Inter-regulator control of multiple electric power sources
First Claim
1. In a system wherein at least two sources of electric power are connected in parallel, each source of electric power having associated with it a regulator, each regulator for producing a regulating signal for its associated source of electric power, one of the regulators operating as a master regulator and at least one of the regulators operating as a follower regulator, a method for controlling the sources of electric power comprising:
- sensing an output with the master regulator of a source of electric power;
generating a regulating signal for regulating the source of electric power associated with the master regulator based on the sensed output;
determining a percentage of maximum output for the source of electric power associated with the master regulator;
sending a instruction representing the percentage of maximum output from the master regulator to the follower regulator;
sensing at least one operational characteristic for each source of electric power associated with the follower regulator;
determining a regulating signal with the follower regulator for producing the percentage of the maximum output for the source of electric power associated with the follower regulator based on the instruction from the master regulator and the operational characteristic.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The present invention includes a system and method for controlling multiple sources of electric power using inter-regulator control. The regulators in the system may be of a universal type that may operate either as a master regulator or a follower regulator. Determination whether a regulator operates as a master or a follower regulator may occur before operation of the system, during operation of the system, or may reverse the role of master and follower regulators in response to operating conditions. The master regulator may control its source of electric power and may send signals to the follower regulators to control their sources of electric power. The control of the sources of electric power may be based on sensing output of at least one of the sources of electric power and based on the operational characteristics of at least one of the sources of electric power. Further, the follower regulator may verify the instructions sent from the master regulator.
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Citations
64 Claims
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1. In a system wherein at least two sources of electric power are connected in parallel, each source of electric power having associated with it a regulator, each regulator for producing a regulating signal for its associated source of electric power, one of the regulators operating as a master regulator and at least one of the regulators operating as a follower regulator, a method for controlling the sources of electric power comprising:
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sensing an output with the master regulator of a source of electric power; generating a regulating signal for regulating the source of electric power associated with the master regulator based on the sensed output; determining a percentage of maximum output for the source of electric power associated with the master regulator; sending a instruction representing the percentage of maximum output from the master regulator to the follower regulator; sensing at least one operational characteristic for each source of electric power associated with the follower regulator; determining a regulating signal with the follower regulator for producing the percentage of the maximum output for the source of electric power associated with the follower regulator based on the instruction from the master regulator and the operational characteristic.
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2. A system for producing electrical power comprising:
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at least two sources of electric power connected in parallel, the sources of electric power individually responsive to an associated regulating signal; at least two voltage regulators comprising; a master voltage regulator for sending a control signal to at least one follower regulator; and at least one follower regulator for receiving the control signal, for sensing at least one operational characteristic of its associated source of electric power, and for determining whether to accept or reject the control signal based on the operational characteristic. - View Dependent Claims (3, 4, 36, 37)
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5. In a system wherein at least two sources of electric power are connected in parallel, each source of electric power having associated with it a regulator, each regulator for producing a regulating signal for its associated source of electric power, a method for controlling the sources of electric power comprising
determining which regulator is a master regulator after power-up of the system; -
sensing an output of at least one of the sources of power; generating, by the master regulator, a control signal to control its associated source of electric power; sending a signal to a follower regulator based on the control signal; generating, by the follower regulator, a regulating signal for a source of electric power associated with the follower regulator based on the at least one signal. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A voltage regulator having functionality as a master regulator and as a follower regulator comprising:
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a processor; a communication interface in communication with the processor; memory in communication with the processor; and programming code stored in the memory for determining whether the voltage regulator operates as a master regulator or as a follower regulator. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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27. In a system wherein at least source of electric power are connected in parallel, each source of electric power having associated with it a regulator, each regulator for producing a regulating signal for its associated source of electric power, wherein the improvement comprises:
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code in the memory of the regulator for functioning as a master regulator; code in the memory of the regulator for functioning as a follower regulator; and means for determining whether the regulator is the master regulator or follower regulator, wherein a regulator may function as a master regulator or a follower regulator. - View Dependent Claims (28, 29, 30)
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31. In a system wherein at least two sources of electric power are connected in parallel, each source of electric power having associated with it a regulator, each regulator for producing a regulating signal for its associated source of electric power, one of the regulators being a master regulator and at least one of the regulators being a follower regulator, a method for controlling the sources of electric power comprising
sensing, by the follower regulator, at least one operational characteristic for its associated source of electric power; -
receiving, by the follower regulator, a control signal sent from the master regulator; and determining with the follower regulator, whether to accept or reject the control signal based on the operational characteristic for the follower'"'"'s associated source of electric power. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34, 35)
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38. In a system wherein at least two sources of electric power are connected in parallel, each source of electric power having associated with it a regulator, each regulator for producing a regulating signal for its associated source of electric power, a method for controlling the sources of electric power comprising:
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sending a first communication from the first regulator to the second regulator; and sending a second communication from the second regulator to the first regulator. - View Dependent Claims (39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49)
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50. A voltage regulator comprising:
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means for receiving a control signal; means for independently verifying whether to control a source of electric power associated with the voltage regulator using the control signal; and means for rejecting the control signal, based on the means for independently verifying, and for using a different signal to control the source of electric power. - View Dependent Claims (51, 52)
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53. A system for producing electrical power comprising:
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at least two sources of electric power connected in parallel, the sources of electric power individually responsive to an associated regulating signal; at least two voltage regulators comprising; a master voltage regulator for producing a regulating signal to the associated source of electric power, and for sending a follower regulator signal indicative of a percentage of maximum power; and at least one follower regulator for receiving the follower regulator signal, for sensing at least one operational characteristic of a source of electric power associated with the follower regulator, and for generating a regulating signal for its associated source of electric power based on at least one operating characteristic in order for the source of electric power to operate at the percentage of maximum power. - View Dependent Claims (54)
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55. A voltage regulator having functionality as a master regulator and as a follower regulator comprising:
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a processor; a communication interface in communication with the processor; memory in communication with the processor; and programming code stored in the memory for operating as one of a master regulator or follower regulator and for reconfiguring the voltage regulator to operate as another of the master regulator or follower regulator. - View Dependent Claims (56, 57, 58)
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59. In a system wherein at least first source of electric power and a second source of electric power are connected in parallel, the first source of power having associated with it a first regulator, the second source of power having associated with it a second regulator, each regulator for producing a regulating signal for its associated source of electric power, a method for controlling the sources of electric power comprising
operating the first regulator as a master regulator; -
operating the second regulator as a follower regulator; and reconfiguring the first regulator and the second regulator so that the first regulator operates as a follower regulator and the second regulator operates as a master regulator. - View Dependent Claims (60, 61, 62, 63, 64)
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Specification