Voltage-converting circuit for the power supply of an electrical consumer of high output, particularly a bobbin winding machine

• US 5,796,598 A
• Filed: 01/27/1997
• Issued: 08/18/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 01/26/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: W. Schlafhorst AG & Co. (OC Oerlikon Corporation AG)
• Original Assignee: W. Schlafhorst AG & Co. (OC Oerlikon Corporation AG)
• Inventors: Wefers, Frank, Quante, Michael, Nowak, Hans-Georg, Flamm, Franz-Josef
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, MATTHEW VAN
• Application Number:
  US08/789,635
• Time in Patent Office: 568 Days
• Field of Search: 363/34, 363/35, 363/37
• US Class Current: 363/37
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 3/28 using discharge tubes with control electrode or semiconductor devices with control electrode to produce the intermediate ac

Abstract

An electric circuit for the conversion of a multiplicity of commercial power voltages to a predetermined supply voltage which is independent of the respective commercial power voltage, for a device with high electrical power requirements of high output, in the range up to 40 kW, such as a bobbin winding machine. The circuit contains a rectifier stage for generating a primary intermediate circuit DC voltage, a converter stage with power switches for generating a rectangular AC voltage, a high-power transformer with a connected secondary control circuit and a control stage which triggers the power switches at zero voltage in a phase-shift mode with a variable frequency and pulse width of the rectangular AC voltage as a function of the input voltage of the rectifier stage, the transformer primary winding current and both the voltage and the current in the secondary intermediate circuit.

Claims

1. An electrical circuit for the conversion of a multiplicity of commercial power voltages into a supply voltage for use with a device with high electrical power requirements, such as a textile bobbin winding machine, said supply voltage being independent of the respective commercial power voltage, said electrical circuit comprising:

a rectifier assembly for generating a primary intermediate circuit DC voltage in a range of approximately 300 V to approximately 1000 V by rectifying and filtering the commercial power voltage having a range of values between approximately 180 V and approximately 600 V;

a converter assembly having a plurality of triggerable power switches for converting said primary intermediate circuit DC voltage into an AC voltage having a rectangular waveform;

a high-power transformer having an intermediate circuit connected thereto for transforming said AC voltage having a rectangular waveform into said supply voltage; and

a control assembly for switching said power switches at zero voltage responsive to the primary intermediate circuit DC voltage, the current in the primary winding of said high-power transformer, and the voltage and the current in the secondary intermediate circuit, said control assembly switching said power switches using a variable pulse width of the AC voltage having a rectangular waveform required for achieving a predetermined supply voltage.

2. An electrical circuit according to claim 1 wherein said control assembly for switching said power switches at zero voltage responsive to the primary intermediate circuit DC voltage, the current in the primary winding of said high power transformer, and the voltage and the current in the second intermediate circuit, using said variable pulse width of the AC voltage having a rectangular waveform and a variable frequency for setting a transformer primary winding current, which is sufficient for storing the energy required for charge reversal of parasitic switch capacitors associated with leakage inductance of said high-power transformer.

3. An electrical circuit according to claim 1 wherein said high-power transformer is configured for a minimal primary intermediate circuit DC voltage for a predetermined power output at a predetermined switching frequency.

4. An electrical circuit according to claim 3 wherein said power switches within said converter stage are insulated gate bipolar transistors and said control stage triggers said insulated gate bipolar transistor switches in a manner wherein the difference of the average values of the positive or negative signal portions of the transformer primary winding current is controlled to be zero.

5. An electrical circuit according to claim 1 wherein said high-power transformer comprises core magnetic material that is lightweight and provides an efficiency of at least 0.9.