Patent · US Active

Gate drive unit and method for short circuit protection for a power switch

US9209618B2 · kind B2 · utility

2Cited by

5References

23Claims

0Family size

Assignee

General Electric Company · US

Inventors

Alvaro Jorge Mari Curbelo · Unterschleißheim, DE
Thomas Alois Zoels · Hebertshausen, DE
Miguel Garcia Clemente · Bayern, DE
Philipp Leuner · Bad Abbach, DE
Nicolas Wannenmacher · Bad Abbach, DE

Key dates

Filing date	May 8, 2014
Grant date	Dec 8, 2015
Priority date	—
Expiry date	May 8, 2034

Classification

Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
CPC primaryH03K2217/0081
WIPO fieldBasic communication processes
WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A gate drive unit includes a measurement unit, a multi-resistive driving device, and a processing unit. The measurement unit measures a voltage across main terminals of a power switch. The driving device includes plural individually controllable resistive elements. The processing unit controls a control voltage applied to a control electrode of the power switch to activate the power switch. The processing unit individually activates or deactivates the resistive elements of the multi-resistive driving device to change which of the resistive elements at least partially conducts the control voltage to the power switch at different times responsive to the voltage across the main terminals representing a short circuit event. The processing unit changes which of the resistive elements are activated or deactivated to control a rate at which the control voltage decreases.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.