Inverter power supply

• US 5,488,552 A
• Filed: 10/06/1993
• Issued: 01/30/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 10/07/1992
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hiroshi Sakamoto, Panasonic Electric Works Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Hiroshi Sakamoto, Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Sakamoto, Hiroshi, Furukawa, Kaoru, Tamura, Hideki
• Primary Examiner(s): Wong, Peter S.
• Assistant Examiner(s): BERHANE, ADOLF D
• Application Number:
  US08/132,454
• Time in Patent Office: 846 Days
• Field of Search: 363/18, 363/19, 363/20, 363/21, 363/41, 363/49, 363/95, 363/97, 363/98, 363/131, 363/132, 363/135, 363/136, 363/16, 323/901
• US Class Current: 363/97
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 3/335 using semiconductor devices only
• 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

Abstract

An inverter power supply operating at a high efficiency to provide an AC voltage to a load. The power source includes a DC voltage source and an output transformer with a primary winding, secondary winding, and a feedback winding. An FET is connected in series with the primary winding across the DC voltage source. The primary winding is connected to a capacitor to form a L-C resonant circuit which, in response to the switching of FET, provides across the primary winding an oscillation voltage to be applied through the secondary winding to drive a load, while inducing a feedback voltage across the feedback winding. The oscillation voltage is allowed to go negative at a point between FET and the primary winding. A biasing capacitor is connected to apply an offset voltage which is additive to the feedback voltage so as to give a bias voltage to FET. The power supply is characterized to include a level detector which issues a zero voltage signal when the oscillation voltage is detected to lower to at least zero level, and to include a pulse generator which, in response to the zero voltage signal, produces a pulse of a predetermined pulse-width which overrides the feedback voltage in such a manner as to enable FET to turn on for a ON-period determined by the pulse-width only after the oscillation voltage is lowered to at least zero level, whereby avoiding FET from flowing a current while the oscillation voltage is still positive and therefore reducing a switching loss.

Claims

1. An inverter power supply comprising:

a switching transistor having a gate, a source, and a drain;

a transformer having a primary winding and a feedback winding, said primary winding being connected in series with said switching transistor and a capacitor connected in parallel with said primary winding to form a resonant circuit, and said feedback winding being connected in series with said gate of said switching transistor;

a starter circuit for starting said resonant circuit;

a bias voltage generating circuit connected to apply a bias through said feedback winding to said gate which is a control terminal of said switching transistor;

a level detector connected at one end to said transformer, which issues a zero voltage signal when a voltage at said transformer is detected to have dropped to a level of zero or lower; and

a pulse generator connected to receive said zero voltage signal from said level detector for producing as an output a pulse of predetermined pulse-width in response to said zero voltage signal, said output of said pulse generator being connected to said gate of said switching transistor to cause said switching transistor to turn on for an ON-period determined by said pulse-width.

3. An inverter power supply as set forth in claim 1 or 2, wherein a pulse voltage of said pulse from said pulse generator is superimposed on said bias voltage so as to turn on said switching transistor only for an ON-period determined by the pulse-width.

4. An inverter power supply as set forth in claim 1 or 2, further including:

a potential developing element which is inserted between said switching transistor and ground so as to develop a corresponding potential across said element when said switching transistor is conductive to flow a current through said element, said potential acting to raise a threshold voltage of said switching transistor with respect to the ground;

a bypass switch connected in parallel with said potential developing element to lower said threshold voltage of said switching transistor when closed to shunt said potential developing element;

said pulse, which is produced from said pulse generator in response to said oscillation voltage lowering to at least to zero level, actuating to close said bypass switch, thereby lowering said threshold voltage and enabling said switching transistor to be made conductive for a time period determined by the pulse width.

5. An inverter power supply as set forth in claim 1 or 2, wherein said level detector issues said zero voltage signal when said oscillation voltage is detected to lower to a zero level.

6. An inverter power supply as set forth in claim 1 or 2, wherein said level detector issues said zero voltage signal when said oscillation voltage is detected to reach a negative peak.

7. An inverter power supply as set forth in claim 1 or 2, further including:

an input voltage monitor which issues a limit signal when an input DC voltage from said DC voltage source is monitored to become greater than a predetermined voltage level, said pulse generator having a pulse-width controller which reduces the pulse-width in response to said limit signal.

8. An inverter power supply as set forth in claim 1 or 2, further including:

an output voltage monitor which issues a limit signal when an output DC voltage from said secondary winding is monitored to become greater than a predetermined voltage level, said pulse generator having a pulse-width controller which reduces the pulse-width in response to said limit signal.

