Inrush current refers to an input current drawn by an electrical device when turned on. The inrush of current may exceed particular current limitations, potentially resulting in failures of the electrical device and other associated electrical components.
In the accompanying drawings, like numerals refer to like components or blocks. The following detailed description references the drawings, wherein:
Inrush current may potentially result in failures of various electrical components, such as blowing fuses and/or breakers. To implement control over the inrush of current, implementations may use various additional dedicated electrical components such as relays, resistors, and other such electrical components which may consume a large amount of real estate.
To address these issues, examples disclose a circuit to limit an inrush of current to a capacitor by managing the inrush of current to the circuit. The circuit determines an interval in which to limit the inrush of current in which a switch is connected thereby allowing the inrush of current to a capacitor. The interval is a window in which to charge the capacitor by connecting and disconnecting the switch, accordingly. Determining the interval, limits the inrush of current to the capacitor ensuring a particular current threshold is not exceeded. Limiting the inrush of current to the capacitor prevents the potential failures of the electrical components within the circuit. Additionally, the examples disclosed herein utilize existing components within the circuit which may occupy less volume within the circuit.
In another example discussed herein, a controller associated with the circuit readjusts the interval based on the voltage across the capacitor. Readjusting the interval, the controller may operate in response to energy storage conditions on the capacitor. For example upon disconnection of the switch, the capacitor may have residual and/or leftover charge. Thus, the interval may be shortened to accommodate the residual charge on the capacitor.
In a further example discussed herein, the interval may be obtained by determining a turn on point and turn off point in which to connect and disconnect the switch, accordingly. The turn on point may be calculated based on the current limitation and impedance associated with the switch. The current limitation represents a threshold amount of current in which the circuit may handle without causing potential hardware failures. The turn on and turn off points correspond to the input voltage, enabling the controller to monitor the input voltage and efficiently track the connection and disconnection of the switch.
In summary, examples disclosed herein limit an inrush of current by connecting and disconnecting a switch in accordance with an interval.
Referring now to the figures,
The voltage source 108 is a power supply that provides the input voltage to the controller 104. As such, the voltage source 108 provides current to the circuit 102 and as such, implementations of the voltage source 108 includes a power supply, power feed, power source, generator, power circuit, energy storage, power system, or other type of voltage source capable of providing the input voltage to the controller 104 and current to the circuit 102.
The controller 104 manages the inrush of current to the capacitor 112 by determining the interval 106. The interval is a range of time in which the switch is connected to enable the flow of current to the capacitor 112. Implementations of the controller include a processor, circuit logic, a microchip, chipset, electronic circuit, microprocessor, semiconductor, microcontroller, central processing unit (CPU), or other device capable of determining the interval 106 in which to connect and disconnect the switch 110.
The interval 106 is the time period in which the switch 110 is connected, thereby enabling the capacitor 112 to charge. In one implementation, the interval 106 may include the turn on point to connect the switch 110 and the turn off point in which to disconnect the switch 110. In this implementation, the controller 104 monitors the input voltage from the voltage source 108 to determine when the input voltage reaches the peak voltage without exceeding the current limitation. The controller 104 may then transmit a signal to the switch 110 to connect and/or disconnect, accordingly. In another implementation, the controller 104 may determine the interval 106 by calculating the peak voltage from the input voltage based on the current limitation and an impedance associated with the switch 110. This implementation is described in detail in
The switch 110 provides the flow of current to the capacitor 112 upon the connection. As such, the switch 110 interrupts the flow of current from the voltage source 108 to the capacitor upon the disconnection. The connection and the disconnection 110 are provided according to the interval 106. Implementations of the switch 110 include an electromechanical device, electrical device, switching voltage regulator, transistor, relay, logic gate, binary state logic, or other type of electrical device that may interrupt the flow to the capacitor 112.
The capacitor 112 is a hardware component used to store energy (e.g., current) electrostatically in an electrical field. In one implementation, the capacitor 112 may block direct current from the voltage source 108, while allowing alternating current to pass, thereby providing power to the load.
At operation 302, the controller may determine the interval to limit the inrush of current to the capacitor. The interval is a window of time in which the switch remains connected, thus allowing current to reach the capacitor. The interval may be based on characteristics of the switch (e.g., impedance), measurement limitations of sensors within the controller, and/or the peak potential (e.g., peak voltage and frequency) of the input voltage. The interval includes the turn on point in which to connect the switch to allow current to flow to the capacitor and the turn off point in which the switch is disconnected to prevent current flowing to the capacitor. In operation 302, the circuit which includes the capacitor and controller may receive an input voltage from a voltage source. Upon receiving the input voltage, the controller may receive a bias voltage for the functioning of the controller. Additionally in operation 302, the controller may sync a clock with the input voltage to determine when the input voltage has reached the peak voltage without exceeding the current limitation. These implementations are described in detail in later figures.
