Power transfer devices, methods, and systems with crowbar switch shunting energy-transfer reactance

• US 8,446,745 B1
• Filed: 07/05/2012
• Issued: 05/21/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CE+T Group SA
• Original Assignee: Ideal Power Converters, Inc.
• Inventors: Alexander, William C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Berhane, Adolf
• Assistant Examiner(s): Finch, III, Fred E
• Application Number:
  US13/541,910
• Publication Number:
  US 20130114315A1
• Time in Patent Office: 320 Days
• Field of Search: 323/222, 323/239, 363/13, 363/15, 363/17, 363/34, 363/50, 363/53, 363/55, 363/56.02, 363/123, 363/124, 363/142, 361/54, 361/55
• US Class Current: 363/50
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 5/225 comprising two stages of AC-AC conversion, e.g. having a high frequency intermediate link
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 5/275 using devices of a triode or transistor type requiring continuous application of a control signal
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 5/458 using semiconductor devices only
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/4807 having a high frequency intermediate AC stage
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/4815 Resonant converters H02M7/4811 and H02M7/4826 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/797 using semiconductor devices only
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/10 Technologies improving the efficiency by using switched-mode power supplies [SMPS], i.e. efficient power electronics conversion e.g. power factor correction or reduction of losses in power supplies or efficient standby modes

Abstract

The present application discloses methods, circuits and systems for power conversion, using a universal multiport architecture. When a transient appears on the power input (which can be, for example, polyphase AC), the input and output switches are opened, and a crowbar switch shunts the inductance which is used for energy transfer. This prevents this inductance from creating an overvoltage when it is disconnected from outside lines.

Claims

1. A power conversion circuit, comprising:

an input stage which repeatedly, at various times, drives current into the parallel combination of an inductor and a capacitor, and immediately thereafter temporarily disconnects said parallel combination from external connections, to thereby transfer some energy from said inductor to said capacitor;

wherein said action of driving current is performed in opposite senses and various times,

and wherein said disconnecting operation is performed substantially identically for both directions of said step of driving current;

a link switch, connected across said inductor-capacitor combination in a crowbar configuration which includes a resistance element which is connected to dissipate energy stored in said inductor-capacitor combination when said link switch is on; and

an output stage which extracts energy from said parallel combination, to thereby perform power conversion;

wherein, when said link switch is on, said stages are connected to totally disconnect said inductor-capacitor combination from a power input and a power output of said power conversion circuit.

2. The converter of claim 1, wherein said input stage comprises a full-bridge array of switches.

3. The converter of claim 1, wherein said input and output stages each comprise a full-bridge array of switches, and are symmetrically connected to said inductor-capacitor combination.

4. The converter of claim 1, wherein said stages each selectably connect said inductor-capacitor combination to a low-impedance voltage source/sink.

5. The converter of claim 1, wherein said inductor-capacitor combination comprises a transformer.

6. A method for power conversion, comprising the actions of:

driving an energy-transfer reactance with a full AC waveform, at a base frequency which is less than half the resonant frequency of said reactance;

coupling power into said reactance, on each cycle thereof, with two different drive phases, respectively supplied from two different legs of a polyphase power input; and

extracting power from said reactance to a power output; and

under at least some overvoltage conditions, disconnecting said reactance from said power input or said power output or both, while also dumping energy from said reactance through a link switch which shunts said reactance;

wherein said energy-transfer reactance comprises an inductor paralleled with a capacitor;

wherein, when said link switch is on, said disconnecting step totally disconnects said reactance from said power input and said power output.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein said energy-transfer reactance comprises a transformer.

8. A Buck-Boost power conversion method, comprising:

operating an input switch array configured to drive AC current through an energy-transfer reactance, at an average current magnitude which is more than 100 times as great as the average DC current within said reactance;

said energy-transfer reactance comprising at least one inductor;

operating an output network to extract energy from said reactance; and

under at least some overvoltage conditions, disconnecting said reactance from a power input or a power output or both, while also dumping energy from said reactance through a link switch which shunts said reactance;

wherein said energy-transfer reactance comprises an inductor paralleled with a capacitor; and

wherein, when said link switch is on, said disconnecting step totally disconnects said energy-transfer reactance from said power input and said power output.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein said AC current has a base frequency which is less than half the resonant frequency of said reactance.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein said output network comprises a switch array which is substantially identical to said input switch array.