Control system and method for high voltage applications
AssigneeMetropolitan Industries, Inc.
InventorsJohn Kochan, Jr., James Andrew Nimmer, John Brian Dempster
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A high-efficiency control system and method is presented. The system can feature a gate drive circuit, a floating charge pump and pump circuitry, and a bootstrap capacitor circuit having a floating ground. The floating charge pump features a ground electrically coupled to a load. The bootstrap circuit can feature a floating ground, with a floating voltage being carried across the bootstrap circuit and delivered to the gate drive circuit to produce an indefinite on-time for switching a high-side of a power supply to the load.
Claims15
A control system comprising:
- a gate drive circuit for receiving a logic input signal;
- a floating charge pump and associated pump circuitry, wherein the floating charge pump includes a ground electrically coupled to a load;
- a high-side switching device coupled to the gate drive circuit and the floating charge pump and associated pump circuitry;
- and
- a bootstrap circuit having a floating ground electrically coupled to the ground of the floating charge pump and associated pump circuitry, wherein the bootstrap circuit is electrically coupled to the gate drive circuit, and wherein a floating gate drive voltage is carried across the bootstrap circuit and delivered to the high-side switching device through the gate drive circuit to switch a high-side of a power supply to the load.
A control method utilizing a direct on-off communication routine comprising:
- supplying a DC bus voltage from a power supply to a high-side switch;
- producing a gate drive voltage, the gate drive voltage being above the DC bus voltage;
- delivering the gate drive voltage across a bootstrap capacitor circuit to the high-side switch through the gate drive circuit, the bootstrap capacitor circuit having a floating ground coupled to a ground of a floating charge pump;
- controlling the floating charge pump to maintain the gate drive voltage at a consistent level, the controlling being carried out by a high frequency oscillator, and
- in response to a logic input received at a gate drive circuit, switching the high-side switch with the gate drive voltage to couple a high side of the power supply to a load to maintain an indefinite on-time.
A control system comprising:
- a gate drive circuit for receiving a logic input signal;
- a floating charge pump and associated pump circuitry;
- a high frequency oscillator electrically coupled to the floating charge pump and associated pump circuitry;
- a high-side switch electrically coupled to the gate drive circuit and the floating charge pump and associated pump circuitry;
- and
- a bootstrap circuit having a floating ground, the bootstrap circuit electrically coupled to the gate drive circuit and the floating charge pump and associated pump circuitry, wherein a floating gate drive voltage is carried across the bootstrap circuit and delivered to the high-side switch to switch a high-side of a DC power supply to a load.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.