Static transfer switch system with real time flux control

• US 11,050,250 B2
• Filed: 11/13/2015
• Issued: 06/29/2021
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ABB Schweiz AG (ABB Limited)
• Original Assignee: ABB Schweiz AG (ABB Limited)
• Inventors: Pfitzer, Hans-Erik, Oudrhiri, Adil Mohammed
• Primary Examiner(s): Kim, Jung
• Application Number:
  US14/940,188
• Publication Number:
  US 20170126006A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,055 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/007 Arrangements for selectively connecting the load or loads to one or several among a plurality of power lines or power sources for providing uninterruptable power supply H02J9/00
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/0073 for providing alternative feeding paths between load and source when the main path fails, e.g. transformers, busbars
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/0075 for providing alternative feeding paths between load and source according to economic or energy efficiency considerations, e.g. economic dispatch
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 10/52 Outage or fault management, e.g. fault detection or location

Abstract

A static transfer switch assembly includes a first digital signal processor circuit associated with a preferred power source to detect a power quality event at the preferred power source, and a second digital signal processor circuit associated with an alternate power source to detect a power quality event at the alternate power source. A third digital signal processor circuit is in communication with each of the first and second digital signal processors and with a transfer switch. The third digital signal processor circuit computes and balances flux in real time based on sample voltages received from each of the preferred and alternate power sources, and controls the transfer switch to transfer the load from one of the power sources to the other power source, based on one of the first or second digital signal processor circuits detecting a power quality event.

Claims

1. A static transfer switch assembly comprising:

a transfer switch constructed and arranged to be connected with a preferred power source and an alternate power source, and a load so that the transfer switch can selectively connect either of the preferred or alternate power sources to the load,

a first digital signal processor circuit associated with the preferred power source to detect whether power of the preferred power source is outside of a first set range,

a second digital signal processor circuit associated with the alternate power source to detect whether power of the alternate power source is outside of a second set range, and

a third digital signal processor circuit in communication with each of the first and second digital signal processor circuits and in communication with the transfer switch,

wherein the third digital signal processor circuit is constructed and arranged

     1) to compute and balance flux in real time based on digitized sample voltages of each of the preferred and alternate power sources, the digitized sample voltages received by the third digital signal processor circuit from the first and second digital signal processor circuits respectively associated with the preferred and alternate power sources,

     2) to compute switching angles that are transmitted to the transfer switch as a switching angle command for transferring the load between the preferred and alternate power sources,

     3) when the preferred power source is powering the load, to control the transfer switch using the switching angle command to transfer the load from the preferred power source to the alternate power source, based on the first digital signal processor circuit detecting that the power of the preferred power source is outside of the first set range,

     4) when the alternate power source is powering the load, to control the transfer switch using the switching angle command to transfer the load from the alternate power source to the preferred power source, based on the second digital signal processor circuit detecting that the power of the alternate power source is outside of the second set range, and

     5) to operate the transfer switch by allowing a predetermined amount of inrush current in order to decrease a transfer time of the transfer switch as compared to a transfer time when eliminating inrush current.

2. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the preferred and alternate power sources are each three-phase power sources and wherein the third digital signal processor circuit includes voltage integrator circuits and summing circuits and is constructed and arranged to compute a per unit flux in real time and to execute the following expression:

3. The assembly of claim 2, wherein the transfer switch includes a silicon controlled rectifier (SCR) associated with each phase, and a gate drive associated with each SCR.

4. The assembly of claim 3, wherein the third digital signal processor circuit is constructed and arranged to determine a phase that satisfies said expression and to control the associated gate drive to fire the phase.

5. The assembly of claim 3, wherein the third digital signal processor circuit is constructed and arranged to control all of the gate drives to fire all phase simultaneously.

6. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the load includes a transformer.

7. The assembly of claim 6, wherein the transformer is a delta-to-wye transformer.

8. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the third digital signal processor circuit is constructed and arranged to automatically control the transfer switch to transfer the load from said one power source to the other power source.

18. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the third digital signal processor circuit is constructed and arranged to operate the transfer switch by allowing a predetermined amount of inrush current to decrease a transfer time of the transfer switch.

19. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the third digital signal processor circuit is constructed and arranged to operate the transfer switch without interrupting power to the load.

9. A method of transferring a load between two power sources using a transfer switch assembly comprising a transfer switch connected with a preferred power source, an alternate power source, and the load so that the transfer switch can selectively connect either of the preferred or alternate power sources to the load, a first digital signal processor circuit associated with the preferred power source to detect whether power of the preferred power source is outside of a first set range, a second digital signal processor circuit associated with the alternate power source to detect whether power of the alternate power source is outside of a second set range, and a third digital signal processor circuit in communication with each of the first and second digital signal processor circuits and in communication with the transfer switch, the method comprising the steps of:

sampling a voltage of the preferred power source with the first digital signal processor circuit,

sampling a voltage of the alternate power source with the second digital signal processor circuit,

receiving, by the third digital signal processor circuit, the sampled voltages from each of the first and second digital signal processor circuits in real time,

determining if the power of the preferred power source is outside of the first set range by the third digital signal processor circuit based on the sample voltages received from the first digital signal processor circuit,

determining if the power of the alternate power source is outside of the second set range by the third digital signal processor circuit based on the sample voltages received from the second digital signal processor circuit,

computing and balancing flux in real time in the third digital signal processor circuit,

when the preferred power source is powering the load, controlling the transfer switch by the third digital signal processor circuit to transfer the load from the preferred power source to the alternate power source, based on the first digital signal processor circuit detecting that the power of the preferred power source is outside of the first set range,

when the alternate power source is powering the load, controlling the transfer switch by the third digital signal processor circuit to transfer the load from the alternate power source to the preferred power source, based on the second digital signal processor circuit detecting that the power of the alternate power source is outside of the second set range, and

operating the transfer switch according to commands from the third digital signal processor circuit such that a predetermined amount of inrush current is allowed in order to decrease a transfer time of the transfer switch as compared to a transfer time when eliminating inrush current.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the preferred and alternate power sources are each three-phase power sources and wherein the third digital signal processor circuit includes voltage integrator circuits and summing circuits, and wherein the computing and balancing step computes a per unit flux in real time using following expression:

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising defining E to control inrush current.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the sample voltages are received about every 130 μ

s.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the transfer switch includes a silicon controlled rectifier (SCR) associated with each phase, and a gate drive associated with each SCR, and the controlling step controls the gate drives.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the third digital signal processor circuit determines a phase that satisfies said expression controls the associated gate drive to fire the phase.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein the load includes a delta-to-wye transformer.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein the third digital signal processor circuit automatically controls the transfer switch to transfer the load from said one power source to the other power source.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the third digital signal processor circuit controls all of the gate drives to fire all phase simultaneously.

20. The method of claim 10, wherein the error value relating to the peak inrush current is customizable for determining transfer time.