• The Transactions of the Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers B
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• v.48 no.7
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• pp.384-390
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• 1999

This paper describes a new ac-to-dc power converter using a multilevel converter. A conventional multilevel ac-to-dc converter has large output dc filter capacitors. When a short circuit happens in a load, the stored energy in the capacitors should be discharged through the load with a high short circuit current. The high current may cause considerable damage to the capacitors and the load. The output dc capacitors of the proposed converter do not discharge even under load short circuit condition. In the case of a load short circuit, the capacitors become a floating state immediately and remain in the state. Then the stored capacitor energy is supplied to the load again as soon as the short circuit has been cleared. Therefore, the rising time of the load voltage can be significantly reduced. This feature satisfies the requirement of a power supply for a load with frequent short circuits. The proposed converter has the characteristics of a simplified structure, a reduced cost, weight, and volume compared with conventional power supplies with frequent output short circuits. Experimental results are presented to verify the usefulness of the proposed converter.

• Proceedings of the KIPE Conference
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• 2001.10a
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• pp.286-290
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• 2001

This paper describes an improved short-circuit protection method with a boost type rectifier using a multilevel ac/dc power converter. The output dc power of the proposed converter can be disconnected from the load within several hundred microseconds at the instant of short-circuit fault. Once the fault has been cleared the dc power is reapplied to the load. The rising time of the dc load voltage is as small as several hundred microseconds, and there is no overshoot of the dc voltage because the dc output capacitors hold undischarged state. The converter, which employs the proposed method, has the characteristics of a simplified structure, reduced cost, weight, and volume compared with a conventional power supply, which has frequent output short-circuits. Experimental results are presented to verify the usefulness of the proposed converter.