A Single-Stage LED Driver Based on ZCDS Class-E Current-Driven Rectifier as a PFC for Street-Lighting Applications

This paper presents a light-emitting diode (LED) driver for street-lighting applications that uses a resonant rectifier as a power-factor corrector (PFC). The PFC semistage is based on a zero-current and zero-derivative-switching (ZCDS) Class-E current-driven rectifier, and the LED driver semistage is based on a zero-voltage-switching (ZVS) Class-D LLC resonant converter that is integrated into a single-stage topology. To increase the conduction angle of the bridge-rectifier diodes current and to decrease the current harmonics that are injected in the utility line, the ZCDS Class-E rectifier is placed between the bridge-rectifier and a dc-link capacitor. The ZCDS Class-E rectifieris driven by a high-frequency current source, which is obtained from a square-wave output voltage of the ZVS Class-D LLC resonant converter using a matching network. Additionally, the proposed converter has a soft-switching characteristic that reduces switching losses and switching noise. A prototype for a 150-W LED street light has been developed and tested to evaluate the performance of the proposed approach. The proposed LED driver had a high efficiency (>91%), a high PF (>0.99), and a low total harmonic distortion (THD i <; 8%) under variation of the utility-line input voltage from 180 to 250 V rms . These experimental results demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed LED scheme

Innovative solutions for acoustic resonance characterization in metal halide lamps

Metal halide lamp is one kind of the most compact high-performance light sources. Because of their good color rendering index and high luminous efficacy, these lamps are often preferred in locations where color and efficacy are important, such as supermarkets, gymnasiums, ice rinks and sporting arenas. Unfortunately, acoustic resonance phenomenon occurs in metal halide lamps and causes light flicker, lamp arc bending and rotation, lamp extinction and in the worst case, arc tube explosion, when the lamps are operated in high-frequency bands. This thesis takes place in the context of developing electronic ballasts with robust acoustic resonance detection and avoidance mechanisms. To this end, several envelope detection methods such as the multiplier circuit, rectifier circuit, and lock-in amplifier, are proposed to characterize fluctuations of acoustic resonance. Furthermore, statistical criteria based on the standard deviation of these fluctuations are proposed to assess acoustic resonance occurrence and classify its severity. The proposed criteria enable classifying between no acoustic resonance and acoustic resonance cases based upon either a two-dimensional plane, a histogram or a boxplot. These analyses are confirmed by the study of spectral variations (variations of the spectral irradiance and colorimetric parameters) as well. Standard deviations and relative standard deviations of these variations are also correlated with the presence of acoustic resonance. The results from this study show that whatever voltage envelope variations or spectral variations are significantly influenced by acoustic resonance phenomena. A set of metal halide lamps from different manufacturers and with different powers are tested in our experiments. We concluded that our designed multiplier and rectifier circuits for acoustic resonance detection have the same sensitivity as the lock-in amplifier, paving the way for the implementation of this function directly into the ballast circuit board