At operation 304, the controller determines whether the input voltage has reached the peak voltage without exceeding the current limitation. In one implementation, the controller may monitor the input voltage to determine a magnitude of voltage of the input voltage. Using the magnitude of voltage and a predetermined resistance, the controller may calculate the magnitude of current at the particular magnitude of voltage. This enables the controller to determine when the input voltage is exceeding a particular current level, thus preventing the connection of the switch to charge the capacitor and thereby protecting the hardware components of the circuit. Upon determining the peak voltage has exceeded the current limitation, the controller may not connect the switch as at operation 306. Upon determining the peak voltage has not exceeded the current limitation, the controller may connect and disconnect the switch in accordance to the interval as at operation 308.
At operation 306 upon determining the peak voltage has exceeded the current limitation at operation 304, the controller may not connect the switch to the capacitor. In this implementation, the switch remains disconnected, thus the disconnection of the switch continues to prevent current from reaching the capacitor. This prevents the inrush of current from reaching the capacitor and may mitigate damage from the inrush of current that exceeds the current limitation.
At operation 308, the controller may connect and disconnect the switch in accordance with the interval determined at operation 302. The interval includes the turn on point in which to connect the switch and the turn off point which disconnects the switch. In another implementation of operation 308, prior to connecting the switch, the switch may remain disconnected. In this implementation, until connecting the switch at operation 308, the capacitor may not be charging, thereby preventing the inrush of current to the capacitor.
At operation 402, the controller receives the bias voltage in which powers the controller. In this implementation, a voltage source provides input voltage to the circuit, while the controller receives the bias voltage from the input voltage. Receiving the bias voltage, powers on the controller and signals to the controller to determine the interval to limit the inrush of current to the capacitor.
At operation 404, the controller monitors the input voltage from the voltage source. In this implementation, the controller may sync an internal clock with the input voltage to determine when the input voltage has reached a turn on point. The controller may use a sensor to monitor the input voltage. In this operation, the controller may monitor a frequency of the input voltage to determine a cycle of the input voltage. Monitoring the cycle of the input voltage, the controller may determine when the input cycle reaches the turn on point of the interval as at operation 406.
At operation 406, the controller determines the interval in which to connect and disconnect the switch for limiting the inrush of current to the capacitor. In one implementation, upon determining the interval to limit the inrush of current to the circuit at operation 406, the controller may proceed to connecting the switch in accordance with the interval. For example upon determining the interval at operation 406, the controller may proceed to operation 308 as in
At operation 408, the controller determines the turn on point to connect the switch to the capacitor. The turn on point is considered a peak voltage point on the input voltage without exceeding a particular current limitation. In one implementation, the turn on point is the peak voltage point when the input voltage may be decreasing in a cycle as in
At operation 410, the controller determines the turn off point in which to disconnect the switch to the capacitor. In one implementation, the turn off point is calculated based on the current limitation, impedance, and voltage across the capacitor. In another implementation, the turn off point is considered the point on the input voltage when the voltage across the capacitor is greater than the input voltage. This implementation may be explained in further detail in
At operation 412, the controller measures the voltage across the capacitor. In one implementation, the voltage across the capacitor is used to determine the turn off point as at operation 410. In this implementation, if the voltage across the capacitor is greater than the input voltage, the controller disconnects the switch from the capacitor to prevent the capacitor from exceeding the current limitation. In another implementation, the voltage across the capacitor is used to readjust the interval as operation 406. In this implementation, the interval is readjusted to obtain a next interval based on the voltage across the capacitor.
At operation 414, the controller readjusts the interval based on the voltage measured across the capacitor at operation 410. Readjusting the interval, the controller may operate in response to charging conditions.
At operation 502, the controller determines the turn on point on the interval in which the controller signals to the switch to connect to the capacitor. The turn on point is calculated from the input voltage without exceeding a current limitation. The current limitation represents a threshold of current to the capacitor is a threshold amount of current in which the circuit may handle without causing potential hardware failures. For example, the current limitation may be around 30 amps prior to blowing fuses and/or breakers within the circuit. In one implementation, the controller calculates the turn on point of the input voltage at operation 504.
At operation 504, the controller calculates the turn on point based on the input voltage without exceeding the current limitation. The turn on point is the peak voltage of the input voltage without exceeding the current limitation. For example in one implementation, the turn on point is calculated from the current limitation and resistance associated with the switch, such as in Equation 1. In another implementation, the turn on point is calculated from the current limitation, resistance associated with the switch and the voltage across the capacitor as in Equation 2. The resistance is the impedance of the circuit from the switch to the capacitor and as such, may be pre-defined or measured from the controller. As explained earlier, the current limitation (ILIMIT) is considered a threshold limit on an amount of current that may be predefined according to a rating of a hardware component and/or measured by the controller. The current limitation is the amount of current the circuit may handle prior to breakdown of the hardware components. For example, assume the current limitation is around 30 amps, the input voltage may vary in accordance to the resistance associated with the switch and the voltage across the capacitor; however, the current limitation remains constant even though intervals may be adjusted based on the voltage across the capacitor (VCAPACITOR).
