1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a light-emitting diode (LED) driver circuit. More particularly, the present invention relates to a buck converter LED driver circuit.
2. Description of the Related Art
An LED is similar to a silicon p-n junction diode. At its operating range, a slight change of forward voltage results in a large change in its operating current. Therefore, an LED requires constant current drive, not constant voltage drive. Any surge current above its rated current value will tend to degrade or even damage the LED.
Please refer to
To assure the LED current is continuous, a large capacitor Cin, is connected between the bridge rectifier and the buck converter to hold up the input DC voltage Vcin such that Vcin is always higher than Vf, which is the voltage across LEDs 103. Without capacitor Cin, as the rectified input voltage Vin falls below Vf, the LED current would cease to flow. Therefore, the conventional driver circuit in
For a conventional buck converter LED driver circuit to feature a higher power factor, a solution is to incorporate a power factor correction (PFC) front-end as shown in
Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a buck converter LED driver circuit. The driver circuit features a simple design and a high input power factor without the requirement for a large capacitor.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, a buck converter LED driver circuit is provided. The driver circuit includes a buck power stage, a rectified AC voltage source, a voltage waveform sampler, and a control circuit. The buck power stage includes at least one LED and provides a first signal directly proportional to the current through the LED. The rectified AC voltage source is coupled to the buck power stage for driving the buck power stage. The voltage waveform sampler is coupled to the rectified AC voltage source for providing a second signal directly proportional to the voltage provided by the rectified AC voltage source. The control circuit is coupled to the voltage waveform sampler and the buck power stage for turning on and turning off the buck power stage according to a comparison between the first signal and the second signal.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the control circuit includes an SR flip-flop, a clock generator, and a comparator. The SR flip-flop has an output end coupled to the buck power stage for turning on and turning off the buck power stage. The clock generator is coupled to the SR flip-flop for providing a clock signal to the setting end of the SR flip-flip. The comparator has a positive end coupled to the buck power stage for receiving the first signal, a negative end coupled to the voltage waveform sampler for receiving the second signal, and an output end coupled to the resetting end of the SR flip-flop.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the control circuit includes an SR flip-flop, a comparator, and a constant off-time generator. The SR flip-flop has an output end coupled to the buck power stage for turning on and turning off the buck power stage. The comparator has a positive end coupled to the buck power stage for receiving the first signal, a negative end coupled to the voltage waveform sampler for receiving the second signal, and an output end coupled to the resetting end of the SR flip-flop. The constant off-time generator is coupled to the SR flip-flop and the comparator for triggering the setting end of the SR flip-flip at a predetermined constant time after the output of the comparator is asserted.
The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.
Reference will now be made in detail to the present embodiments of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used in the drawings and the description to refer to the same or like parts.
Please refer to
The rectified AC voltage source 410 includes an AC voltage source 401 and a bridge rectifier 402 coupled to AC voltage source 401. Voltage waveform sampler 420 includes resistors R1 and R2. Resistor R1 is coupled to the rectified AC voltage source 410. Resistor R2 is coupled between resistor R1 and the ground. Signal VaSin is provided at the joint of the resistors R1 and R2. R1 and R2 constitute a voltage divider circuit, therefore signal VaSin is directly proportional to the output voltage of the rectified AC voltage source 410.
In addition to LEDs 403, buck power stage 430 includes an inductor 404, a diode 405, a power switch Qm, and a current sensor 440. Current sensor 440 includes a resistor Rsen coupled in series with LEDs 403. Resistor Rsen converts the current through LEDs 403 into voltage and provides the voltage signal Vsen at an end of resistor Rsen. Control circuit 450 turns on buck power stage 430 by turning on power switch Qm and turns off buck power stage 430 by turning off power switch Qm.