Electronic operation and control of high-intensity gas-discharge lamps

The ever increasing amount of global energy consumption based on the application of fossil fuels is threatening the earth’s natural resources and environment. Worldwide, grid-based electric lighting consumes 19 % of total global electricity production. For this reason the transition towards energy efficient lighting plays an important environmental role. One of the key technologies in this transition is High-Intensity Discharge (HID) lighting. The technical revolution in gas-discharge lamps has resulted in the highlyefficient lamps that are available nowadays. As with most energy efficient light solutions, all HID lighting systems require a ballast to operate. Traditionally, magnetic ballast designs were the only choice available for HID lighting systems. Today, electronic lampdrivers can offer additional power saving, flicker free operation, and miniaturisation. Electronic lamp operation enables additional degrees of freedom in lamp-current control over the conventional electro-magnetic (EM) ballasts. The lamp-driver system performance depends on both the dynamics of the lamp and the driver. This thesis focuses on the optimisation of electronically operated HID systems, in terms of highly-efficient lamp-driver topologies and, more specifically, lamp-driver interaction control. First, highly-efficient power topologies to operate compact HID lamps on low-frequency-square-wave (LFSW) current are explored. The proposed two-stage electronic lamp-driver consists of a Power Factor Corrector (PFC) stage that meets the power utility standards. This converter is coupled to a stacked buck converter that controls the lamp-current. Both stages are operated in Zero Voltage Switching (ZVS) mode in order to reduce the switching losses. The resulting two-stage lamp-drivers feature flexible controllability, high efficiency, and high power density, and are suitable for power sandwich packaging. Secondly, lamp-driver interaction (LDI) has been studied in the simulation domain and control algorithms have been explored that improve the stability, and enable system optimisation. Two HID lamp models were developed. The first model describes the HID lamp’s small-signal electrical behaviour and its purpose is to aid to study the interaction stability. The second HID lamp model has been developed based on physics equations for the arc column and the electrode behaviour, and is intended for lampdriver simulations and control applications. Verification measurements have shown that the lamp terminal characteristics are present over a wide power and frequency range. Three LDI control algorithms were explored, using the proposed lampmodels. The first control principle optimises the LDI for a broad range of HID lamps operated at normal or reduced power. This approach consists of two control loops integrated into a fuzzy-logic controller that stabilises the lamp-current and optimises the commutation process. The second control problem concerns the application of ultra high performance (UHP) HID lamps in projection applications that typically set stringent requirements on the quality of the light generated by these lamps, and therefore the lampcurrent. These systems are subject to periodic disturbances synchronous with the LFSW commutation period. Iterative learning control (ILC) has been examined. It was experimentally verified that this algorithm compensates for repetitive disturbances. Third, Electronic HID operation also opens the door for continuous HID lamp dimming that can provide additional savings. To enable stable dimming, an observer-based HID lamp controller has been developed. This controller sets a stable minimum dim-level and monitors the gas-discharge throughout lamp life. The HID lamp observer derives physical lamp state signals from the HID arc discharge physics and the related photometric properties. Finally, practical measurements proved the proposed HID lamp observer-based control principle works satisfactorily

Impact of modern lighting technology on the power line communications channel

Abstract: In this study, we look at the impact of modern lighting technology on Power Line Communications (PLC). Power Line Communications has become important due to the Smart Grid and Internet of Things (IoT) development. Modern lighting technology has been developed to make efficient use of electric energy. This technology uses power converters to enable the use of different lighting sources. A byproduct of this conversion process is electronic noise. This noise can interfere with the PLC channel. In this study, different lighting technologies are investigated from a noise standpoint and compared to PLC signal levels. Both narrowband and broadband PLC frequency ranges are investigated. This study shows that the influence of noise on the PLC channel depends predominantly on the conversion topology as well as whether filters have been used. The measurement results show that the influence on data communication system can vary in impact from low to severe. Results were obtained for low energy, high energy, indoor and outdoor lighting sources. A common front end topology encounted is the bridge rectifier and high frequency DC-DC converter combination. These topologies are investigated in details. The study presented here shows that lighting technology (causing interference) needs special consideration when designing PLC systems. Of particular importance is the use of filters which ensure compliance with interference standards and limit the noise effects on the PLC signal.D.Ing. (Electrical and Electronic Engineering Science

Digital Control of LFSW HID Lamp Drivers with Soft Saturation Magnetic Materials and Integrated Resonant Lamp Ignition

Electronic HID ballasts provide many advantages over magnetic HID ballasts including size, weight, overall efficiency, and greater control of operating conditions. Electronic ballasts add complexity to the system, requiring a greater understanding of the operation of HID lamps. Electronic ballasts also introduce a host of issues for the HID ballast designer including possible acoustic resonances, arc stability issues, and operation across broad operating conditions. In this work, research of a Low-Frequency Square-Wave (LFSW) HID solution is performed that includes use of a non-linear soft saturation core material for the inductor. Modeling of the converter with this core is presented as well. Difficulties with operation of HID lamps are outlined, as well as the previous methods to overcome such obstacles. Ignition and steady-state operation of HID lamps occur with very different operating conditions. Ignition occurs with very little lamp current, but large lamp voltage, and steady-state operation is the opposite. Due to this mismatch, any single ignitor/ballast design requires the inductor to be able to handle both operating points. Use of a soft saturation material allows for a reduction in size and weight of the overall system due to the higher magnetic capacity of the material as compared to hard saturation alternatives. The downside to using this material is inductance varies with magnetizing force on the core. A resonant ignition approach with soft saturation material is presented, motivating the need for phase control of the system. A fast transition between resonant and LFSW mode operation is presented, which requires a large design space for possible lamp impedances. Transition times between LFSW modes are dependent on natural frequency and Q factor of a buck filter response, which is shaped beneficially by the soft saturation material. A design method for this is presented, along with considerations for core selection. A two loop control method is analyzed with an inner current loop that stabilizes the lamp arc and an outer power loop in order to obtain regulated light output. The current loop is able to monitor currents of a positive and negative buck mode operation using a single sense point. A system that uses input power sensing to ultimately control output power is analyzed and experimentation is presented

