More detailed information may be found at the Patent Office Web site: http://www.uspto.gov. Click on “Searchable Databases,” then “Patent Full-Text Database with Full-Page Images,” then “Patent Number Search.” Enter the patent number shown below, and then choose “Full-Text Search,” followed by “Images.”
Determining output current and converter
6,249,447
June 19, 2001
This system and method determines the output current of a power converter having an output capacitor and a component. It includes an observer circuit, sensor circuit, and summer circuit. Parallel-coupled to the output capacitor, the observer circuit senses a voltage across the output capacitor that develops from a capacitor signal representing a current through the output capacitor.
A sensor circuit, coupled to the component, senses a characteristic of the component and develops from a component signal representing a current through the component. A summer circuit, coupled to the observer and sensor circuits, derives an output signal representing the output current from the capacitor signal and the component signal.
Inventors: Boylan; Jeffrey J. (Dallas); Jacobs; Mark E. (Dallas); Rozman; Allen F. (Richardson, Texas). Assignee: Tyco Electronics Logistics AG (Steinach/SG, Switzerland)
Unified constant frequency integration control
6,249,108
June 19, 2001
A switching converter (APF) is a device that is connected in parallel to and cancels the reactive and harmonic currents from a group of nonlinear loads. The ac source draws a sinusoidal current. This provides a unified constant-frequency integration (UCI) APF control method based on one-cycle control. The method employs an integrator to control the pulse width of an ac-dc converter so its current draw is precisely opposite to the reactive and harmonic current draw of the nonlinear loads. Only one current sensor and one voltage sensor are used to sense the ac source current and the dc capacitor voltage. The control method features carrier free, constant switching frequency operation, minimum reactive and harmonic current generation, and simple analog circuitry. It provides a low cost and high performance solution for power quality control. This control method is generalized to control a family of converters that are suitable for APF applications.
Inventors: Smedley; Keyue M. (Irvine, Calif.); Zhou; Luowei (Chongqing, Conn.). Assignee: The Regents of the University of California (Oakland, Calif.)
Constant frequency resonant inverters
6,246,599
June 12, 2001
This constant frequency, dc/ac inverter employs a coupled inductor to achieve ZVS in a wide range of load current and input voltage with a reduced circulating energy. In the inverter's circuits, two windings of the coupled inductors are connected in series, and their common terminal is connected to one end of the primary winding of the isolation transformer. The other end of the primary winding is connected to ground.
Each of the coupled inductors' terminals are coupled to the midpoint of the corresponding bridge leg through a series connection of the resonant inductor and a resonant or blocking capacitor. For non-isolated inverter implementations, the common terminal of the coupled inductor is connected directly to the load. The output voltage regulation in the inverters is achieved by a constant-frequency phase shifted control.
Inventors: Jang; Yungtaek (Apex, N.C.); Jovanovic; Milan M. (Cary, N.C.). Assignee: Delta Electronics, (Taiwan)
Switching power supply
6,246,594
June 12, 2001
This switching power supply with low loss includes two sub-switching elements connected in series and then connected in parallel with a bridge circuit. A resonance coil and a sub-primary winding connect between a point of the series connection circuits and an output terminal of the bridge circuit. Resonance capacitors are respectively connected in parallel with each main switching element constituting the bridge circuit to resonate with the resonance coil.
Voltages across the two ends of A phase and B phase sub-secondary windings magnetically couple to the sub-primary winding and clamp to the supply voltage. A fixed voltage in proportion to the turns ratio is generated in the sub-primary winding. A voltage applied to the resonance coil becomes small, and current fluctuation becomes small. The auxiliary primary winding is magnetically coupled to a main primary winding H-bridge connected to the main bridge circuit.
Inventors: Matsuda; Yoshiaki (Hanno, Japan); Endo; Taisuke (Hanno, Japan). Assignee: Shindengen Electric Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (Tokyo)
Integrated circuit inductors
6,240,622
June 5, 2001
This invention relates to an inductor comprising a plurality of interconnected conductive segments interwoven with a substrate. Inductance is increased through the use of coatings and films of ferromagnetic materials such as magnetic metals, alloys, and oxides. The inductor is compatible with IC manufacturing techniques and eliminates the need for large off chip inductors in many systems and circuits. A sense and measurement coil, which is fabricated on the same substrate as the inductor, provides the capability to measure the magnetic field or flux produced by the inductor. This on-chip measurement capability supplies information that permits circuit engineers to design and fabricate on chip inductors to very tight tolerances.
Inventors: Ahn; Kie Y. (Chappaqua, N.Y.); Forbes; Leonard (Corvallis, Ore.). Assignee: Micron Technology, Inc. (Boise, Idaho)
Circuit associated with power converter
6,239,993
May 29, 2001
This power converter has a primary switching circuit coupled to a tapped primary winding and a rectifier coupled to a secondary winding of the isolation transformer. The circuit includes an inductor configured to reduce current spikes in the primary switching circuit and a diode coupled to the inductor via the tapped portion. The tapped portion is configured to enable energy from the inductor to be recovered within the power converter.
Inventors: Fraidlin; Simon (Plano, Texas); Frolov; Andrey (Moscow,); Louzanov; Sergey (Mesquite, Texas); Polikarpov; Anatoliy (Mesquite, Texas). Assignee: Lucent Technologies Inc. (Murray Hill, N.J.)
Two-inductor boost converter
6,239,584
May 29, 2001
This two-switch, two-inductor boost converter achieves output-voltage regulation in a wide input voltage and load-current range using a constant-frequency. This is possible by employing an auxiliary transformer to couple current paths of the two boost inductors so both inductors carry the same current. By forcing the same current through both boost inductors, the energy is forced to change in unison — increasing energy when both switches are turned on simultaneously and decreasing energy when either of the converter's two switches is turned off. You can control the stored and transferred energy of both inductors using a constant-frequency control by controlling the time duration that the two switches are simultaneously on.
Inventors: Jang; Yungtaek (Apex, N.C.); Jovanovic; Milan M. (Cary, N.C.). Assignee: Delta Electronics, Inc. (Taipei, Taiwan)
Self-oscillating switchmode dc to dc converter
6,239,585
May 29, 2001
This simple, self-oscillating, dc-to-dc converter current source, uses a small number of simple components, with hysteresis around the current switching thresholds. Operation as a regulated dc-to-dc converter voltage source is achieved through the addition of a small number of components, with slight design modifications allowing operation in several topologies.
Inventor: Buono; Robert N. Ringwood, N.J.)