Efficient power supply for an electromagnetic flow meter

• US 9,418,782 B1
• Filed: 07/10/2015
• Issued: 08/16/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/10/2015
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: ONICON, Inc. (TASI Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: ONICON, Inc. (TASI Holdings, Inc.)
• Inventors: Feller, Murray F
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Vincent Q
• Application Number:
  US14/796,225
• Time in Patent Office: 403 Days
• Field of Search: 324/701, 324/73.1, 324/76.11, 738/611.2, 738/613.57
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 1/582 without electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 1/60 Circuits therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 3/158 including plural semiconductor devices as final control devices for a single load

Abstract

A DC-DC power converter used in an electromagnetic flowmeter supplies a constant current from a capacitive output to an excitation coil during a measurement portion of the operating cycle. During a relatively longer charging portion of the operating cycle the capacitive output is charged from an unregulated supply. When the unregulated supply voltage of the of the DC-DC converter is less than the regulated output voltage repeated high voltage pulses are generated by the excitation coil to charge the output capacitor.

Claims

1. A method of providing a selected value of an output voltage from an output capacitor portion of a DC-DC power converter powering an excitation coil portion of an electromagnetic flow meter, the method comprising the steps of:

providing the excitation coil with thermal contact to a flowing fluid;

providing a unipolar supply voltage less than the selected value of the output voltage;

operating an oscillator to repetitively drive the excitation coil to generate voltage pulses exceeding the selected value of the output voltage and to transfer heat to the flowing fluid; and

charging the output capacitor portion by applying the voltage pulses thereto until the output voltage attains the selected value.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

at least partially discharging the output capacitor portion through the excitation coil; and

cyclically repeating the charging and discharging steps.

3. A DC-DC power converter having an output selectively powering an excitation coil portion of an electromagnetic flow meter, the power converter comprising:

selector switch circuitry operable under control of timing circuitry to selectively connect, during a measurement portion of an operating cycle, the excitation coil to an output capacitor portion of the converter, the output capacitor portion charged to a selected output voltage, and to otherwise connect the excitation coil to charging circuitry for a charging portion of the operating cycle, the charging circuitry comprising;

a comparator operable to determine if the output voltage is greater or less than an unregulated input voltage;

a first transistor controllable, if the input voltage is equal to or greater than the selected value, to connect the input voltage to the output capacitor portion until the output voltage attains the selected value; and

an oscillator controlled by the at least one comparator to repetitively energize the excitation coil if the input voltage is less than the output voltage, thereby generating, at the output capacitor portion, charging pulses having a voltage greater than the input voltage;

whereby the power converter is cyclically operable, during the charging portion of the operating cycle, to regulate a DC voltage at the converter output to have the selected output voltage value and, during the measurement portion of the operating cycle, to supply the excitation current from the converter output to the excitation coil.

4. The power converter of claim 3 further comprising current control circuitry operable to control the excitation current to have a constant value during most of the measurement portion of the operating cycle.

5. The power converter of claim 3 wherein the output capacitor portion comprises a plurality of capacitors.

6. The power converter of claim 3 wherein the selector switch circuitry comprises, in combination:

an analog switch operable to connect a gate of a second transistor to an oscillator during the charging portion of the operating cycle and to current control circuitry during the measurement portion of the operating cycle, the second transistor providing a controllable current flow path between a first end of the coil and ground; and

a third transistor providing a current flow path between the output capacitor portion and a second end of the coil.

7. A method of providing a selected value of an output voltage from a DC-DC power converter powering an excitation coil portion of an electromagnetic flow meter, the method comprising the steps of:

providing an unregulated unipolar supply voltage;

charging an output capacitor portion of the power converter by comparing the supply voltage with the output voltage and, if the supply voltage is higher than the output voltage, connecting the supply voltage to the output capacitor portion of the power converter until the output voltage attains the selected value; and

otherwise operating an oscillator to repetitively drive the excitation coil to generate voltage pulses exceeding the selected value and to apply those pulses to the output capacitor until the output voltage attains the selected value;

at least partially discharging the output capacitor portion through the excitation coil; and

cyclically repeating the charging and discharging steps.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the discharging step is carried out at constant current.

9. The method of claim 7 wherein the electromagnetic flow meter comprises signal processing circuitry operating in synchrony with the discharging step.

10. The method of claim 7 wherein when the oscillator drives the excitation coil it transfers heat to a flowing fluid.