Piezoelectric Transformer Integration Possibility in High Power Density Applications

The contents of this work investigate the capability of integrating the PT in applications by invoking the ratio of the throughput power to volume represented by the term: power density. The fundamentals of the PT are introduced in chapter two. In chapter three, the fundamental limitations of the PT's capability of transferring power to the load are studied. There are three major limitations: temperature rise due to losses during operation, electromechanical limits of material, and interactions with output rectifier. The analysis and estimation are then verified by experiments and calculations implemented on three different PT samples fabricated from three different manufacturers. The subject of chapter four is the behavior of the PT's power amplifier. This chapter concentrates on two main amplifier topologies, optimized based on the simplicity of structure and minimization of components (passive and active): class D and class E amplifiers. The operational characteristics of these amplifiers with the PT are then comparison. Methods to track the optimum frequency and discontinuous working mode of the PT are proposed as the approaches to improve the energy transfer of the PT. In chapter five, prototypes of four devices using a PT are developed and introduced as illustrations of the integration of PTs into practical applications: an igniter for high intensity discharge (HID) lamps, high DC voltage power supplies, and electronic ballasts for LEDs, and stand-alone ionizers for food sterilizers. Some concluding statements and ideas for future works are located in the last chapter - chapter six

Sistema eletrônico para lâmpadas de vapor de sódio de alta pressão

Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Centro Tecnológico. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Engenharia Elétrica.O presente trabalho aborda o desenvolvimento e a implementação do protótipo de um reator eletrônico destinado à alimentação de lâmpadas de vapor de sódio de alta pressão em alta freqüência. A utilização de reatores eletrônicos para alimentar lâmpadas de descarga traz inúmeros benefícios, como aumento do rendimento e redução de peso e volume e possibilidade de inserção de características especiais de funcionamento. No entanto, as lâmpadas de vapor de sódio de alta pressão, quando alimentadas em alta freqüência, estão sujeitas ao fenômeno conhecido como ressonância acústica. O trabalho desenvolvido visa a concepção de circuitos eletrônicos capazes de alimentar tais lâmpadas em alta freqüênci

