Cooling device, in particular for cooling components housed in a switchgear cabinet, corresponding use and corresponding method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10076060-B2
Application number	US-201515314715-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 5, 2015
Priority date	Jun 5, 2014
Publication date	Sep 11, 2018
Grant date	Sep 11, 2018

Abstract

The disclosure relates to a cooling device, in particular for cooling components that are housed in a switchgear cabinet, comprising a first cooling fan for blowing air from the switchgear cabinet through a first heat exchanger, and a second cooling fan for blowing ambient air through a second heat exchanger, characterized in that the cooling device further comprises a voltage supply having a step-up and/or step-down converter, which is connected via a rectifier to a wide-range input for single-phase or multiphase AC voltage, and which charges a capacitor to a DC link voltage which is higher or lower than a mains voltage across the wide-range input, a power supply unit of at least one of the two cooling fans being connected in parallel to the capacitor. The disclosure further relates to the use of such a cooling device and to a corresponding method for operating the cooling device.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A cooling device, in particular for cooling components that are housed in a switchgear cabinet, comprising a first cooling fan for blowing air from the switchgear cabinet through a first heat exchanger, and a second cooling fan for blowing ambient air through a second heat exchanger, the cooling device further comprising a compressor-driven cooling circuit having a compressor and a mechanical or electronic choking element, characterized in that the cooling device comprises a voltage supply having a step-up and/or a step-down converter, which is connected via a rectifier to a wide-range input for single-phase or multiphase AC voltage, and which charges a capacitor to a DC link voltage which is higher or lower than a mains voltage across the wide-range input, the capacitor being connected in parallel to a three-phase inverter which supplies three-phase current to the compressor, and a power supply unit of at least one of the two cooling fans being connected in parallel to the capacitor, so that, irrespective of a single-phase or multiphase input AC voltage across the wide-range input, the compressor can be operated on the nominal three-phase voltage that is necessary for a required compressor output level.

2. The cooling device according to claim 1 , wherein for condensate management, the voltage supply has a heating element terminal for connecting an electric heating element that is controlled by a controller, said terminal being connected in parallel to the capacitor.

3. The cooling device according to claim 1 , wherein a mains filter is connected to at least one outer conductor, one grounding conductor and, if present, one neutral conductor of the wide-range input, the grounding conductor leading from the wide-range input through the mains filter and from there directly to a three-phase outlet, to which the three-phase current for the compressor is supplied.

4. The cooling device according to claim 1 , wherein the three-phase inverter is controlled by an inverter controller such that the three-phase current is supplied by the three-phase inverter at the three-phase power required to achieve a given compressor output level.

5. The cooling device according to claim 1 , wherein the step-up and/or step-down converter is controlled via a converter controller such that the capacitor is charged via the step-up and/or step-down converter to a DC link voltage, the dimensions of which are such that the power supply voltage required to operate the first and/or second cooling fan is supplied via the power supply unit.

6. The cooling device according to claim 1 , wherein the wide-range input for single-phase or three-phase AC voltage is designed at least for input voltages of between 110 V and 240 V and/or between 380 and 460V.

7. The cooling device according to claim 1 , wherein the compressor and/or the cooling fans have brushless direct current motors.

8. The use of a cooling device according to claim 1 for operating the compressor on the nominal three-phase voltage necessary for a required compressor output level, irrespective of a single-phase or multiphase input AC voltage across the wide-range input, wherein for varying the output level of the compressor, the three-phase inverter is designed to raise or lower a nominal three-phase voltage based on the compressor output level that is required.

9. The method for operating a cooling device according to claim 1 , comprising the following steps:
rectifying and raising and/or lowering a single-phase or multiphase input AC voltage between 110 V and 460 V to a constant DC link voltage;
supplying the DC link voltage to a power supply unit ( 6 ) of the cooling fan or cooling fans, the dimensions of the DC link voltage being such that the power supply unit is able to supply the power supply voltage required to operate the first and/or second cooling fan;
feeding the DC link voltage to the three-phase inverter;
determining the required compressor output level;
adjusting the compressor-based nominal three-phase voltage that has been converted by the three-phase inverter until the required compressor output level is achieved.

Assignees

• Rittal Gmbh & Co Kg

Inventors

• Cacho Alonso Juan Carlos
• Heimberg Thorsten
• Knetsch Jörg
• Rosenthal Daniel

Classifications

• H05K7/20318 Primary

  Condensers · CPC title

• H02P27/06

  using DC to AC converters or inverters (H02P27/05 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H02M7/003

  Constructional details, e.g. physical layout, assembly, wiring or busbar connections · CPC title

• F25B2600/112

  of evaporator fans · CPC title

• F25B2600/11

  Fan speed control · CPC title