means on said respective load card being responsive to a TRUE output from an associated one of comparison means for completing an electrical power transmission circuit. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
- and wherein each said load card includes a plurality of semiconductor power switches and an embedded microprocessor, said embedded microprocessor for receiving command information in serial form transmitted from said controller card via said backplane card, for interpreting and processing said received command information and for selectively controlling the electrical state of said semiconductor power switches associated therewith responsive to said interpreted processed received information, whereby each load card individually controls a plurality of electrical load circuits; and
-
22. In a modular solid state power controller of the type containing:
-
a panel;
said panel containing;first coupling means for coupling to an external electrical power source, second coupling means for coupling electrical power to a plurality of electrical loads and input coupling means for receiving electrical data from an external source; a first circuit board;
said first circuit board containing a master digital microcontroller, said digital microcontroller having an input coupled to said input coupling means for receiving and processing said electrical data;a plurality of slave circuit boards, each said slave circuit boards containing switching means for controlling the flow of electrical power in a respective plurality of electrical load circuits between an on and an off state; a backplane circuit board;
said backplane circuit board containing a plurality of electrical connector means, first electrical transmission paths for interconnecting signals from said master microcontroller and said slave circuit cards and second electrical transmission paths for interconnecting electrical power between said respective slave circuit boards and said second coupling means of said panel, said second electrical transmission paths comprising a plurality of individual transmission paths;said panel, first circuit board and said slave circuit board being oriented in spaced parallel relationship and orthogonal to said backplane circuit board; each of said first circuit board and said slave circuit boards containing electrical connector means for mating engagement with a mating electrical connector means on said backplane circuit board, wherein said first electrical transmission paths is connected amongst all said circuit boards and wherein said second electrical transmission path is connected amongst all said slave circuit boards and said second coupling means of said panel; the improvement wherein said power switching means comprises semiconductor switch means, said semiconductor switch means having a control input and being switchable between electrical conducting and non-conducting states in dependence upon a control signal applied to said control input; wherein said master microcontroller means includes means for issuing command signals in serial digital form and applying same to said first electrical transmission path of said backplane circuit board responsive to said data information; and wherein each of said slave circuit boards further contains slave microcontroller means having an output coupled to said control input of said semiconductor switch means for receiving said command signals in serial form via said first electrical transmission path and processing said command signals to low level command signals applied to said output for controlling the electrical state of said semiconductor switch means. - View Dependent Claims (23)
-
-
24. A power controller comprising:
-
master digital microcontroller means, including program means; a plurality of N load control means, each load control means including a programmed digital slave microcomputer means; and
a plurality of Y semiconductor power switches associated with said programmed digital microcomputer means, each of said semiconductor power switches being configurable between at least two modes of operation;a serial data bus, said serial data bus coupled between said master digital microcontroller means and said N load control means to provide a digital communication path therebetween; each said programmed digital slave microcomputer means having a communications port connected to said serial data bus; said master digital microcontroller means containing load configuration information for each of said Y power semiconductor switches on each of said N load control means and address information for each of said N load control means, and having a first serial output for outputting addressed load configuration command information in digital serial form onto said serial data bus for communication to a respective addressed digital slave microcomputer in a selected load control means, whereby each of said N load control means selectively receives load configuration command information from said master microcontroller via said serial bus; said master digital microcontroller means further having a second serial output; a plurality of N serial to parallel shift registers, each having a serial input, a serial output and an inhibit input;
each of said shift registers being associated with a corresponding one of said load control means;daisy chain circuit means coupling said second serial output port of said master digital microcontroller means and said serial inputs and serial outputs of each of said N shift registers in a daisy chain, wherein digital bits outputted from said second serial output port is inputted into a first shift register means in said daisy chain and digital bits outputted from a serial output of one shift register means is inputted to the next shifter register means in said daisy chain; said master microcontroller including program means for selectively assembling packets of load configuration information for each of said N load control means in the form of data bits and assembling the first through Nth packets of data bits in reverse serial order to form a stream of digital bits with the Nth packet for said Nth shift register means being arranged first in said stream and said 1st data packet for the 1st shift register means in said daisy chain arranged last in said stream and outputting said stream of bits from said second serial port, whereby each of said N shift register means respectively receives and registers specified load configuration information and outputs the registered load configuration information at its respective parallel output; each said load control means, further including; prioritizing gate means having a plurality of priority level inputs between at least first and second priority levels for outputting only the data present on the higher priority level input;
said parallel output of said associated shift register means being connected to said first level priority input of said prioritizing gate means and load configuration command information from an output of said associated slave microcomputer means being connected to said second level priority input of said prioritizing gate means, whereby said Y semiconductor power switch means is set to the configuration specified by the load configuration command information from the higher level input. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26)
-
-
27. A computerized arc extinguishing circuit for an electrical load circuit comprising:
-
arc extinguishing means associated with said electrical load circuit; said arc extinguishing means comprising; first semiconductor switch means having a control input a nd an output, said output being connected across said load circuit, said first semiconductor switch means being normally in a non-conductive state and switchable to an electrically conductive state, responsive to a TRUE input applied to said control input of said first semiconductor switch means; current sensor means for monitoring current flow in said load circuit and providing an output indicative of current level; second semiconductor switch means, having a control input and an output, said second semiconductor switch means being normally in an electrically conductive state and being switchable to an electrically non-conductive state responsive to a TRUE input applied to said control input of said second semiconductor switch means, said second semiconductor switch means being connected in series with said load circuit; control circuit means for supplying a TRUE input to said control input of said second semiconductor switch means, responsive to said current sensor means output attaining a predetermined interrupt level; microcomputer means, including program means for detecting the simultaneous presence of a low line voltage on said load circuit and a zero line current measured by said current sensor means and for providing a TRUE input to said first semiconductor switch means, whereby said first semiconductor switch means provides a conductive circuit across the lines of said load circuit; means for inputting said current sensor means output to said microcomputer means, wherein said microcomputer means senses the level of said line current; and voltage sensing means for coupling said load circuit to said microcomputer means, wherein said microcomputer means senses the level of said line voltage. - View Dependent Claims (28)
-
Specification