Controladores LED eficientes para aplicações de iluminação geral

Mestrado em Engenharia Eletrónica e TelecomunicaçõesThe ever growing energy consumption trends and its impact on the environment has triggered worldwide attention. This has motivated several measures, such as the Kyoto protocol, or the 20 20 20 European strategy, aiming at the reduction of energy consumption. Globally, these measures defend a better and efficient usage of the available energy. This in turn is strongly linked to public awareness and the introduction of efficient electronic equipment. Public street lighting is a good example of these trends, where both aspects are of the utmost importance. The introduction of power LEDs as future lighting devices has motivated several advances coping with these strategies. On one side, LEDs are able to deliver higher efficiency when compared to conventional lighting devices. This has triggered the replacement of old style luminaires by LED based ones. However, their high cost has prevented full adoption and at the present stage, is acting as a slowing down force against this replacement trend. Better solutions are under research on the framework of several European projects. Power LEDs are solid-state devices able to support fast switching, a feature which was not fully supported by conventional lighting devices. Combining this feature with environmental sensing and intelligent control may lead to better power savings. A simple approach would be to consider the that the actual lighting demands depend on the street usage and surrounding lighting levels. For this purpose, the combination of twilight sensors, motion detectors and intelligent control schemes may provide a suitable approach. This way, the real lighting demands can be effectively taken into consideration, providing luminaires able to consume the least possible energy. For this to become a reality several challenges have to be addressed. One of the most important challenges is the LED driver design. Modern lighting systems based on LEDs, replace the traditional ballasts by LED drivers. When efficiency is a major concern, such as in public street lighting, these drivers have to be designed in order to be the most robust and efficient as possible. Recurring solutions resort to switched mode power supplies, able to support light dimming. One of the major problems with these drivers is the fact that their efficiency decreases for lower dimming levels. This is of the utmost importance for public street lighting, as most of the time during night, the luminaires are on a low lighting level (as changes to high lighting conditions depend on street usage). Thus, in order to promote better power savings, the efficiency of the driver should be high for both lighting conditions. Commercially available drivers, exhibit efficiencies on the 90% range for the high lighting conditions, with only 40% to 60% under the low lighting. On the framework of this master dissertation it was investigated the problem of LED driver design aiming at the highest possible uniformity of the efficiency curve, under different loading and dimming conditions. The selected approach was based on quasi-resonant flyback converter, backed up by an active power factor correcting block. The designed driver supports remote configuration and monitoring as well as sensor integration. The archived results show that this driver achieves a peak efficiency of 93% under maximum load and 100% duty-cycle. The efficiency for low dimming conditions (10% duty-cycle) achieves 75%.As tendências de consumo de energia cada vez maior e seu impacto sobre o meio ambiente tem captado a atenção a nível mundial. Isso tem motivado várias medidas, tais como o Protocolo de Quioto, ou a estratégia Europeia 20 20 20, visando a redução do consumo de energia. Globalmente, estas medidas defendem um uso melhor e eficiente da energia disponível. Este, por sua vez, está fortemente ligado à consciência pública e à introdução de equipamento eletrónico eficiente. A iluminação pública é um bom exemplo dessas tendências, em que ambos os aspetos são de extrema importância. A introdução de LEDs como dispositivos de iluminação tem motivado vários avanços que lidam com essas estratégias. De um lado, os LEDs são capazes de oferecer uma maior eficiência quando comparados com dispositivos de iluminação convencionais. Isso provocou a substituição de luminárias convencionais por luminárias baseadas em LED. No entanto, o custo elevado destes dispositivos tem impedido a adoção plena e na fase atual, está mesmo a atuar como uma força negativa contra esta tendência de substituição. Melhores soluções estão sob investigação no âmbito de vários projetos europeus. Os LEDs são dispositivos de estado sólido, capazes de suportar a comutação rápida, uma característica que não é totalmente suportada por dispositivos de iluminação convencionais. Combinando esta característica com sensores ambientais e controlo inteligente pode-se ambicionar melhores poupanças energéticas. Uma abordagem simples seria a de considerar o que as exigências de iluminação reais dependem do uso das ruas e os níveis de iluminação circundantes. Para este efeito, a combinação de sensores de crepúsculo, detetores de movimento e regimes de controlo inteligentes podem propiciar uma abordagem adequada. Desta forma, os requisitos reais de iluminação podem ser efetivamente considerados, fornecendo luminárias capazes de consumir apenas a energia necessária. Para que isto se torne uma realidade vários desafios têm de ser vencidos. Um dos desafios mais importantes é o projeto LED driver. Nos sistemas de iluminação modernos baseados em LEDs, substitui-se os balastros convencionais por LED drivers. Quando a eficiência é importante, como no caso da iluminação pública, O LED driver têm de ser concebido de forma a ser o mais robusto e eficiente possível. Soluções recorrentes usam a fontes de alimentação comutadas, capazes de suportar o escurecimento adaptativo do fluxo luminoso. Um dos problemas principais no projeto destes drivers é o facto de a sua eficiência diminuir para níveis de regulação mais baixos. Isto é de extrema importância para a iluminação pública, pois na maioria dos casos durante a noite, as luminárias estão num nível de iluminação de baixo. Assim, com a finalidade de promover uma melhor economia de energia, a eficiência do driver deve ser elevada para ambas as condições de iluminação. Drivers comercialmente disponíveis, exibem eficácias na gama de 90% com elevado fluxo luminoso, e apenas 40% a 60% na condição de baixo fluxo luminoso. No âmbito desta dissertação de mestrado foi investigado o problema do projeto de driver LED visando a maior uniformidade possível da curva de eficiência, sob diferentes condições de carga e de fluxo luminoso. A abordagem escolhida foi baseada no conversor flyback quasi-ressonante, apoiado por um bloco de correção de fator de potência ativa. O driver projetado suporta configuração e monitorização remota, bem como de integração de sensores. Os resultados alcançados mostram que este driver atinge um pico de eficiência de 93% na condição de carga máxima e máximo fluxo luminoso. A eficiência em condições de baixo fluxo luminoso é superior a 75%

