Two-switch exciter drive architecture with single switch modes
AssigneeHamilton Sundstrand Corporation
InventorsThomas P. Joyce, John F. Defenbaugh, Barry Drager
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system includes a two-switch H-bridge topology, which has a first switch with a first gate drive connected to control on and off states of the first switch. A second switch has a second gate drive connected to control on and off states of the second switch. An exciter winding is connected from a first node between the first switch and a second flyback diode to a second node between a first flyback diode and the second switch. A controller is connected to control the first gate drive and the second gate drive in a mode wherein the first switch is always on while the second cycles as a duty-cycle-controlled switch element for the exciter winding.
Claims20
A system comprising:
- a two-switch H-bridge topology including:
- a first switch with a first gate drive connected to control on and off states of the first switch;
- a second switch with a second gate drive connected to control on and off states of the second switch;
- a first flyback diode connected in series between an exciter load negative node and a voltage supply line;
- a second flyback diode connected in series between an exciter load positive node and a voltage return line, wherein the first and second flyback diodes are each oriented to provide a flyback current path;
- and
- an exciter winding connected from a first node between the first switch and the second flyback diode to a second node between the first flyback diode and the second switch;
- and
- a controller connected to independently (i) control the first gate drive with a first pulse width modulation (PWM) command and (ii) control the second gate drive with a second PWM command in a mode wherein the first switch is always on while the second switch cycles as a duty-cycle-controlled switch element for the exciter winding.
A method comprising:
- operating a two-switch h-bridge topology that includes:
- a first switch with a first gate drive connected to control on and off states of the first switch;
- a second switch with a second gate drive connected to control on and off states of the second switch;
- a first flyback diode connected in series between an exciter load negative node and a voltage supply line;
- a second flyback diode connected in series between an exciter load positive node and a voltage return line, wherein the first and second flyback diodes are each oriented to provide a flyback current path;
- an exciter winding connected from a first node between the first switch and the second flyback diode to a second node between the first flyback diode and the second switch;
- and
- a controller;
- wherein operating the two-switch h-bridge topology includes independently (i) controlling the first gate drive with a first pulse width modulation (PWM) command from the controller and (ii) controlling the second gate drive with a second PWM command from the controller in a mode wherein the first switch is always on while the second switch cycles as a duty-cycle-controlled switch element for the exciter winding.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.