Cable compensation by zero-crossing compensation current and resistor

• US 9,564,771 B2
• Filed: 06/24/2016
• Issued: 02/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 01/08/2014
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Infineon Technologies Austria Ag (Infineon Technologies AG)
• Original Assignee: Infineon Technologies Austria Ag (Infineon Technologies AG)
• Inventors: Teo, Yong Siang, Lim, Kok Kee
• Primary Examiner(s): PACHECO, ALEXIS BOATENG
• Application Number:
  US15/192,426
• Publication Number:
  US 20160308383A1
• Time in Patent Office: 228 Days
• Field of Search: 320/163, 320/107, 320/108, 320/109, 320/111, 320/137, 320/141, 320/145, 320/148, 320/162, 320/166, 363/147, 363/21.03, 307/104, 307/125, 323/318, 323/319
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/122 Circuits or methods for driving the primary coil, e.g. supplying electric power to the coil
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/38 specially adapted for charging by inductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2207/20 Charging or discharging characterised by the power electronics converter
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/00 Circuit arrangements or systems for wireless supply or distribution of electric power
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/90 involving detection or optimisation of position, e.g. alignment
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00 Circuit arrangements for charging or depolarising batteries or for supplying loads from batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00302 Overcharge protection
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00712 the cycle being controlled or terminated in response to electric parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 3/33507 with automatic control of the output voltage or current, e.g. flyback converters H02M3/33561, H02M3/33569 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 40/00 Technologies aiming at improving the efficiency of home appliances, e.g. induction cooking or efficient technologies for refrigerators, freezers or dish washers
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/7072 Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/14 Plug-in electric vehicles

Abstract

Methods, devices, and circuits are disclosed delivering a first level of output voltage to a rechargeable battery from a battery charger, the rechargeable battery is coupled to the battery charger by a charging cable. The methods, device, and circuits may further be disclosed applying, in response to an indication of an altered output voltage, a compensation current to one or more elements of the battery charger including a zero crossing (ZC) pin and a selected resistor, the selected resistor is defined by the charging cable coupling the battery charger to the rechargeable battery, and applying the compensation current to the ZC pin and the selected resistor causes an adjustment of the output voltage from the first level of output voltage to a second level of output voltage corresponding to the voltage drop from the impedance of the selected charging cable.

Claims

1. A battery charging device comprising:

a transformer including a primary winding and an auxiliary winding;

a primary-side-regulation (PSR) controller including;

a zero crossing (ZC) pin;

a ZC sample module, wherein the ZC sample module samples a ZC voltage at the ZC pin to generate a sampled ZC output voltage signal;

a constant voltage control (CVC) module,

comprising a CVC module output voltage; and

wherein the PSR controller controls a power converter output voltage to a rechargeable battery based on the sampled ZC output voltage signal at the ZC pin; and

a compensation current control module comprising;

a CVC sample-and-hold (S/H) module, wherein the CVC S/H module samples and holds the CVC module output voltage generating a sampled CVC module output voltage;

a voltage-to-current generator, wherein the voltage-to-current generator is configured to generate a compensation current as a function of the sampled CVC module output voltage; and

wherein the compensation current control module is coupled to the ZC pin; and

an adjustable offset voltage (AOV) circuit comprising a selected resistor, wherein;

the selected resistor is selected based on a cable impedance of a selected charging cable,

the selected resistor is releasably coupled to the ZC pin and the auxiliary winding, and

wherein compensation current and the selected resistor generate the ZC voltage, wherein the ZC voltage corresponds to the voltage drop of the cable impedance of the selected charging cable.

2. The battery charger of claim 1, wherein the compensation current control module further comprises a maximum current limit module, wherein the maximum current limit module limits the compensation current.

3. The battery charger of claim 1, wherein the sampled CVC module output voltage of the compensation current control module is a peak sense voltage at a current sense (CS) pin of the PSR controller indicative of the inductor current through the primary winding of the transformer.