The relative positions of the components of buck power stage 430 are quite flexible, not limited to the topology shown in
Control circuit 450 includes an SR flip-flop 408, a clock generator 406, and a comparator 407. SR flip-flop 408 has a setting end (S), a resetting end (R), and an output end (Q). The output end is coupled to power switch Qm for turning on and turning off buck power stage 430. Clock generator 406 is coupled to SR flip-flop 408 for providing a clock signal to the setting end of SR flip-flip 408. Comparator 407 has a positive end, a negative end, and an output end. Its positive end is coupled to current sensor 440 for receiving signal Vsen. Its negative end is coupled to voltage waveform sampler 420 for receiving signal VaSin. Its output end is coupled to the resetting end of SR flip-flop 408. Whenever the level of signal Vsen is higher than the level of signal VaSin, the output of comparator 407 is asserted to trigger the resetting end of SR flip-flop 408.
Control circuit 450 has an alternative design which is shown in
Now please refer to
Clock generator 406 outputs a clock signal to the setting end of SR flip-flop 408. At each clock pulse, the setting end is triggered, the output of SR flip-flop 408 is asserted, and power switch Qm is turned on. When power switch Qm is turned on, the LED current is equal to the current through power switch Qm and current sensor 440, namely, Isw. Diode 405 is biased backward and does not conduct. The current through LEDs 403 and inductor 404 rises gradually to the point where the level of signal Vsen is higher than the level of signal VaSin, and then the output of comparator 407 triggers the resetting end of SR flip-flop 408, and then the output of SR flip-flop 408 turns off power switch Qm. When power switch Qm is turned off, the current Isw drops to zero, while the LED current circulates in the loop formed by LEDs 403, inductor 404 and diode 405 and decreases gradually due to energy dissipation of LEDs 403, until the next clock pulse from clock generator 406. All the currents shown in
This embodiment of the present invention features a square-wave PFC. As shown in
Input voltage Vin may be expressed as Va·sin(θ), wherein Va is the amplitude of Vin and θ is the conduction phase angle from 0 to π. Input current Vin conducts only when Vin=Va·sin(θ)>Vf.
Since buck power stage 430 is switching at a very high frequency (100 kHz or above), for each switching cycle, we can assume the LED current approximates a sine wave, Ia·sin(θ), as shown in
Po=[Ia·sin (θ)]·Vf;
Pin=[Ia·sin (θ)·D]·[Va·sin (θ)].
Here Iin=Ia·sin (θ·D and D is the duty cycle of current Isw.
Therefore, we can derive D as D=Vf/Vin=Vf/[Va·sin (θ)].
Iin=Ia·sin (θ)·D=Ia·sin (θ)·Vf/[Va·sin (θ)]=Ia·Vf/Va.
Therefore, we know the input average current of Iin during the conduction angle from α to π-α is a constant value, Idc. Therefore Iin is a square wave. This can be observed in
Now we can proceed to prove that the power factor of this embodiment is higher than the power factor of conventional LED driver circuits.
The power factor (PF) is defined as PF=(real power)/(apparent power)=Po/Pin.
The real power=∫Va·sin (θ)*Idc dθ=2Va·Idc·[−cos (θ)], where θ is integrated from α to π-α.=4Va·Idc·cos (α)
The apparent power=Vin (rms)·Iin (rms)
Since Vin (rms)=Va/√2 and Iin (rms)=Idc·[(π-2α)/π]1/2, we can derive the apparent power=Va·Idc·(2π)1/2·(π-2α)1/2.
Therefore PF=4·cos (α)/[(2π)1/2·(π-2α)1/2].
In summary, by using a simple buck converter topology, and by forcing the LED current to track the sinusoidal input voltage waveform, we achieve a square-wave like input current waveform. The input power factor can be as high as 0.96, much higher than that of conventional LED driver circuits. The size of the input capacitor is also greatly reduced. The circuit structure remains very simple and compact.
It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the structure of the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. In view of the foregoing, it is intended that the present invention cover modifications and variations of this invention provided they fall within the scope of the following claims and their equivalents.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20080316781 A1 | Dec 2008 | US |