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US 8,076,802 B2Granted
Method and apparatus for distributed VAr compensation
AssigneeEnphase Energy, Inc.
InventorMartin Fornage
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method and apparatus for generating on-demand power. The method comprises receiving a peak reactive current request, generating a control signal based on the peak reactive current request, and utilizing the control signal to drive a DC/AC inverter to generate reactive power commensurate with the peak reactive current request.
Claims16
A method for generating on-demand Volt-Ampere reactive (VAr) compensation, comprising:
- determining an amount of VAr compensation required;
- requesting at least one distributed generator (DG) to generate reactive power commensurate with the amount;
- and
- driving at least one DC/AC inverter of the at least one DG to generate the reactive power, wherein the at least one DC/AC inverter is an optimum number of DC/AC inverters for minimizing a real power loss generated when producing the reactive power.
1 more element
A DC/AC inverter for generating on-demand power, comprising:
- a DC/AC inverter controller for driving the DC/AC inverter to generate reactive power commensurate with a peak reactive current request;
- and
- a first multiplier for modulating the peak reactive current request with a cosine waveform having a frequency of a commercial power grid waveform and a phase lagging the commercial power grid waveform by 90° to generate a control signal, wherein the DC/AC inverter controller generates the control signal based on the peak reactive current request for driving the DC/AC inverter.
A system for generating on-demand Volt-Ampere reactive (VAr) compensation, comprising:
- at least one distributed generator (DG) for generating AC power, wherein the at least one DG is coupled to a commercial power grid and comprises at least one DC/AC inverter;
- and
- a gateway, communicably coupled to the at least one DG, for driving one or more of the at least one DC/AC inverters to generate reactive power commensurate with an amount of VAr compensation required, wherein the one or more of the at least one DC/AC inverters is an optimum number of DC/AC inverters for minimizing a real power loss generated when producing the reactive power.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.