A Survey, Classification and Critical Review of Light-Emitting Diode Drivers

Based on a survey on over 1400 commercial LED drivers and a literature review, a range of LED driver topologies are classified according to their applications, power ratings, performance and their energy storage and regulatory requirements. Both passive and active LED drivers are included in the review and their advantages and disadvantages are discussed. This paper also presents an overall view on the technical and cost aspects of the LED technology, which is useful to both researchers and engineers in the lighting industry. Some general guidelines for selecting driver topologies are included to aid design engineers to make appropriate choices.published_or_final_versio

High Power Density High Efficiency Electrolytic-Free Single-Phase Led Drivers

Owing to their high efficiencies and longer lifetimes, LEDs are increasingly replacing conventional light sources in various applications. Many of these applications require high-power-density and long-life LED drivers to fully benefit from the longer-life advantage provided by the LEDs. This thesis presents high-power-density, high-efficiency and longer-life LED drivers suitable for such applications. The proposed LED drivers eliminate the use of shorter-life electrolytic capacitors used for twice-line-frequency energy buffering with film/ceramic capacitor based stacked switched capacitor (SSC) energy buffers. The utilization of the SSC energy buffer significantly reduces the passive volume of the twice-line-frequency energy buffer compared to the use of single film/ceramic capacitors. A comprehensive capacitance-ratio optimization scheme is presented that optimally selects the ratios of the capacitors utilized in the SSC energy buffer to minimize the total energy stored in the buffer. This optimization scheme is further improved by incorporating the energy density of commercially available capacitors to minimize the passive volume of the SSC energy buffer. A simplified control methodology for interfacing the SSC energy buffer with a PFC converter is also presented. The proposed optimization and control methodologies are applied to single-stage and two-stage LED driver designs utilizing SSC energy buffers. For the single-stage LED driver, a flyback based step-down PFC stage is utilized. It is demonstrated that the SSC energy buffer successfully replaces traditional electrolytic capacitors in this design while maintaining comparable efficiency and resulting in a 3x reduction in passive volume. For the two-stage LED driver, a comprehensive design methodology that co-optimizes the efficiency and volume of all the stages of the LED driver is presented. Based on the optimization results, a totem-pole bridgeless boost based PFC stage and a stacked-inverter based LLC resonant dc-dc stage are utilized with a hybrid film-ceramic based SSC energy buffer connected across the intermediate dc bus. A 600-W universal-input, 24-V output two-stage LED driver based on the optimized designs is built and tested. The front-end PFC stage of the LED driver achieves a peak efficiency of 98%, while the second-stage LLC dc-dc converter achieves a peak efficiency of 95%. The LED driver achieves a power density of 28 W/in3.</p

Input switched closed-loop single phase SEPIC controlled rectifier with improved performances

DC power supply has become the driving source for some essential modern applications. Thereby, DC power conditioning has become a significant issue for engineers. Typically used rectifiers associated with a bridge structure is nonlinear in nature. Thereby, the current at input side of the rectifier contains harmonics, which also flow through the power line. The presence of harmonics causes several interruptions and reduce power quality. In this regard, a new close loop SEPIC controlled rectifier is proposed in this paper. The conventional scheme is arranged with a rectifier connected to a DC-DC converter, which is an open loop system. Consequently, such system cannot regulate voltage at load varying condition. The proposed SEPIC controlled rectifier can regulate voltage under load varying condition for a wide range. Additionally, the performance in terms of total harmonic distortion (THD) of input current and power factor at AC side are also within satisfactory range for the closed loop configuration. The controlled rectifier has four operating phases associated with switching states and input voltage polarity. The close loop configuration also incorporates a current and a voltage loop at the feedback path. The comparative studies have been performed among the proposed closed loop construction, the open-loop structure as well as the conventional construction. The effectiveness of the proposed controlled rectifier is verified in terms of THD and input power factor considering the results obtained from simulation

Power management systems based on switched-capacitor DC-DC converter for low-power wearable applications

