High‐power‐factor single‐switch AC to DC converter for LED lighting

In this paper, we report a novel single‐switch AC to DC step‐down converter suitable for light emitting diodes. The proposed topology has a buck and a buck–boost converter. The circuit is designed to operate in the discontinuous conduction mode in order to improve the power factor. In this topology, a part of the input power is connected to the load directly. This feature of the proposed topology increases the efficiency of power conversion, improves the input power factor, produces less voltage stress on intermediate stages, and reduces the output voltage in the absence of a step‐down transformer. The theoretical analysis, design procedure, and performance of the proposed converter are verified by simulation and experiment. A 36 V, 60 W prototype has been built to demonstrate the merits of this circuit. © 2017 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

A new single‐phase high‐power‐factor converter with buck and buck–boost hybrid operation

In recent years, a wide variety of high‐power‐factor converter schemes have been proposed to solve the harmonic problem. The schemes are based on conventional boost, buck, or buck–boost topology, and their performance, such as output voltage control range in the boost and buck topology or efficiency in the buck–boost topology, is limited. To solve this, the authors propose a single‐phase high‐power‐factor converter with a new topology obtained from a combination of buck and buck–boost topology. The power stage performs the buck and buck–boost operations by a compact single‐stage converter circuit while the simple controller/modulator appropriately controls the alternation of the buck and buck–boost operation and maintains a high‐quality input current during both the buck and buck–boost operations. The proposed scheme results in a high‐performance rectifier with no limitation of output voltage control range and a high efficiency. In this paper, the principle and operation of the proposed converter scheme are described in detail and the theory is confirmed through experimental results obtained from 2‐kW prototype converter. © 2000 Scripta Technica, Electr Eng Jpn, 131(3): 91–100, 2000     

Non‐isolated single‐switch DC–DC converters with extended duty cycle for high step‐down voltage applications

Several new topologies of single‐switch non‐isolated DC–DC converters with wide conversion gain and reduced semiconductor voltage stress are proposed in this paper. Most of the proposed topologies are derived from the conventional inverse of SEPIC (Zeta) converter. The proposed topologies can operate with larger switch duty cycles compared with the existing single switch topologies, hence, making them well suitable for high step‐down voltage conversion applications. With extended duty cycle, the current stress in the active power switch is reduced, leading to a significant improvement of the system losses. Moreover, the active power switch in some of the proposed topologies is utilized much better compared to the conventional Zeta and quadratic‐buck converters. The principle of operation, theoretical analysis, and comparison of circuit performances with other step‐down converters are discussed regarding voltage and current stress and switch silicon utilization. Finally, simulation and experimental results for a design example of a 50 W/5 V at 42‐V input voltage operating at 50 kHz will be provided to evaluate the performance of the proposed converters. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A single‐phase buck‐boost PFC converter with output‐voltage,ripple‐reducing operation

This paper describes a new single‐phase buck‐boost power‐factor‐correction (PFC) converter with output‐voltage, ripple reducing operation. The converter consists of a conventional buck‐boost PFC converter and an additional switch to obtain a freewheeling mode of the dc inductor current, and is operated by two modulators. The first modulator controls the buck‐boost switch to obtain PFC. The other modulator controls the square value of the instantaneous dc inductor current to perform the output‐voltage‐ripple‐reducing operation. In the two modulations, the time integral value of the input and output currents in each modulation period are controlled directly and indirectly, respectively. Thus, modulation errors or undesirable distortions of the input current and output voltage ripple are eliminated even if the dc inductor current produces large ripple in a low‐frequency range. The theories and combination techniques for the two modulators, implementation, and experimental results are described. © 1998 Scripta Technica, Electr Eng Jpn, 126(2): 56–70, 1999     

A single‐stage integrated bridgeless AC/DC converter for electrolytic capacitor‐less LED lighting applications

In this paper, a single‐stage integrated bridgeless AC/DC converter is proposed. As compared to its counterpart that is composed of totem‐pole boost power factor correction (PFC) cascade fly‐back DC/DC converter, the studied circuit has less components number while overcoming the limits of the totem‐pole type. Thus, it is suitable to the low‐power LED lighting applications. Furthermore, when both PFC inductors L_b and magmatic inductance L_m of the transformer TR1 operate at discontinuous current mode, the bus voltage v_CB can be used to decouple the ac input and constant dc output power. Thus, the approach of increasing bus voltage ripple is employed to eliminate electrolytic capacitors and obtain long operation lifetime. Additionally, it is able to be compatible with our studied twin‐bus configuration for increasing the overall efficiency. A 50‐W hardware prototype has been designed, fabricated, and tested in the laboratory to verify the proposed converter validity. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

