CONTROL DEVICE FOR TRANSISTORS

• US 20180316341A1
• Filed: 10/25/2016
• Published: 11/01/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/28/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Valeo Siemens eAutomotive France SAS (Valeo SE)
• Original Assignee: Valeo Systemes De Controle Moteur (Valeo SE)
• Inventors: BOUCHEZ, Boris, GRENIER, Mathieu, DA COSTA, Jose-Louis
• Granted Patent: US 10,454,467 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 1/088 for the simultaneous control of series or parallel connected semiconductor devices
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 1/38 Means for preventing simultaneous conduction of switches
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/0822 in field-effect transistor switches
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/0828 in composite switches
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/168 in composite switches

Abstract

The present invention relates to a control device (1) for at least one transistor, referred to as the controlled transistor (3), comprising:—said controlled transistor (3) which comprises a control electrode (E_c) and two other electrodes (E₁and E₂),—a main control circuit (5) connected to the control electrode (E_c) of the controlled transistor (3) and configured, according to a main mode of operation, to control the state of the controlled transistor (3) and,—an auxiliary control circuit (11) configured, according to an auxiliary mode of operation, to inject an auxiliary current opposing the current circulating between the main control circuit (5) and the control electrode (E_c) of the controlled transistor (3), characterised in that the control device (1) also comprises a control circuit (15) of the auxiliary control circuit (11), said control circuit (15) being configured to block or authorise the auxiliary operation of the auxiliary control circuit (11) depending on the commands from the main control circuit (5).

Claims

1. A device for controlling at least one transistor, referred to as a controlled transistor, comprising:

said controlled transistor, the latter comprising a control electrode and two other electrodes,

a main control circuit connected to the control electrode of the controlled transistor and configured to, according to a main mode of operation, control the state of the controlled transistor and,

an auxiliary control circuit configured to, according to an auxiliary mode of operation, inject an auxiliary current opposing the current circulating between the main control circuit and the control electrode of the controlled transistor,

wherein the control device also comprises a control circuit of the auxiliary control circuit, said control circuit being configured to block or authorise the auxiliary mode of operation of the auxiliary control circuit depending on the controls of the main control circuit.

2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control circuit is configured to electrically conduct the auxiliary control circuit and the control electrode of the controlled transistor to authorise the auxiliary mode of operation or to interrupt said electrical conduction and block the auxiliary mode of operation.

3. The control device according to claim 2, wherein the control circuit comprises a first switching element configured to enable the electrical conduction between auxiliary control circuit and the control electrode of the controlled transistor or to interrupt said electrical conduction.

4. The control device according to claim 3, wherein the control circuit comprises a second switching element corresponding to a MOSFET-type transistor with a channel N, of which:

the gate is connected to the main control circuit,

the drain is connected, on the one hand, to a first voltage source and, on the other hand, to the control electrode of the first switching element and,

the source is connected to a second voltage source, of which the voltage is less than the voltage of the first voltage source.

5. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the main control circuit comprises a programmable logic component configured to generate pulse-width modulation signals and a control member configured to receive pulse-width modulation signals coming from a logic component and to transform them into control signals of the controlled transistor.

6. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the auxiliary control circuit is configured to operate according to an auxiliary mode of operation when a predefined condition relating to the value of the time drift of the current circulating between the electrodes of the controlled transistor other than the control electrode is verified.

7. The control device according to claim 6, wherein the auxiliary control circuit is configured to enslave the value of the time drift of the current circulating between the transistor electrodes other than the control electrode around a set value.

8. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the auxiliary control circuit comprises a detection member and an injection member, said injection member being configured to inject an auxiliary current opposing the current circulating between the main control circuit and the control electrode of the controlled transistor when it receives a voltage coming from the detection member.

9. The control device according to claim 8, wherein the detection member comprises a transistor, referred to as a detection transistor, connected to a current sensor measuring the current circulating in the controlled transistor between the electrodes other than the control electrode, the current sensor comprising an impedance and a voltage dividing bridge, comprising a first and a second resistor, connected parallel from the impedance, the control electrode of the detection transistor is connected to the middle point of the voltage dividing bridge, the positive power electrode of the detection transistor is connected to a terminal of the impedance, in particular via an RC filter, and the negative power electrode of the detection transistor is connected to the injection member.

10. The control device according to claim 8, wherein the injection member comprises a transistor, referred to as an injection transistor, of which the control electrode is connected to the detection member and to the first voltage source, via a resistor, the positive power electrode of the injection transistor is connected to the first voltage source and the negative voltage electrode is connected to the positive control electrode of the first switching element of the control circuit.

11. The control device according to claim 10, wherein the negative power electrode of the first switching element of the control circuit is connected to the control electrode of the controlled transistor.

12. The control device according to claim 10, wherein the negative power electrode of the first switching element of the control circuit is connected to the input of a power amplifier arrangement, in particular of “

push-pull”

-type, arranged between the main control circuit and the control electrode of the controlled transistor, the auxiliary control circuit being arranged such that this power amplifier arrangement is crossed by the injected current when the auxiliary mode of operation is applied.

13. The control device according to claim 10, wherein the negative power electrode of the first switching element of the control circuit is connected to a resistor, referred to as a control resistor, arranged between the main control circuit and the control electrode of the controlled transistor, at the level of the terminal of the control resistor which is not connected to the control electrode of the controlled transistor.

14. A control circuit of a connection comprising at least one first and a second controlled elements connected in series, a controlled element comprising a diode connected in anti-parallel with a controlled transistor, and at least one first and one second control device, according to claim 1, respectively connected to said first and second controlled elements, said first and second control devices being configured to put their respective connected controlled transistor in a looping state alternatively, or in a blocking state simultaneously.

15. The control circuit according to claim 14, wherein the first control device is configured to:

block the auxiliary operation of the auxiliary control circuit connected to the first controlled transistor when the second control device controls a passage to the looping state of the second controlled transistor,

authorise the auxiliary operation of the auxiliary control circuit connected to the first controlled transistor when said first control device controls a passage to the blocking state of the first controlled element,

and wherein the second control device is configured to;

block the auxiliary operation of the auxiliary control circuit connected to the second controlled transistor when the first control device controls a passage to the looping state of the first controlled transistor,

authorise the auxiliary operation of the auxiliary control circuit connected to the second controlled transistor when said second control device controls a passage to the blocking state of the second controlled transistor.

16. An electrical converter comprising at least one connection comprising a first and a second controlled element connected in series and at least one control circuit according to claim 14.

17. The control device (1) according to claim 9, wherein the injection member (11b) comprises a transistor (39), referred to as an injection transistor, of which the control electrode is connected to the detection member (11a) and to the first voltage source (V_c), via a resistor (41), the positive power electrode of the injection transistor (39) is connected to the first voltage source (V_c) and the negative voltage electrode is connected to the positive control electrode of the first switching element (43) of the control circuit (15).

18. An electrical converter comprising at least one connection (102) comprising a first (K1) and a second (K2) controlled element connected in series and at least one control circuit (100) according to claim 15.