Device for isolated fan control and fan system and control method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10910969-B2
Application number	US-201716342346-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 20, 2017
Priority date	Oct 18, 2016
Publication date	Feb 2, 2021
Grant date	Feb 2, 2021

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a fan motor control device comprising a control signal input for applying a rotational speed control voltage as the control signal input signal and a control signal output for picking off a control signal output signal for connecting to a fan motor, where modulation means are connected downstream from the control signal input, said modulation means being designed to convert the control signal input signal into a digital and/or pulsed modulation input signal, and isolated transmission means are connected downstream therefrom, which transfer the digital and/or pulsed modulation input signal into a digital and/or pulsed modulation output signal isolated from the control signal input, which is converted into the control signal output signal that can be picked off on the control signal output by means of demodulation means connected downstream from the transmission means.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A fan motor control device, comprising a control signal input for applying a rotational speed control voltage as a control signal input signal and a control signal output for tapping a control signal output signal for connection to a fan motor, wherein
connected downstream from the control signal input are modulation means, which are designed for converting the control signal input signal into a digital and/or pulsed modulation input signal and which are upstream from isolating transmission means that transmit the digital and/or pulsed modulation input signal to a digital and/or pulsed modulation output signal isolated from the control signal input, said modulation output signal being converted by demodulation means downstream from the transmission means into the control signal output signal tappable at the control signal output; and
operating voltage power supply means are connected downstream from the control signal input and from a power supply voltage for electronic system(s) provided for the transmission means at an input end from a predetermined dc voltage component of the control signal input signal.

2. The device according to claim 1 , wherein
the control signal input is designed so that the rotational speed control voltage can be applied to the control signal input with a minimum voltage, including a predetermined voltage interval from the 0V level, wherein a range of the rotational speed control voltage between 3.3V and 20Vcan be applied.

3. The device according to claim 1 , wherein
the control signal output is designed with two poles for connection to the fan motor.

4. The device according claim 1 , wherein
the fan motor is designed as a dc motor.

5. The device according to claim 1 , wherein
the modulation means are implemented without programmed or programmable logic means and are designed with a control amplifier and/or an operational amplifier wired for digitization of the rotational speed control voltage.

6. The device according to claim 5 , wherein
the modulation means have a Schmitt trigger, which is designed based on an operational amplifier and compares a periodic, sawtooth, internal auxiliary signal with the control signal input signal, wherein the internal auxiliary signal is preferably generated by means of another operational amplifier.

7. The device according to claim 1 , wherein
the isolating transmission means have an optocoupler and/or an inductive isolator, implemented by a standardized integrated circuit and/or a capacitive isolator.

8. The device according to claim 1 , wherein
the demodulation means have an analog low-pass circuit, constructed from discrete components by connecting a resistor to a capacitor.

9. The device according to claim 1 , wherein
the transmission means are implemented in two channels so that a second channel is arranged for isolated feedback of a fan motor-specific signal of the connected fan motor, in particular utilizing a second optocoupler of a joint optocoupler housing of the transmission means, for tapping at an additional signal connection on the input end.

10. A fan system, comprising a fan motor control device according to claim 1 , and further comprising a fan motor electronic system controlled by the control signal output and driving stator windings of a fan motor.

11. The fan system according to claim 10 , wherein
the fan motor control device and the fan motor electronic system are arranged on a circuit board and/or are arranged in a shared fan housing.

12. The fan system according to claim 11 , wherein
a side dimension of the fan housing is in a range between 110 mm and 130 mm, in particular between 115 mm and 125 mm, and/or the maximum power consumption by the fan motor electronic system is 15 Wor 10 W or 5 W.

13. The device according to claim 2 , wherein
the range of the rotational speed control voltage between 5V and 15V can be applied.

14. The device according to claim 2 , wherein
the range of the rotational speed control voltage between 5V and 10V can be applied.

15. The device according claim 4 , wherein the fan motor is a single-phase motor or a three-phase motor.

16. The device according claim 1 , wherein the fan motor is brushless.

17. The fan system according to claim 11 , wherein a side dimension of the fan housing is in a range between 115 mm and 125 mm.

18. A method for controlling a fan motor by operating a fan motor control device according to claim 1 , comprising the following steps:
Applying a variable rotational speed control voltage having a dc voltage component at the control signal input;
Generating a modulation input signal, which is pulsed and/or digital, from the rotational speed control voltage at the input end by means of modulation means provided,
Transmitting the modulation input signal by means of isolating transmission means into a digital and/or pulsed modulation output signal isolated from the control signal input; and
Converting the digital and/or pulsed modulation output signal by the demodulation means provided into a control signal output signal that can be tapped at the control signal output for the fan motor.

19. The method according to claim 18 , wherein
the control signal output signal is applied to a fan motor electronic system, which energizes stator windings of the fan motor, as the fan motor being a single-phase or three-phase brushless dc motor.

Assignees

• Ebm Papst St Georgen Gmbh & Co Kg

Inventors

• Göhring Mark
• Schmid Harald

Classifications

• G05B2219/1161

  Signal processing, detect or deliver analog signals · CPC title

• G05B19/00 Primary

  Program-control systems · CPC title

• F04D25/06

  the pump being electrically driven (F04D25/08 takes precedence) · CPC title

• F04D27/00

  Control, e.g. regulation, of pumps, pumping installations or pumping systems specially adapted for elastic fluids · CPC title

• G05B19/05

  Programmable logic controllers, e.g. simulating logic interconnections of signals according to ladder diagrams or function charts · CPC title