High‐efficiency transformerless buck–boost DC–DC converter

A novel high‐efficiency transformerless buck–boost DC–DC converter is proposed in this paper. The presented converter voltage gain is higher than that of the conventional boost, buck–boost, CUK, SEPIC and ZETA converters, and high voltage gain can be obtained with a suitable duty cycle. The voltage stress across the power switch is low. Hence, the low on‐state resistance of the power switch can be selected to decrease conduction loss of the switch and improve efficiency. The input current ripple in the presented converter is low. The principle of operation and the mathematical analyses of the proposed converter are explained. The validity of the presented converter is verified by the simulation results in PSCAD/EMTDC software and experimental results based on the prototype circuit with 250 W and 40 kHz. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Analysis and implementation of a step–up power converter with input current ripple cancelation

This paper proposes a power electronics converter capable of canceling the input current ripple at preselected duty cycle. The proposed converter is an extended topology of a buck–boost converter aided by a boost‐type converter that improves the quality of the current drawn from the direct current source. The voltage gain of the proposed converter is increased as well, with a minimum of extra component added to the original buck–boost power converter. These features make the proposed converter ideal for low voltage generation sources, such as photovoltaic panel and fuel cell applications. Along this paper, the state space mathematical model is developed to provide the key design guidelines. The theoretical analysis is validated through computer simulation and hardware prototyping.     

A novel single‐stage AC–DC converter with quasi‐resonant zero‐voltage‐switching for high power factor and high efficient applications

A new single‐stage‐isolated ac–dc converter that can guarantee both high efficiency and high power factor is proposed. It is based on a new dc–dc topology that has prominent conversion ratio similar to that of boost topology so that it is adequate to deal with the universal ac input. In addition, since it utilizes the transformer more than others based on the general flyback topology, the size of whole power system can be reduced due to the reduced transformer. Moreover, the voltage stresses on the secondary rectifiers can be clamped to the output voltage by adopting the capacitive output filter and clamp diode, and the turn‐off loss in the main switch can be reduced by utilizing the resonance. Furthermore, since this converter operates at the boundary conduction mode, the line input current can be shaped as the waveform of a line voltage automatically and the quasi‐resonant zero‐voltage switching can be obtained. Consequently, it features higher efficiency, lower voltage stress, and smaller sized transformer than other topologies. A 100 W prototype has been built and tested as the validation of the proposed topology. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Application of duality principle to synthesis of single‐stage power‐factor‐correction voltage regulators

The duality principle is applied to derive new single‐stage power‐factor‐correction (PFC) voltage regulators. This paper begins with an application of duality transformation to conventional discontinuous‐conduction‐mode buck, buck‐boost and boost converters. The resulting dual converters operate in the discontinuous capacitor voltage mode. These new converters provide the same PFC property, but in the dual manner. It is proved that in the practical case of the input being a voltage source, the mandatory insertion of inductance between the voltage input and the ‘dual PFC converter’ does not affect the power‐factor‐correcting property. A new single‐stage PFC regulator is derived by taking the dual of a well‐known circuit based on a cascade of conventional boost and buck converters. Analytical design expressions are derived, illustrating the relation between current stress and component values. Experiments are performed to confirm the operation of the circuit and its power‐factor‐correcting capability. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A single‐stage LED streetlight driver with PFC and digital PWM dimming capability

This paper proposes a single‐stage light‐emitting diode (LED) driver that offers power‐factor correction and digital pulse–width modulation (PWM) dimming capability for streetlight applications. The presented LED streetlight driver integrates an alternating current–direct current (AC–DC) converter with coupled inductors and a half‐bridge‐type LLC DC–DC resonant converter into a single‐stage circuit topology. The sub‐circuit of the AC–DC converter with coupled inductors is designed to be operated in discontinuous‐conduction mode for achieving input‐current shaping. Zero‐voltage switching of two active power switches and zero‐current switching of two output‐rectifier diodes in the presented LED driver decrease the switching losses; thus, the circuit efficiency is increased. A prototype driver for powering a 144‐W‐rated LED streetlight module with input utility‐line voltages ranging from 100 to 120 V is implemented and tested. The proposed streetlight driver features cost‐effectiveness, high circuit efficiency, high power factor, low levels of input‐current harmonics, and a digital PWM dimming capability ranging from 20% to 100% output rated LED power, which is fulfilled by a micro‐controller. Satisfying experimental results, including dimming tests, verify the feasibility of the proposed LED streetlight driver. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A single‐stage phase‐shifted full‐bridge AC/DC converter with variable frequency control

