Voltage converter with battery discharge protection
US5751140A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 25, 1997 |
| Grant date | May 12, 1998 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Mar 25, 2017 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG05F1/56
- WIPO fieldElectrical machinery, apparatus, energy
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
An electric power regulator circuit for discharge of a spacecraft battery is employed for powering a load with energy stored in the battery. In order to produce a simplification of circuitry with reduction in the total number of components, the regulator circuit has two loops which share a common inductor. In a first loop, the inductor is serially connected with a gate, in the form of a first field effect transistor (FET) connected to the battery. The second loop includes the inductor with a series connection via a diode or a second FET to a capacitor which charges to feed the load. The load is serially connected via a current monitor between terminals of the capacitor, the monitor serving to sense the presence of short circuit current. The first FET is pulse-width modulated by a modulator operating in response to voltage sensed across the capacitor. The pulse width duty factor is adjusted automatically to compensate for changes in capacitor voltage, thereby to establish an essentially constant value of voltage. The second FET is operated in complementary fashion to the first FET. The forward conduction direction of the diode is opposed to the direction of current flow through the …
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.