Power converter communications
AssigneeSolantro Semiconductor Corp.
InventorsTudor Lipan, James Benson Bacque, Raymond Kenneth Orr
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Abstract
Power converter communications, including power converter communication methods and power converters that can communicate information, are disclosed. A control variable of a power converter is modulated, to modulate an output of the power converter for communicating information. Modulation of voltage or current on a circuit path to which the power converter is coupled could be detected, by another power converter, for example. Such modulation could be detected by sensors that are also used in controlling the power converter. Either or both of transmission and reception could therefore be provided without requiring any additional hardware at a power converter.
Claims23
A power converter communication method comprising:
- modulating a control variable of the power converter, to modulate an output of the power converter to communicate information,
- the modulating comprising modulating the control variable to assume binary values of either a first binary value or a second binary value during communications,
- the first binary value and the second binary value having a median value that is set to a value of the control variable immediately preceding communications.
A power converter communication method comprising:
- modulating a control variable of the power converter, to modulate an output of the power converter to communicate information,
- the modulating comprising modulating the control variable during communications at a modulation frequency below a corner frequency of EMI (Electro Magnetic Interference) filtering applied to an output of the power converter.
A power converter comprising:
- controllable switch elements;
- a controller, coupled to the controllable switch elements, to control switching of the controllable switch elements in accordance with a control variable of the power converter;
- and to modulate the control variable during communications to modulate an output of the power converter to communicate information,
- the controller being configured to modulate the control variable during communications at a modulation frequency below a corner frequency of EMI (Electro Magnetic Interference) filtering applied to an output of the power converter.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.