VTURN ON=ILIMITR Equation (1)
V
TURN ON
=I
LIMIT
R+V
CAPACITOR Equation (2)
At operation 506, the controller determines whether the input voltage has reached the turn on point. The controller monitors the input voltage to determine when the input voltage reaches the turn on point. The turn on point is calculated at operation 504 as the peak voltage based on the resistance and current limitation. In one implementation, if the input voltage has not yet reached the turn on point, the controller may continue monitoring at operation 506 for the turn on point. In this implementation, if the input voltage has not yet reached the turn on point, the switch remains disconnected as at operation 306 as in
At operation 508, the controller transmits a signal to the switch to connect to the capacitor. The signal indicates to the switch to close, thus enabling current to flow through the switch to the capacitor. In one implementation, once connecting the switch based on the beginning interval, the controller monitors to determine when to transmit the signal to the switch for disconnection. This implementation is discussed in detail in
At operation 510, the controller determines the turn off point to disconnect the switch. In another implementation, the turn off point is calculated from Equation 2 at operation 512.
At operation 512, the controller calculates the turn off point from the input voltage. The turn off point is a point on the input voltage calculated based on the current limitation, resistance associated with the switch, and the voltage across the capacitor. In one implementation, by using Equation 2, the controller calculates when the voltage across the capacitor is greater than the peak voltage calculated at operation 504. If the voltage across the capacitor is greater than the peak voltage calculated at operation 504, this signals to the controller to disconnect the switch.
At operation 514, the controller monitors the input voltage and the voltage across the capacitor. If the input voltage is less than the voltage across the capacitor, the controller proceeds to operation 516 to disconnect the switch. In other words, if the voltage across the capacitor is larger than the input voltage, the controller proceeds to operation 516. If the voltage across the capacitor is smaller than the input voltage, the controller may continue monitoring the input voltage and/or the voltage across the capacitor at operation 514.
At operation 516, the controller transmits a signal to the switch to disconnect, preventing the inrush of current from reaching the capacitor. In this implementation, there may be a voltage potential left across the capacitor until the capacitor bleeds down. This voltage potential is taken into account when the controller determines a next interval. This enables interval to be adjusted based on the voltage potential across the capacitor.
The processor 602 may fetch, decode, and execute instructions 606-622 to limit the inrush of current to the capacitor by determining an interval in which to connect and disconnect a switch. In one implementation, once executing instructions 606-608, the processor 602 may proceed to execute instructions 612-614. In another implementation, once executing instructions 606-614, the processor 602 may proceed to execute instructions 616-618 to connect and disconnect the switch in accordance with the interval. In a further implementation, once executing instructions 606-618, the processor 602 may execute instructions 620-622 for readjusting the interval from voltage across the capacitor. Specifically, the processor 602 executes instructions 606-608 to: continue a disconnection of the switch; and determining an interval for the switch to connect and disconnect. The processor 602 may proceed to instructions 610-614 to: determine a turn on point for connecting the switch, the turn on point is based on a peak voltage of an input voltage which does not exceed a current limitation; and determine a turn off point for disconnecting the switch, the disconnection limits current from continuing to charge the capacitor. The processor 602 may then execute instructions 616-618 to: connect the switch upon reaching the turn on point of the interval; and disconnecting the switch upon reaching the turn off point of the interval. Further, the processor 602 may execute instructions 620-622 to: measure the voltage across the capacitor; and then readjusting the interval which was determined at instructions 608. In this implementation, the processor 602 may determine the next interval based upon the voltage across the capacitor.
The machine-readable storage medium 604 includes instructions 606-622 for the processor 602 to fetch, decode, and execute. In another embodiment, the machine-readable storage medium 604 may be an electronic, magnetic, optical, memory, storage, flash-drive, or other physical device that contains or stores executable instructions. Thus, the machine-readable storage medium 604 may include, for example, Random Access Memory (RAM), an Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EEPROM), a storage drive, a memory cache, network storage, a Compact Disc Read Only Memory (CDROM) and the like. As such, the machine-readable storage medium 604 may include an application and/or firmware which can be utilized independently and/or in conjunction with the processor 602 to fetch, decode, and/or execute instructions of the machine-readable storage medium 604. The application and/or firmware may be stored on the machine-readable storage medium 604 and/or stored on another location of the computing device 600.
In summary, examples disclosed herein limit an inrush of current by connecting and disconnecting a switch in accordance with an interval.
Pursuant to 35 U.S.C. §371, this application is a United States National Stage Application of International Patent Application No. PCT/US2013/072874, filed on Dec. 3, 2013, the contents of which are incorporated by reference as if set forth in their entirety herein.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/US2013/072874 | 12/3/2013 | WO | 00 |