System and method to generate multi-level voltage pulses for electrical insulation testing

Abstract

A system and method to generate high voltage pulses for testing of electrical insulation for a device under test (DUT) is presented. The system comprises multiple power electronic building blocks (PEBBs) connected in series, with each PEBB providing a unipolar voltage. The output from the series-connected PEBBs is impressed across the DUT insulation via an output inductor. Some of the PEBBs provide a positive or zero voltage output; while the other PEBBs provide a negative or zero voltage output. The switchings of the PEBBs are timed to allow a resonant half-cycle of current through the output inductor and the effective capacitance of the insulation resulting in a transition of the voltage across the insulation from one level to another. In one embodiment, only the dc bus of a first PEBB is supplied from an external source, while the other PEBBs are fed from the first PEBB via the series chain.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.