This letter presents a single‐stage soft‐switched full‐bridge AC/DC converter for low‐voltage/high‐current output applications. A phase‐shifted method with a variable frequency control is used to regulate the DC bus voltage and the output voltage of the single‐stage AC/DC converter. The proposed circuit topology and control scheme exhibit superior performances (i.e. high power factor, high‐efficiency, and ring‐free features). Correspondingly, a laboratory prototype, 500 W 5V/100A AC/DC converter, is implemented to verify the feasibility of the proposed design. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A new topology for nonisolated multiport zero voltage switching dc‐dc converter

In this paper, a new multiport zero voltage switching dc‐dc converter is proposed. Multiport dc‐dc converters are widely applicable in hybrid energy generating systems to provide substantial power to sensitive loads. The proposed topology can operate in 3 operational modes of boost, buck, and buck‐boost. Moreover, it has zero voltage switching operation for all switches and has the ability to eliminate the input current ripple; also, at low voltage side, the input sources can be extended. In addition, it has the ability of interfacing 3 different voltages only by using 3 switches. In this paper, the proposed topology is analyzed theoretically for all operating modes; besides, the voltage and current equations of all components are calculated. Furthermore, the required soft switching and zero input currents ripple conditions are analyzed. Finally, to demonstrate the accurate performance of the proposed converter, the Power System Computer Aided Design(PSCAD)/Electro Magnetic Transient Design and Control(EMTDC) simulation and experimental results are extracted and presented.     

A novel active‐clamp zero‐voltage‐switching buck‐boost converter

An active‐clamp zero‐voltage‐switching (ZVS) buck‐boost converter is proposed in this paper to improve the performance of converter in light load condition. By employing a small resonant inductor, the ZVS range of switches could be adjusted to very light load condition. Moreover, 2 clamping capacitors are added in the converter to eliminate the voltage spike on the switches during transition. The operating principle of the proposed converter is analyzed, and the optimal design guide for full range ZVS is also provided. A 60‐W output prototype is experimentally built and tested in laboratory to verify the feasibility of proposed converter. The measured results show the critical ZVS operation of power switches at 1 and 0.7‐W output power for buck and boost mode, respectively. The peak conversion efficiency is up to 92.3%.     

Analysis and implementation of a high‐efficiency zero‐voltage‐zero‐current‐switching DC–DC converter

A high‐efficiency zero‐voltage‐zero‐current‐switching DC–DC converter with ripple‐free input current is presented. In the presented converter, the ripple‐free boost cell provides ripple‐free input current and zero‐voltage switching of power switches. The resonant flyback cell provides zero‐voltage switching of power switches and zero‐current switching of the output diode. Also, it has a simple output stage. The proposed converter achieves high efficiency because of the reduction of the switching losses of the power switches and the output diode. Detailed analysis and design of the proposed converter are carried out. A prototype of the proposed converter is developed and its experimental results are presented for validation. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Performance analysis and calculation of critical inductance and output voltage ripple of a simple non‐isolated multi‐input bidirectional DC‐DC converter

In this paper, a simple non‐isolated multiple input (MI) bidirectional DC‐DC topology is proposed which can operate in buck, boost, or buck‐boost modes. The proposed topology utilizes a battery pack to realize the bidirectional power flow operation especially when the input sources are non‐storable ones. The excess energy of input sources can be stored in the battery and be injected to the load, when required. Simultaneous or independent power transfer of input sources is also provided. For better evaluation, the proposed topology has been compared with several recently presented novel topologies, from view point of number of inductors, capacitors, switches, and diodes. Comparison results show that the proposed topology utilizes less number of components (switches, inductors, capacitors, and current sensors) which can reduce the size, cost, and complexity of converter. Different operational modes of the proposed topology (unidirectional buck, boost, buck‐boost modes, and bidirectional mode) have been presented. Also, boost mode of the proposed topology has been investigated in detail, from design point of view, and generalized relationships have been proposed for calculation of critical inductance (CI) and output voltage ripple (OVR) of proposed n‐input boost topology. To validate proposed theoretical concepts, the proposed topology has been modeled and simulated in PSCAD/EMTDC software, and the 3‐input boost version has been experimentally implemented. Simulation and experimental results confirm appropriate performance of the proposed topology.     

