DEVICE, METHOD, AND SYSTEM FOR IMPROVING ELECTRICAL POWER FACTOR AND HARMONIC POWER QUALITY THROUGH ACTIVE CONTROL OF POWER QUALITY IMPROVING ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES

• US 20090033296A1
• Filed: 07/29/2008
• Published: 02/05/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Battelle Memorial Institute
• Original Assignee: Battelle Memorial Institute
• Inventors: Hammerstrom, Donald J.
• Granted Patent: US 8,258,761 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 323/207
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/1821 using shunt compensators H02J3/1807, H02J3/1878 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 1/4208 Arrangements for improving power factor of AC input
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 40/30 Reactive power compensation

Abstract

A system, method and device for controlling and modifying the current drawn by an electrical load in a way that will improve the electrical power factor and harmonic quality of at least a portion of an electrical power system. In one embodiment of the invention, the invention includes a controller device that monitors the electrical current entering a site and modifies or corrects power quality of the current by directing how power will be consumed by the appliances at a site to improve the harmonic and power factor qualities of the electrical current entering the site.

Claims

1. A method for improving the power quality of an electrical distribution circuit characterized by the step of:

conducting a current that corrects the sum of the other electrical load currents in the electrical distribution circuit.

2. A system for improving the power quality of an electrical distribution circuit characterized by a device that conducts an electrical current that corrects the sum of other load currents in the electrical distribution circuit.

3. A device that modifies the current drawn by an electrical load so as to improve a site'"'"'s aggregate current waveform, said device configured to selectively consume preselected energies having a designated characteristic.

4. The device of claim 3 wherein said device is a controller that modifies the current drawn by an electrical load in a way that will improve the quality of a site'"'"'s aggregate current waveform.

5. The device of claim 3 wherein said preselected energies are those components of the site'"'"'s aggregate electrical current consumption that will improve a site'"'"'s aggregate power factor of its current waveform.

6. The device of claim 4 wherein said controller modifies current drawn by an electrical load in a way that will improve a site'"'"'s aggregate power factor of its current waveform.

7. The device of claim 3 wherein said consumed preselected energies are those components of the site'"'"'s aggregate current consumption that will improve a site'"'"'s aggregate harmonic quality of its current waveform.

8. The device of claim 4 wherein said controller modifies current drawn by an electrical load in a way that will improve a site'"'"'s aggregate harmonic quality of its current waveform.

9. The device of claim 3 wherein the said electric load includes electrical energy storage.

10. The device of claim 9 wherein the electric load is a power supply circuit.

11. The device of claim 10 wherein said power supply circuit serves electrical illumination.

12. The device of claim 9 wherein the electric load is a battery charger.

13. The device of claim 12 wherein the battery charger is a located within a transportation vehicle.

14. The device of claim 13 wherein the battery charger is located within an industrial work vehicle.

15. The device of claim 3 where the device and electrical load possess no electrical energy storage.

16. The device of claim 15 where the electric load is a water heater or water preheater.

17. The device of claim 15 where the electric load is an electric range.

18. The device of claim 15 where the electric load is electric space heating.

19. The device of claim 15 wherein the electrical load results from dissipation of power by one transistor or by multiple power transistors.

20. The device of claim 3 further comprising a slow feedback loop.

21. The device of claim 20 wherein said slow feedback loop is configured to perform a task selected from the group consisting of satisfying process needs, providing steady-state harmonic current correction and combinations thereof.

22. The device of claim 3 wherein said consumed preselected energies are those components of the site'"'"'s aggregate current consumption that will improve both a site'"'"'s aggregate harmonic content and aggregate power factor of its current waveform.

23. The device of claim 4 wherein said controller modifies current drawn by an electrical load in a way that will improve both a site'"'"'s aggregate harmonic content and aggregate power factor of its current waveform.

24. The device of claim 6 wherein said controller is power factor correction integrated circuit.

25. The device of claim 8 wherein said controller is power factor correction integrated circuit.