The highly efficient ultra-low-power management unit is essential in powering low-power wearable electronics. Such devices are powered by a single input source, either by a battery or with the help of a renewable energy source. Thus, there is a demand for an energy conversion unit, in this case, a DC-DC converter, which can perform either step-up or step-down conversions to provide the required voltage at the load. Energy scavenging with a boost converter is an intriguing choice since it removes the necessity of bulky batteries and considerably extends the battery life. Wearable devices are typically powered by a monolithic battery. The commonly available battery such as Alkaline or Lithium-ion, degrade over time due to their life spans as it is limited by the number of charge cycles- which depend highly on the environmental and loading condition. Thus, once it reaches the maximum number of life cycles, the battery needs to be replaced. The operation of the wearable devices is limited by usable duration, which depends on the energy density of the battery. Once the stored energy is depleted, the operation of wearable devices is also affected, and hence it needs to be recharged. The energy harvesters- which gather the available energy from the surroundings, however, have no limitation on operating life. The application can become battery-less given that harvestable energy is sufficiently powering the low-power devices. Although the energy harvester may not completely replace the battery source, it ensures the maximum duration of use and assists to become autonomous and self-sustain devices. The photovoltaic (PV) cell is a promising candidate as a hypothetical input supply source among the energy harvesters due to its smaller area and high power density over other harvesters. Solar energy use PV harvester can convert ambient light energy into electrical energy and keep it in the storage device. The harvested output of PV cannot directly connect to wearable loads for two main reasons. Depending on the incoming light, the harvested current result in varying open-circuit voltage. It requires the power management circuit to deal with unregulated input variation. Second, depending on the PV cell's material type and an effective area, the I-V characteristic's performance varies, resulting in a variation of the output power. There are several works of maximum power point tracking (MPPT) methods that allow the solar energy harvester to achieve optimal harvested power. Therefore, the harvested power depends on the size and usually small area cell is sufficient for micro-watt loads low-powered applications. The available harvested voltage, however, is generally very low-voltage range between 0.4-0.6 V. The voltage ratings of electronics in standard wearable applications operate in 1.8-3 V voltages as described in introduction’s application example section. It is higher than the supply source can offer. The overcome the mismatch voltage between source and supply circuit, a DC-DC boost converter is necessary. The switch-mode converters are favoured over the linear converters due to their highly efficient and small area overhead. The inductive converter in the switch-mode converter is common due to its high-efficiency performance. However, the integration of the inductor in the miniaturised integrated on-chip design tends to be bulky. Therefore, the switched-capacitor approach DC-DC converters will be explored in this research. In the switched-capacitor converter universe, there is plenty of work for single-output designs for various topologies. Most converters are reconfigurable to the different DC voltage levels apart from Dickson and cross-coupled charge pump topologies due to their boosting power stage architecture through a number of stages. However, existing multi-output converters are limited to the fixed gain ratio. This work explores the reconfigurable dual-output converter with adjustable gain to compromise the research gap. The thesis's primary focus is to present the inductor-less, switched-capacitor-based DC-DC converter power management system (PMS) supplied by a varying input of PV energy harvester input source. The PMS should deliver highly efficient regulated voltage conversion ratio (VCR) outputs to low-power wearable electronic devices that constitute multi-function building blocks

The application of resonant-mode techniques to off-line converters for the commercial market

This thesis presents the work performed by the author on the application of resonantmode techniques to commercially-orientated off-line converters. An extensive review of resonant-mode topologies leads to the development of a method of categorisation of these topologies which allows a greater comprehension of their properties. The categories of converter thus obtained are the conventional resonant converter, the quasi-resonant converter, and the gap-resonant converter. The gap-resonant converter is selected for further investigation. An analysis reveals the limited load and input voltage capabilities of this converter, and hence leads to the introduction of a pre-regulating converter to improve reliability and commercial viability. High-frequency techniques are explored and reported, and new techniques are developed in several areas in order to extend the concept of the gap-resonant converter to a realworld practical design. Subjects explored include the high speed driving of power MOSFETs, MOSFET and diode switching losses, high frequency magnetic materials and core losses, and skin and proximity effects. The techniques developed are used in the design of a 30OW, off-line converter with an input voltage range of 165V to 380V after rectification, and a ten-to-one output load range

EMC in Power Electronics and PCB Design

This dissertation consists of two parts. Part I is about Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) in power electronics and part II is about the Maximum Radiated Electromagnetic Emissions Calculator (MREMC), which is a software tool for EMC in printed circuit board (PCB) design. Switched-mode power converters can be significant sources of electromagnetic fields that interfere with the proper operation of nearby circuits or distant radio receivers. Part I of this dissertation provides comprehensive and organized information on the latest EMC developments in power converters. It describes and evaluates different technologies to ensure that power converters meet electromagnetic compatibility requirements. Chapters 2 and 3 describe EMC noise sources and coupling mechanisms in power converters. Chapter 4 reviews the measurements used to characterize and troubleshoot EMC problems. Chapters 5 - 8 cover passive filter solutions, active filter solutions, noise cancellation methods and reduced-noise driving schemes. Part II describes the methods used, calculations made, and implementation details of the MREMC, which is a software tool that allows the user to calculate the maximum possible radiated emissions that could occur due to specific source geometries on a PCB. Chapters 9 - 13 covers the I/O coupling EMI algorithm, Common-mode EMI algorithm, Power Bus EMI algorithm and Differential-Mode EMI algorithm used in the MREMC