Output current ripple reduction of LED driver using ceramic‐capacitor‐input circuit and buck‐boost converter

This article proposes an LED driver that consists of a ceramic‐capacitor‐input rectifier and a buck‐boost converter. The LED driver has an advantage of long life because it does not contain any electrolytic capacitors. However, the issue with electrolytic capacitor‐less LED driver is that the ripple of the smoothed voltage becomes large due to insufficient capacitance of the smoothing capacitor. The proposed method, which uses the discontinuous current mode of a buck‐boost converter, reduces the output current ripple under such conditions. Experimental results using a 5.7 W LED driver prototype demonstrate that the proposed method reduces the output current ripple and that the percent flicker becomes 4.4%, which is smaller than the recommended upper limit of 8%.     

Step‐up/step‐down DC‐DC converter with near zero input/output current ripples

A novel single switch two diode wide conversion ratio step down/up converter is presented. The proposed converter is derived from the conventional single‐ended primary inductor converter (SEPIC) topology, and it can operate as a capacitor‐diode voltage multiplier, which offers simple structure, reduced electromagnetic interference (EMI), and reduced semiconductor voltage stress. The main advantages of the proposed converter are the continuous input/output current, higher voltage conversion ratio, and near‐zero input and output current ripples compared with the conventional SEPIC converter. The absence of both a transformer and an extreme duty cycle permits the proposed converter to operate at high switching frequencies. Hence, the overall advantages will be: higher efficiency, reduced size and weight, simpler structure and control. The theoretical analysis results obtained with the proposed structure are compared with the conventional SEPIC topology. The performance of the proposed converter is verified through computer simulations and experimental results. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A one‐converter contactless charger for electric vehicles

A simple and reliable contactless battery charger for electric vehicles is proposed. Its feature is a unitized power factor correcting (PFC) converter and a high‐frequency inverter (HFI) where the low‐side switch of the HFI also works as the boost switch of the PFC in discontinuous conduction mode, which results in a high input power factor and low harmonic distortion without any feedforward control. The exiting current of the inductive connector, compliant with SAEJ1773, works effectively to make the converter operate in zero voltage switching (ZVS) condition. Another feature is that the charger is controlled by a single magnetically coupled variable frequency oscillator developed by the authors. This paper analyzes the circuits, gives a design example, describes the inductive connector and the oscillator, and presents experimental results. A 1.7‐kW output prototype charger achieved a charging efficiency of 87.4% for total one cycle charging, an overall efficiency of 90% at heavy load, and an input power factor of over 98%. © 2000 Scripta Technica, Electr Eng Jpn, 132(2): 73–81, 2000     

Steady‐state analysis of a novel ZVT interleaved boost converter

In this paper, a novel soft‐switched interleaved boost converter composed of two‐cell boost conversion units and an auxiliary circuit is proposed and investigated. The proposed auxiliary circuit is implemented using only one auxiliary switch and a minimum number of passive components without an effective increase in the cost and the complexity of the converter. The main advantage of this auxiliary circuit is that it not only provides zero‐voltage‐transition (ZVT) for the main switches but also provides soft switching for the auxiliary switch and diodes. Though all semiconductor devices operate under soft switching, they do not have any additional voltage and current stresses. The proposed converter operates successfully in soft‐switching operation mode for a wide range of input voltage level and the load. In addition, it has advantages such as fewer structure complications, lower cost and ease of control. Since the two‐cell interleaved boost units are identical, operational analysis and design for the converter module become quite simple. In this study, the detailed steady‐state theoretical analysis of the proposed converter is presented, which is verified exactly by simulation and experiments carried out on a prototype of a 120 W and 50 kHz/cell interleaved boost converter. The practical results confirm the results obtained from theoretical analysis. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An interleaved high step‐up DC‐DC converter with double boost paths

This paper proposed a novel high step‐up converter with double boost paths. The circuit uses two switches and one double‐path voltage multiplier cell to own the double boost and interleaved effects simultaneously. The voltage gain ratio of the proposed DC‐DC converter can be three times the ratio of the conventional boost converter such that the voltage stress of the switch can be lower. The high step‐up performance is in accordance with only one double‐path voltage multiplier cell. Therefore, the number of diodes and capacitors in the proposed converter can be reduced. Furthermore, the interleaved property of the proposed circuit can reduce the losses in the rectifier diode and capacitor. The prototype circuit with 24‐V input voltage, 250‐V output voltage, and 150‐W output power is experimentally realized to verify the validity and effectiveness of the proposed converter. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.