9. An inverter power supply as set forth in claim 4, wherein a resistor is connected in series with said potential developing element across said DC voltage source so as to develop said potential thereacross constantly during said switching transistor being kept turned off.

10. An inverter power supply as set forth in claim 4, wherein said potential developing element is a diode.

11. An inverter power supply as set forth in claim 4, wherein said potential developing element is a resistor.

12. An inverter power supply as set forth in claim 4, wherein said potential developing element is a series connected pair of first and second resistors, and further includes a switching element which is connected to turn off said switching transistor when said switching transistor becomes conductive at the start of energizing said power supply to flow through said second resistor an initial current exceeding a predetermined level.

13. An inverter power supply as set forth in claim 12, wherein said switching element is a bipolar transistor which is connected in parallel with the series combination of said biasing capacitor and said feedback winding, while a collector of said bipolar transistor is connected to a point between said feedback winding and said control terminal of said switching transistor, said second resistor connected across a base-emitter path of said bipolar transistor such that, when said switching transistor becomes conductive at the start of energizing said power supply to flow the initial current exceeding a predetermined level to give a corresponding voltage across said second resistor, said bipolar transistor responds to turn on to thereby turn off said switching transistor.

2. An inverter power supply comprising:

a DC voltage source;

a transformer having a primary winding, a secondary winding, and a feedback winding;

a parallel L-C resonant circuit composed of said primary winding and a capacitor;

a switching transistor having a control terminal and connected in series with said primary winding across said DC voltage source to be energized thereby for causing said L-C resonant circuit to produce an oscillation voltage across said primary winding, while producing a corresponding feedback voltage across said feedback winding, said oscillation voltage being allowed to go negative at a point between said switching transistor and said primary winding, said oscillation voltage being supplied through said secondary winding to apply a resulting output voltage to a load;

a starter circuit composed of a resistor and a biasing capacitor connected in series across said DC voltage source, said biasing capacitor connected in series with said feedback winding to apply an offset voltage which is additive to said feedback voltage developed across said feedback winding to give a bias voltage to said control terminal of said switching transistor for driving said switching transistor to turn on and off in a self-excited manner;

a bias stabilizing circuit having a series combination of a resistor and a diode which is connected in parallel with said feedback winding in order to discharge said biasing capacitor through said resistor, said diode, and said switching transistor when said switching transistor is conductive for adjusting said bias voltage in a direction of stabilizing said bias voltage to effect a stable oscillation at said resonant circuit;

a level detector connected at one end to said transformer, which issues a zero voltage signal when a voltage at said transformer is detected to have dropped to a level of zero or lower; and

a pulse generator connected to receive said zero voltage signal from said level detector, for producing as an output a pulse of predetermined pulse-width in response to said zero voltage signal, said output of said pulse generator being connected to said gate of said switching transistor to cause said switching transistor to turn on for an ON-period determined by said pulse-width.

14. An inverter power supply comprising:

a switching transistor having a gate, a source, and a drain;

a transformer having a primary winding and a feedback winding, said primary winding being connected in series with said switching transistor, and a capacitor connected in parallel with said primary winding to form a resonant circuit, and said feedback winding being connected in series with said gate of said switching transistor;

a pulse-controlled transistor connected in series with said source of said switching transistor;

a starter circuit for starting said resonant circuit;

a bias voltage generating circuit connected to apply a bias through said feedback winding to said gate which is a control terminal of said switching transistor;

a level detector connected at one end to said transformer, which issues a zero voltage signal when a voltage at said transformer is detected to have dropped to a level of zero or lower; and

a pulse generator connected to receive said zero voltage signal from said level detector, for producing as an output a pulse of predetermined pulse-width in response to said zero voltage signal, said output of said pulse generator being connected to a gate of said pulse-controlled transistor to cause said pulse-controlled transistor to turn on for an ON-period determined by said pulse-width, which in turn causes current to flow across said switching transistor for a period determined by said ON-period of said pulse-controlled transistor.

15. An inverter power supply comprising:

a DC voltage source supply a DC voltage;

a switching element;

a transformer having a primary winding which is connected in parallel with a capacitor to form a resonant circuit, said primary winding being connected in series with said switching element across said DC voltage source so that said resonant circuit produces an oscillation voltage about said DC voltage from said DC voltage source in response to the turning on and off of said switching element;

a level detector which detects an oscillation voltage developed across said resonant circuit and issues a zero voltage signal when said oscillation voltage is detected to be zero or lower; and

means connected to receive said zero voltage signal and connected to control said switching element to turn on, in response to said zero voltage signal, only for a period in which said oscillation voltage is zero or lower.