Methods and apparatus for three-phase inverter with reduced energy storage
First Claim
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1. A circuit, comprising:
- first and second energy sources coupled in series, the first energy source including a first DC-DC converter that generates a first modulated DC waveform on a first energy storage device coupled to the first energy source, the second energy source including a second DC-DC converter that generates a second modulated DC waveform on a second energy storage device coupled to the second energy source, wherein the first DC-DC converter is operably coupled in series with the second DC-DC converter to form a positive rail, a negative rail, and a neutral; and
a single multi-level inverter coupled to the positive rail, negative rail, and neutral, the multi-level inverter configured to unfold and sum the first and second modulated DC waveforms to produce three-phase sinusoidal output voltages.
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Abstract
Methods and apparatus for a circuit including first and second energy sources, a rectifier coupled to the first and second energy sources, first and second energy storage devices coupled end-to-end across the positive and negative rails, and a single three-level inverter coupled to the rectifier for providing three-phase sinusoidal output voltages.
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Citations
28 Claims
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1. A circuit, comprising:
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first and second energy sources coupled in series, the first energy source including a first DC-DC converter that generates a first modulated DC waveform on a first energy storage device coupled to the first energy source, the second energy source including a second DC-DC converter that generates a second modulated DC waveform on a second energy storage device coupled to the second energy source, wherein the first DC-DC converter is operably coupled in series with the second DC-DC converter to form a positive rail, a negative rail, and a neutral; and a single multi-level inverter coupled to the positive rail, negative rail, and neutral, the multi-level inverter configured to unfold and sum the first and second modulated DC waveforms to produce three-phase sinusoidal output voltages. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A method comprising:
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coupling first and second energy sources in series, the first energy source including a first DC-DC converter and the second energy source including a second DC-DC converter, wherein the first DC-DC converter is operably coupled in series with the second DC-DC converter to form a positive rail, a negative rail, and a neutral; coupling first and second energy storage devices to the first and second energy sources, such that the first energy storage device is coupled end-to-end across the positive rail and the neutral, and the second energy storage device is coupled end-to-end across the negative rail and the neutral; generating a first modulated DC voltage waveform on the first energy storage device and a second modulated DC voltage waveform on the second energy storage device; coupling a single three-level inverter to the positive rail, negative rail, and neutral; and unfolding and summing the first and second modulated DC waveforms to produce three-phase sinusoidal output voltages at outputs of the three-level inverter. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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25. A method for generating a three-phase output voltage, the method comprising:
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providing a first energy source comprising a first DC-DC converter that generates a first modulated DC waveform and a second energy source comprising a second DC-DC converter that generates a second modulated DC waveform, wherein each DC waveform comprises two or more segments, with each segment corresponding to a predetermined portion of a fundamental frequency sinusoid; coupling the first energy source in series with the second energy source to form a positive rail, a neutral, and a negative rail; coupling a first energy storage device between the positive rail and the neutral, such that the first energy source generates the first modulated DC waveform on the first energy storage device; coupling a second energy storage device between the negative rail and the neutral, such that the second energy source generates the second modulated DC waveform on the second energy storage device; coupling a multi-level inverter to the positive rail, neutral, and negative rail; configuring the multi-level inverter to unfold and sum each of the first and second modulated DC waveforms in accordance with a predetermined switching scheme; and generating three-phase sinusoidal output voltages at the multi-level inverter outputs. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28)
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Specification