Modes d'Alimentation et de Commande des lampes sodium haute pression en vue d’éviter les résonances acoustiques

Grâce au développement de la technologie des semi-conducteurs, les ballasts électroniques fonctionnant en haute fréquence offrent des avantages considérables par rapport aux ballasts électromagnétiques conventionnels. Il en résulte une augmentation de la durée de vie de la lampe, une diminution du volume et du poids du système et surtout un meilleur contrôle de son fonctionnement afin de réduire notamment la consommation électrique. Parmi des lampes à décharge, la lampe sodium haute pression a une excellente efficacité lumineuse et une longue durée de vie. Pourtant, quand la lampe fonctionne en haut fréquence, des perturbations de type « résonance acoustique (RA) » peuvent entraîner l’instabilité de la décharge, son extinction ou pire, la destruction de la lampe. Cette thèse, intitulée « Modes d’Alimentation et de Commande des lampes sodium haute pression en vue d’éviter les résonances acoustiques », traite de plusieurs problèmes. Les caractéristiques de la décharge haute pression, le phénomène de RA, ses conditions d’excitation (notamment au travers d’un phénomène d’hystérésis original) et la variation des paramètres électriques due à la présence de résonances acoustiques dans la lampe, ont été étudiés. Les résultats sont issus de travaux de simulation et expérimentaux menés au sein du laboratoire LAPLACE. Grâce à ces acquis fondamentaux, plusieurs nouvelles méthodes d’alimentation par l’injection de signaux à fréquences proches ont été proposées dans nos travaux. Il s’agit d’éviter la résonance acoustique dans la lampe alimentée par un ballast de structure très réduite par rapport aux solutions classiques. Cette méthode est basée sur le choix judicieux des signaux injectés dans la lampe et leur répartition, (alimentation par deux, trois ou cinq signaux, répartition symétrique, asymétrique totale ou partielle). Le résultat est un meilleur étalement du spectre et donc une réduction de puissances harmoniques sélectionnées permettant de s’adapter, à terme aux conditions d’excitation des RA, mais aussi les limitations de ces méthodes compte tenu du facteur crête. Enfin, différents types de commande en boucle fermée sont proposés, ils permettent d’assurer la stabilité de la décharge et le contrôle des puissances imposées dans la lampe. Les études théoriques, en simulation et expérimentales qui ont été conduites nous ont permis d’aboutir à des résultats concluants. ABSTRACT : For high pressure sodium (HPS) lamps, the progress of semi-conductor technology has provided considerable advantages in the design of high frequency operated electronic ballasts, compared to conventional electromagnetic ballasts. The advantages deal with lamp lifetime improvement, ballast volume and mass reduction, and particularly with a better control of lamp operation for optimized power consumption. Among discharge lamps, high pressure sodium (HPS) lamp has excellent efficacy and long lifetime. However, when it is operated at high frequency, discharge perturbation namely “acoustic resonances (AR)” can provoke some lamp arc instabilities, extinction or, even worst, lamp destruction. The present thesis, entitled “Supply and control methods for acoustic resonances avoidance in high intensity discharge lamps” deals with several matters.  High intensity discharge (HID) characteristics, AR phenomenon, its excitation conditions (including the original features of AR hysteresis) and lamp electrical parameters variation due to AR presence, will be studied. The obtained results were provided by simulations and experimentations carried out in LAPLACE laboratory. Thanks to the acquired results of previous studies, several novel lamp supply strategies via adjacent frequency signals injection were proposed. The main concepts here consist in the avoidance of AR presented in a lamp supplied by designed electronic ballast with reduced structure, compared to classical solutions. Otherwise, the presented methods are based on pertinent choices of injected signals applied to the lamp and their frequency distributions (two, three or five signals and symmetric, partial asymmetric or total asymmetric signals). The studies actually showed better spreading of signal spectrum and power harmonic amplitudes reduction adapted to AR excitation conditions, while taking into account crest factor limitation. Finally, different control laws (PI, Hysteresis, Self-oscillation, Resonant controllers) were also proposed in order to guarantee lamp discharge stabilization and power controls. The theoretical and experimental studies including simulations were conducted to reach concluding results of our works