Charging an input capacitor of a load control device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11071186-B2
Application number	US-202016817805-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 13, 2020
Priority date	Mar 14, 2013
Publication date	Jul 20, 2021
Grant date	Jul 20, 2021

Abstract

A load control device for controlling the amount of power delivered to an electrical load may include a rectifier circuit configured to receive a phase-control voltage and produce a rectified voltage. A power converter may be configured to receive the rectified voltage at an input and generate a bus voltage. An input capacitor may be coupled across the input of the power converter. The input capacitor may be adapted to charge when the magnitude of the phase control voltage is approximately zero volts. The power converter may be configured to operate in a boost mode, such that the magnitude of the bus voltage is greater than a peak magnitude of the input voltage. The power converter may be configured to operate in a buck mode to charge the input capacitor from the bus voltage when the magnitude of the phase-control voltage is approximately zero volts.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A system for controlling an amount of power delivered from an alternating-current (AC) power source to an electrical load, the system comprising:
a power device adapted to be coupled to the electrical load and configured to control the amount of power delivered from the AC power source to the electrical load; and
a controller comprising a controllably conductive device adapted to be electrically coupled between the AC power source and the power device, the controller configured to render the controllably conductive device conductive and non-conductive to generate a phase-control voltage that is received by the power device;
wherein the power device comprises a power converter configured to receive an input voltage at an input and generate a bus voltage, and an input capacitor coupled across the input of the power converter, the power device configured to charge the input capacitor from the bus voltage when the controllably conductive device of the controller is non-conductive, and
wherein the power device further comprises a power supply configured to receive the bus voltage and charge the input capacitor when the controllably conductive device of the controller is non conductive.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the power device further comprises a load regulation circuit configured to receive the bus voltage and to control the amount of power delivered to the electrical load, and a control circuit configured to control the load regulation circuit to control the amount of power delivered to the electrical load.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the power supply of the power device is further configured to charge a supply capacitor to generate a supply voltage for powering the control circuit.

4. The system of claim 3 , wherein the power supply of the power device is configured to charge the supply capacitor when a voltage across the input capacitor is less than a magnitude of the phase-control voltage.

5. The system of claim 2 , wherein the power device further comprises a second power supply configured to charge a supply capacitor to generate a supply voltage for powering the control circuit, the second power supply configured to charge the supply capacitor when a voltage across the input capacitor is less than a magnitude of the phase-control voltage.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the electrical load comprises a lighting load, and the controller is configured to control the amount of power delivered to the lighting load to adjust an intensity of the lighting load.

7. The system of claim 6 , wherein the controller is configured to render the controllably conductive device conductive at a phase angle each half-cycle of the AC power source, wherein the phase angle is dependent upon a desired intensity of the lighting load.

8. The system of claim 7 , wherein the controller is configured to operate in a dimmer mode to control the phase angle of the controllably conductive device to adjust the intensity of the lighting load.

9. The system of claim 6 , wherein the lighting load comprises a light-emitting diode (LED) light source, and the power device comprises an LED driver for the LED light source.

10. The system of claim 6 , wherein the power device comprises a screw-in luminaire to which the lighting load is integral.

11. The system of claim 1 , wherein the power device comprises a rectifier circuit electrically coupled to the input of the power converter, the rectifier circuit configured generate a rectified voltage across the input capacitor of the power converter.

12. The system of claim 11 , wherein the power device is further configured to cease charging the input capacitor when a magnitude of the rectified voltage across the input capacitor exceeds a predetermined threshold.

13. The system of claim 1 , wherein the power converter is configured to operate in a boost mode to control a magnitude of the bus voltage to be greater than a peak magnitude of the input voltage when the controllably conductive device of the controller is conductive, and operate in a buck mode to charge the input capacitor from the bus voltage when the controllably conductive device of the controller is non-conductive.

14. A power device for controlling an amount of power delivered from an alternating-current (AC) power source to an electrical load in response to a phase-control voltage generated by a controller, the controller having a controllably conductive device adapted to be electrically coupled between the AC power source and the power device, the power device comprising:
a power converter configured to receive an input voltage at an input and generate a bus voltage;
an input capacitor coupled across the input of the power converter;
a load regulation circuit configured to receive the bus voltage and to control the amount of power delivered to the electrical load; and
a power supply configured to receive the bus voltage and charge the input capacitor when the controllably conductive device of the controller is non-conductive.

15. The power device of claim 14 , further comprising:
a control circuit configured to control the load regulation circuit to control the amount of power delivered to the electrical load.

16. The power device of claim 15 , wherein the power supply is further configured to charge a supply capacitor to generate a supply voltage for powering the control circuit; and
wherein the power supply of the power device is configured to charge the supply capacitor when the controllably conductive device of the controller is conductive and a voltage across the input capacitor is less than a magnitude of the phase-control voltage.

17. The power device of claim 15 , further comprising:
a second power supply configured to charge a supply capacitor to generate a supply voltage for powering the control circuit;
wherein the second power supply is configured to charge the supply capacitor when the controllably conductive device of the controller is conductive and a voltage across the input capacitor is less than a magnitude of the phase-control voltage.

18. The power device of claim 14 , further comprising:
a rectifier circuit configured to receive the phase-control voltage and generate, at an output, a rectified voltage that is received by the power converter as the input voltage.

19. The power device of claim 18 , wherein the input capacitor of the power device is coupled across the input of the power converter and the output of the rectifier circuit.

20. The power device of claim 18 , wherein the power supply is further configured to cease charging the input capacitor when a magnitude of the rectified voltage across the input capacitor exceeds a predetermined threshold.

21. The power device of claim 14 , wherein the power converter of the power device is configured to operate in a boost mode to control a magnitude of the bus voltage to be greater than a peak magnitude of the input voltage when the controllably conductive device of the controller is conductive, and operate in a buck mode to charge the input capacitor from the bus voltage when the controllably conductive device of the controller is non-conductive.

Assignees

• Lutron Tech Co Llc

Inventors

• Taipale Mark
• Blakeley Matthew Robert
• Ross Johnathan Paul
• Macadam Russell L

Classifications

• H02J13/1313

  using pulsed signals · CPC title

• H02J13/14 Primary

  the power network being locally controlled, e.g. home energy management systems [HEMS] · CPC title

• H02J2105/12

  supplying households or buildings · CPC title

• H05B47/183

  using digital addressable lighting interface [DALI] communication protocols · CPC title

• H05B47/198

  Grouping of control procedures or address assignation to light sources · CPC title