Power supply system, control device, and method for measuring reactor current

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11444536-B2
Application number	US-202117232713-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 16, 2021
Priority date	Jun 11, 2020
Publication date	Sep 13, 2022
Grant date	Sep 13, 2022

Abstract

A controller of a power supply system includes a memory configured to store a self-inductance and a mutual inductance of two reactors included in a boost converter; and a processor configured to determine a present operating state of the boost converter, based on a ratio of an input voltage into the boost converter to an output voltage therefrom, a duty ratio applied to switching elements of the boost converter, the self-inductance, and the mutual inductance, the present operating state being one of operating states among which the waveform of a reactor current differs; and measure an average of the reactor current in a predetermined switching period of the switching elements, based on the input voltage, the output voltage, and the duty ratio, in accordance with the waveform of the reactor current corresponding to the present operating state of the boost converter.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A power supply system comprising:
a power source that supplies a direct-current power;
a boost converter that boosts direct-current power supplied from the power source;
a first voltmeter that measures an input voltage inputted into the boost converter;
a second voltmeter that measures an output voltage outputted from the boost converter; and
a control device that controls the boost converter, wherein
the boost converter comprises:
a first reactor and a second reactor connected in parallel to the power source and being able to be magnetically coupled with each other;
a first switching element connected to one end of the first reactor that is opposite to an end of the first reactor connected to the power source; and
a second switching element connected to one end of the second reactor that is opposite to an end of the second reactor connected to the power source, and wherein

the control device comprises:
a memory configured to store a self-inductance of the first reactor and the second reactor and a mutual inductance between the first reactor and the second reactor; and
a processor configured to switch between ON and OFF of the first switching element and the second switching element alternately at a predetermined duty ratio every predetermined switching period,
determine a present operating state of the boost converter, based on a ratio of the input voltage to the output voltage, the duty ratio, the self-inductance, and the mutual inductance, the present operating state being one of operating states among which the waveform of a reactor current flowing through the first reactor or the second reactor in the switching period differs, and
measure an average of the reactor current in the switching period, based on the input voltage, the output voltage, and the duty ratio, in accordance with the waveform of the reactor current corresponding to the present operating state of the boost converter.

2. The power supply system according to claim 1 , further comprising an ammeter that measures the reactor current, wherein
the memory further stores, for each of the operating states, offset values respectively corresponding to combinations of the input voltage, the output voltage, and the duty ratio, each of the offset values being a difference between a value of the reactor current at a predetermined timing in the switching period and the average of the reactor current, and
the processor adds one of the offset values corresponding to a combination of the input voltage, the output voltage, and the duty ratio of the present operating state of the boost converter to a value of the reactor current measured at the predetermined timing to measure the average of the reactor current.

3. The power supply system according to claim 1 , wherein the memory further stores, for each of the operating states, reference values of the average of the reactor current respectively corresponding to combinations of the input voltage, the output voltage, and the duty ratio, and
the processor obtains, as the average of the reactor current, the reference value of the average of the reactor current corresponding to a combination of the input voltage, the output voltage, and the duty ratio of the present operating state of the boost converter.

4. The power supply system according to claim 1 , wherein the waveform of the reactor current for each of the operating states depends on presence or absence of interaction between the first reactor and the second reactor and on increases or decreases in the reactor current depending on combinations of ON and OFF of the first switching element and the second switching element, the increases or decreases being caused by the interaction, and
the processor determines whether determining conditions respectively corresponding to the waveforms of the reactor current for the respective operating states are satisfied, based on the ratio of the input voltage to the output voltage, the duty ratio, the self-inductance, and the mutual inductance, and determines an operating state whose determining condition is satisfied as the present operating state of the boost converter.

5. A control device for controlling a boost converter that boosts direct-current power supplied from a power source, wherein
the boost converter comprises:
a first reactor and a second reactor connected in parallel to the power source and being able to be magnetically coupled with each other;
a first switching element connected to one end of the first reactor that is opposite to an end of the first reactor connected to the power source; and
a second switching element connected to one end of the second reactor that is opposite to an end of the second reactor connected to the power source, and wherein

the control device comprises:
a memory configured to store a self-inductance of the first reactor and the second reactor and a mutual inductance between the first reactor and the second reactor; and
a processor configured to switch between ON and OFF of the first switching element and the second switching element alternately at a predetermined duty ratio every predetermined switching period,
determine a present operating state of the boost converter, based on a ratio of an input voltage into the boost converter to an output voltage from the boost converter, the duty ratio, the self-inductance, and the mutual inductance, the input voltage and the output voltage being measured with a first voltmeter and a second voltmeter, respectively, and the present operating state being one of operating states among which the waveform of a reactor current flowing through the first reactor or the second reactor in the switching period differs, and
measure an average of the reactor current in the switching period, based on the input voltage, the output voltage, and the duty ratio, in accordance with the waveform of the reactor current corresponding to the present operating state of the boost converter.

6. A method for measuring a reactor current in a boost converter comprising a first reactor, a second reactor, a first switching element, and a second switching element, the first reactor and the second reactor being connected in parallel to a power source supplying a direct-current power and being able to be magnetically coupled with each other, the first switching element being connected to one end of the first reactor that is opposite to an end of the first reactor connected to the power source, the second switching element being connected to one end of the second reactor that is opposite to an end of the second reactor connected to the power source, the reactor current flowing through the first reactor or the second reactor, the method comprising:
obtaining a value of an input voltage inputted into the boost converter, the value being measured with a first voltmeter;
obtaining a value of an output voltage outputted from the boost converter, the value being measured with a second voltmeter;
determining a present operating state of the boost converter, based on a ratio of the input voltage to the output voltage, a predetermined duty ratio, a self-inductance of the first reactor and the second reactor, and a mutual inductance between the first reactor and the second reactor, wherein ON and OFF of the first switching element and the second switching element are switched alternately at the duty ratio during a predetermined switching period, and the present operating state is one of operating states among which the waveform of the reactor current in the switching period differs; and
measuring an average of the reactor current in the switching period, based on the input voltage, the output voltage, and the duty ratio, in accordance with the waveform of the reactor current corresponding to the present operating

Assignees

• Toyota Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Kaneko Tomohiko

Classifications

• Y02E60/50

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• G01R19/16542

  for batteries (charge condition monitoring in G01R31/36) · CPC title

• H02M3/157 Primary

  with digital control · CPC title

• H02M1/0064

  Magnetic structures combining different functions, e.g. storage, filtering or transformation · CPC title

• H01F27/42

  Circuits specially adapted for the purpose of modifying, or compensating for, electric characteristics of transformers, reactors, or choke coils (circuits for controlling transformers, reactors or choke coils, for the purpose of obtaining a desired output H02P13/00; impedance networks H03H) · CPC title