Design of module level converters in photovoltaic power systems

The application of distributed maximum power point tracking (DMPPT) technology in solar photovoltaic (PV) systems is a hot topic in industry and academia. In the PV industry, grid integrated power systems are mainstream. The main objective for PV system design is to increase energy conversion efficiency and decrease the levelized cost of electricity of PV generators. This thesis firstly presents an extensive review of state-of-the-art PV technologies. With focus on grid integrated PV systems research, various aspects covered include PV materials, conventional full power processing DMPPT architectures, main MPPT techniques, and traditional partial power processing DMPPT architectures. The main restrictions to applying traditional DMPPT architectures in large power systems are discussed. A parallel connected partial power processing DMPPT architecture is proposed aiming to overcome existing restrictions. With flexible ‘plug-and-play’ functionality, the proposed architecture can be readily expanded to supply a downstream inverter stage or dc network. By adopting smaller module integrated converters, the proposed approach provides a possible efficiency improvement and cost reduction. The requirements for possible converter candidates and control strategies are analysed. One representative circuit scheme is presented as an example to verify the feasibility of the design. An electromagnetic transient model is built for different power scale PV systems to verify the DMPPT feasibility of the evaluated architecture in a large-scale PV power system. Voltage boosting ability is widely needed for converters in DMPPT applications. Impedance source converters (ISCs) are the main converter types with step-up ability. However, these converters have a general problem of low order distortion when applied in dc-ac applications. To solve this problem, a generic plug-in repetitive control strategy for a four-switch three-phase ISC type inverter configuration is developed. Simulation and experimental results confirm that this control strategy is suitable for many ISC converters.The application of distributed maximum power point tracking (DMPPT) technology in solar photovoltaic (PV) systems is a hot topic in industry and academia. In the PV industry, grid integrated power systems are mainstream. The main objective for PV system design is to increase energy conversion efficiency and decrease the levelized cost of electricity of PV generators. This thesis firstly presents an extensive review of state-of-the-art PV technologies. With focus on grid integrated PV systems research, various aspects covered include PV materials, conventional full power processing DMPPT architectures, main MPPT techniques, and traditional partial power processing DMPPT architectures. The main restrictions to applying traditional DMPPT architectures in large power systems are discussed. A parallel connected partial power processing DMPPT architecture is proposed aiming to overcome existing restrictions. With flexible ‘plug-and-play’ functionality, the proposed architecture can be readily expanded to supply a downstream inverter stage or dc network. By adopting smaller module integrated converters, the proposed approach provides a possible efficiency improvement and cost reduction. The requirements for possible converter candidates and control strategies are analysed. One representative circuit scheme is presented as an example to verify the feasibility of the design. An electromagnetic transient model is built for different power scale PV systems to verify the DMPPT feasibility of the evaluated architecture in a large-scale PV power system. Voltage boosting ability is widely needed for converters in DMPPT applications. Impedance source converters (ISCs) are the main converter types with step-up ability. However, these converters have a general problem of low order distortion when applied in dc-ac applications. To solve this problem, a generic plug-in repetitive control strategy for a four-switch three-phase ISC type inverter configuration is developed. Simulation and experimental results confirm that this control strategy is suitable for many ISC converters

TOPOLOGY, ANALYSIS, AND CMOS IMPLEMENTATION OF SWITCHED-CAPACITOR DC-DC CONVERTERS

This review highlights various design and realization aspects of three commonly used charge pump topologies, namely, the linear, exponential, and the Fibonacci type of charge pumps. We shall outline the new methods developed recently for analyzing the steady and dynamic performances of these circuits. Some practical issues for the CMOS implementation of these charge pump structures will be critically discussed. Finally, some conventional voltage regulation methods for maintaining a stable output under a large range of loading current and supply voltage fluctuations will be proposed

Hardware implementation of boost power factor correction converter.

Nowadays, there has been an increasing demand of unity power factor in electrical power sector. Due to the nonlinear nature of load equipment, switching devices, source voltage and current are out of phase with each other. Many power converters topologies are used for the power factor correction. The boost converter with controller is most common for power factor correction circuits. The controller objective is to maintain the output voltage regulation and input current tracking with source voltage. The voltage ripple present due to the ac component of the current tracking objective, hence instead of ignoring that ripple, it is used in controller designing. The mathematical modeling of system depends on ac and dc dynamics of the circuit. The Lypunov stability analysis used for designing the controller of boost converter. In this work, experimental set-up for boost power factor correction converter was made with power pole board and NI compact RIO. The controller algorithm executed in LabVIEW FPGA module and results were verified. This novel controller ensures the convergence of the error signal by stability analysis

Steady State And Dynamic Analysis And Optimization Of Single-stage Power Factor Correction Converters

With the increased interest in applying Power Factor Correction (PFC) to off-line AC-DC converters, the field of integrated, single-stage PFC converter development has attracted wide attention. Considering the tens of millions of low-to-medium power supplies manufactured each year for today\u27s rechargeable equipment, the expected reduction in cost by utilizing advanced technologies is significant. To date, only a few single-stage topologies have made it to the market due to the inherit limitations in this structure. The high voltage and current stresses on the components led to reduced efficiency and an increased failure rate. In addition, the component prices tend to increase with increased electrical and thermal requirements, jeopardizing the overarching goal of price reduction. The absence of dedicated control circuitry for each stage complicates the power balance in these converters, often resulting in an oversized bus capacitance. These factors have impeded widespread acceptance of these new techniques by manufacturers, and as such single stage PFC has remained largely a drawing board concept. This dissertation will present an in-depth study of innovative solutions that address these problems directly, rather than proposing more topologies with the same type of issues. The direct energy transfer concept is analyzed and presented as a promising solution for the majority of the single-stage PFC converter limitations. Three topologies are presented and analyzed based on this innovative structure. To complete the picture, the dynamics of a variety of single-stage converters can be analyzed using a proposed switched transformer model