4. The battery charger of claim 1, wherein the selected resistor of the AOV circuit is a first resistor coupled to a second resistor in parallel with a capacitor.

5. The battery charger of claim 1, wherein the ZC sample module is a ZC sample-and-hold module that samples and holds the ZC voltage at the ZC pin.

6. The battery charger of claim 1, wherein the CVC module comprises a proportional-integral (PI) controller, and wherein the PI controller is configured to generate a PI controller output voltage as a function of the sampled ZC output voltage signal from the ZC sample module.

7. The battery charger of claim 1, wherein the CVC module comprises a proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller, and wherein the PID controller is configured to generate a PID controller output voltage as a function of the sampled ZC output voltage signal from the ZC sample module.

8. The battery charger of claim 1, wherein the PSR controller further comprising a zero crossing detector.

9. The battery charger of claim 1, wherein the PSR controller further comprising an oscillator.

10. A circuit comprising:

a transformer including a primary winding and an auxiliary winding;

a primary-side-regulation (PSR) controller including;

a zero crossing (ZC) pin;

a ZC sample module, wherein the ZC sample module samples a ZC voltage at the ZC pin to generate a sampled ZC output voltage signal;

a constant voltage control (CVC) module,

comprising a CVC module output voltage; and

wherein the PSR controller controls a power converter output voltage to a rechargeable battery based on the sampled ZC voltage output signal at the ZC pin; and

a compensation current control module comprising;

a CVC sample-and-hold (S/H) module, wherein the CVC S/H module samples and holds the CVC output voltage generating a sampled CVC module output voltage;

a voltage-to-current generator, wherein the voltage-to-current generator is configured to generate a compensation current as a function of the sampled CVC module output voltage; and

wherein the compensation current control module is coupled to the ZC pin; and

an adjustable offset voltage (AOV) circuit comprising a selected resistor, wherein;

the selected resistor is selected based on a cable impedance of a selected charging cable,

the selected resistor is releasably coupled to the ZC pin and the auxiliary winding, and

wherein compensation current and the selected resistor generate the ZC voltage, wherein the ZC voltage corresponds to the voltage drop of the cable impedance of the selected charging cable.

11. The circuit of claim 10, wherein the PSR controller further comprising:

a comparator that is configured to control a transistor and charge the recharegable battery by the selected charging cable,

wherein the comparator comprises a first input node and a second input node, wherein the comparator is configured to generate a control signal at an output node of the comparator by comparing the CVC module output voltage at the first input node of the comparator to a sense voltage signal indicative of inductor current flowing through a primary winding of the transformer at the second input node of the comparator, wherein the comparator is configured to generate at the output node of the comparator the control signal to control switching of a transistor and generation of the power converter output voltage, and wherein the comparator develops a regulated power converter output voltage to control the charging of the rechargeable battery.

12. The circuit of claim 10, wherein the selected resistor of the adjustable offset voltage circuit is a first resistor coupled to a second resistor in parallel with a capacitor.

13. The circuit of claim 10, wherein the compensation current control module further comprises a maximum current limit module, wherein the maximum current limit module limits the compensation current.

14. The circuit of claim 10, wherein the sampled CVC module output voltage of the compensation current control module is a peak sense voltage at a current sense (CS) pin of the PSR controller indicative of the inductor current through the primary winding of the transformer.

15. The circuit of claim 10, wherein the CVC module comprises a proportional-integral (PI) controller, and wherein the PI controller is configured to generate a PI controller output voltage as a function of the sampled ZC output voltage signal from the ZC sample module.

16. The circuit of claim 10, wherein the CVC module comprises a proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller, and wherein the PID controller is configured to generate a PID controller output voltage as a function of the sampled ZC output voltage signal from the ZC sample module.

17. The circuit of claim 10, wherein the PSR controller further comprising a zero crossing detector.

18. The circuit of claim 10, wherein the PSR controller further comprising an oscillator.