Variable impedance circuit

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12095523-B2
Application number	US-202318341959-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 27, 2023
Priority date	Dec 28, 2017
Publication date	Sep 17, 2024
Grant date	Sep 17, 2024

Abstract

A power line communication device including a current path provided between a first terminal and a second terminal. A coupling circuit connected between the first and second terminals includes a first circuit of a first inductor connected in parallel with a first capacitor and a first resistor. A sensor is configured to sense a communication parameter of the coupling circuit. The communication parameter may be a resonance of the first circuit, the quality (Q) factor of the resonance, the bandwidth (BW) of the coupling circuit, the resistance of the first resistor, or the impedance of the first circuit. A transceiver is adapted to couple to the first and second terminal to transmit a signal onto the current path or receive a signal from the current path responsive to the parameter of the coupling circuit and a level of current in the current path sensed by the sensor.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An apparatus comprising:
a coupling circuit disposed in a current path formed between a first terminal and a second terminal, the coupling circuit comprising:
a first circuit comprising a first inductor, a first capacitor, and a first resistor, wherein the first inductor, the first capacitor, and the first resistor are connected in parallel;
a second circuit comprising a second inductor, wherein the first and second circuits are connected in series between the first and the second terminals;
a sensor configured to sense a level of current in the current path and to sense a communication parameter of the coupling circuit, wherein an impedance of the first circuit is responsive to the communication parameter sensed by the sensor; and
a transceiver connected to the first terminal and the second terminal, wherein the transceiver is, based on the communication parameter of the coupling circuit and the level of current in the current path, configured to transmit or receive a signal on the current path.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the second inductor has:
a higher inductance than the first inductor; and
a lower saturation current than the first inductor.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a controller configured to determine, based on one or more measurements of a second sensor, a value corresponding to one of: a resonant frequency of the first circuit, a quality (Q) factor of a resonance corresponding to the resonant frequency, a resistance of the first resistor, the impedance of the first circuit, or a bandwidth of the apparatus.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the controller is further configured to vary, in response to the value determined by the second sensor, the impedance of the first circuit.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the second circuit further comprises:
a second capacitor; and
a second resistor, wherein the second inductor is connected in parallel to the second capacitor and the second resistor.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the second circuit provides a second impedance configured to mitigate absorption and attenuation of a transmitted signal from a second transceiver.

7. The apparatus of claim 5 , further comprising:
an auxiliary power circuit configured to supply operating power to the transceiver, wherein the transceiver is enabled to transmit or receive the signal on the current path at a frequency corresponding to a resonant frequency of the second circuit.

8. The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the sensor is further configured to sense a resonant frequency of the second circuit.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the coupling circuit further comprises a third circuit comprising a third inductor connected in series to the first circuit and the second inductor.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the third circuit further comprises a third capacitor and a third resistor, wherein the first inductor is connected in parallel to the third capacitor and the third resistor.

11. The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the third inductor is disposed between the first terminal and the second terminal.

12. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
auxiliary power circuit configured to supply, based on the level of current in the current path sensed by the sensor, operating power to the transceiver.

13. The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein a supply of the operating power enables a change in a capacitance of the first capacitor.

14. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the transceiver is configured to transmit the signal onto the current path at a frequency responsive to a resonant frequency of the first circuit sensed by the sensor.

15. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the transceiver is configured to receive the signal from the current path at a frequency responsive to a resonant frequency of the first circuit sensed by the sensor.

16. A method comprising:
forming a current path between a first terminal of a coupling circuit and a second terminal of the coupling circuit by connecting a first circuit and a second circuit in series between the first terminal and the second terminal, wherein:
the first circuit comprises a first inductor connected in parallel to a first capacitor and a first resistor,
the second circuit comprises a second inductor, and
the second inductor has a higher inductance than the first inductor and a lower saturation current than the first inductor; and

adjusting, responsive to a change in at least one operating parameter of the coupling circuit, a capacitance of the first capacitor.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the first capacitor comprises at least one of: a bank of switchable capacitors or varactor diodes.

18. The method of claim 16 , further comprising adjusting an impedance of the first circuit.

19. The method of claim 16 , wherein the first inductor comprises at least a first mutual inductor and a second mutual inductor; and
the method further comprises:
varying, in response to a decrease in a saturation current of the first inductor, a level of current in the first mutual inductor, thereby altering a level of flux in magnetic cores of the first mutual inductor and the second mutual inductor; and
maintaining a constant inductance of the second mutual inductor.

20. The method of claim 16 , wherein forming the current path further comprises:
connecting a third circuit in series with the first circuit and the second circuit, wherein the third circuit comprises a third inductor connected in parallel to a third capacitor and a third resistor.

Assignees

• Solaredge Technologies Ltd

Inventors

• Bieber Ofir

Classifications

• H04L25/0264

  Arrangements for coupling to transmission lines (duplexing arrangements H04L5/14; line equalisers, line build-out devices H04L25/03878) · CPC title

• H04B2203/5429

  Applications for powerline communications · CPC title

• H04B2203/5404

  Methods of transmitting or receiving signals via power distribution lines · CPC title

• H04B1/16

  Circuits · CPC title

• H04B1/04

  Circuits · CPC title