Integrated traction inverter and battery charger apparatus

• US 4,920,475 A
• Filed: 03/07/1988
• Issued: 04/24/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 03/07/1988
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: California Institute of Technology
• Original Assignee: California Institute of Technology
• Inventors: Rippel, Wally E..
• Primary Examiner(s): Salce, Patrick R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Peckman, Kristine
• Application Number:
  US07/164,868
• Time in Patent Office: 778 Days
• Field of Search: 363/132, 363/133, 363/134, 363/136, 363/137, 320/5, 320/13, 320/57, 307/10 R
• US Class Current: 363/132
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 15/007 Physical arrangements or structures of drive train converters specially adapted for the propulsion motors of electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2220/18 Reluctance machines
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/51 characterised by AC-motors
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/11 DC charging controlled by the charging station, e.g. mode 4
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/14 Conductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/20 characterised by converters located in the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/22 Constructional details or arrangements of charging converters specially adapted for charging electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/24 Using the vehicle's propulsion converter for charging
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2207/20 Charging or discharging characterised by the power electronics converter
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/02 for charging batteries from ac mains by converters
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 3/158 including plural semiconductor devices as final control devices for a single load
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/5387 in a bridge configuration
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/64 Electric machine technologies in electromobility
• 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 10/92 Energy efficient charging or discharging systems for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors specially adapted for vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/12 Electric charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/14 Plug-in electric vehicles

Abstract

An integrated traction inverter and battery charger apparatus which is capable of operating in either drive or charge modes. The apparatus integrates the components of a prior art three-phase inverter with an AC line-powered prior art DC source charger in a manner which recognizes that an input capacitor and certain components of a three-phase bridge inverter are capable of performing dual functions and thus can be active in both modes. Therefore, in the integration of the prior art devices some of the components are eliminated allowing savings in cost and weight of, and space required by, the components of the integrated inverter/charger apparatus.

Claims

1. An integrated inverter/charger apparatus, comprising:

a polyphase bridge inverter adapted to be connected to a polyphase load said inverter including a plurality of switch elements and current path blocking elements;

an input capacitor, said capacitor and inverter adapted to be connected in parallel across a DC source;

a rectifier having an input and an output connected at its input to an AC input line;

inductor means connected between said inverter and said output of the rectifier; and

control circuitry coupled to said inverter and being adapted to control the invertor in either a drive mode wherein, with the AC input line being disconnected from said input of the rectifier and with said inverter being connected to the polyphase load, said inverter is rendered active by said control circuitry so as to be operated by the DC source to drive the polyphase load or a charge mode wherein, with the AC input line being connected to said input of the rectifier and with said inverter remaining connected to the polyphase load, only a portion of said inverter is rendered active by said control circuitry so as to connect the DC source and input capacitor with said inductor means and rectifier and to be operated by the AC input line to charge the DC source.

2. The integrated apparatus of claim 1 wherein said control circuitry being coupled to said inverter is adapted to control the inverter in either said drive mode wherein at various times all of said switch and current blocking elements of said inverter are active causing said inverter to be operated by the DC source to drive the polyphase load or said charge mode wherein some but not all of said switch and current blocking elements of said inverter are active to connect the DC source and input capacitor with said inductor means and rectifier and to be operated by the AC input line for charging the DC source.

3. The integrated apparatus of claim 1 wherein said inverter includes a plurality of output leads adapted to connect pairs of said switch elements and current path blocking elements to the polyphase load.

4. The integrated apparatus of claim 1 wherein said inductor means is an inductor winding connected between said inverter and said output of the rectifier.

5. The integrated apparatus of claim 1 wherein said inductor means is windings of the polyphase load which are connected to said inverter in both said drive and charge modes.

6. The integrated apparatus of claim 1 wherein said control circuitry employs a pulse-width-modulation type of control.

7. An integrated inverter/charger apparatus, comprising:

a polyphase bridge inverter having a plurality of switch elements and current path blocking elements and a plurality of output leads adapted to be connected to a polyphase load;

an input capacitor, said capacitor and inverter adapted to be connected in parallel across a DC source;

rectifier having an input connected to an AC input line and an output;

an inductor connected between said inverter and said output of the rectifier; and

control circuitry coupled to said switch elements of said inverter and being adapted to control the inverter in either a drive mode wherein, with the AC input line being disconnected from said rectifier and with said output leads of said inverter being connected to the polyphase load, at various times all of said switch and current blocking elements of said inverter are rendered active by said control circuitry so as to be operated by the DC source to drive the polyphase load or a charge mode wherein, with the AC input line being connected to said rectifier and with said output leads of said inverter remaining connected to the polyphase load, some but not all of said switch and current blocking elements of said inverter are rendered active by said control circuitry so as to connect the DC source and input capacitor with said inductor and rectifier and to be operated by the AC input line to charge the DC source.