Method for low loss control of a capacitive load, in particular of a piezoelectric actuator

US6320297A · kind A · utility

Assignee

• FEV Motorentechnik GmbH & Co. Kommanitgesellschaft · DE

Inventors

• Gunter Gurich · Aachen, DE
• Thomas Flecke · Aachen, DE
• Martin Dusterhoft · Aachen, DE

Key dates

• Filing date: Sep 16, 1999
• Grant date: Nov 20, 2001
• Expiry date: Sep 16, 2019

Classification

• Technology area (CPC H): Electricity
• CPC primary: H10N30/802

Abstract

The invention related to a method for low loss periodic control of a capacitive load (C.sub.P), in particular of a piezoelectric actuator. In this method, before load control begins, a capacitor bank (C.sub.1) is charged via a voltage source (U.sub.B) until the oprating voltage of load (C.sub.P) is attained; then the load (C.sub.P) is charged from the capacitor bank (C.sub.1) via a series resonant circuit formed by a reactance coil (L.sub.1), a freewheeling diode (D.sub.E), and by the load (C.sub.P). In this method, when a load is required, the load (C.sub.P) is linked via discharge switch (S.sub.E) to the reactance soil (L.sub.1) which is itself connected via a freewheeling freewheeling diode (D.sub.L) to the capacitor bank (C.sub.1) in such a way that the load (C.sub.P) is discharged until a residual voltage (U.sub.R).