Systems and methods for integrated high voltage and low voltage converter for a

Abstract

Systems and methods for an integrated high-low voltage converter for a bi-directional onboard battery charger. A system includes an alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC) converter (AC-DC converter) connectable to a line voltage; and a DC-to-DC converter (DC-DC converter) connected to the AC-DC converter, the DC-DC converter comprising: a high voltage buck-boost converter having a secondary side connectable to a high voltage battery; a low voltage buck-boost converter having a secondary side connectable to a low voltage battery; and one or more transformers having a primary side connected to the AC-DC converter, a secondary side connected to the primary side of the high voltage buck-boost converter, and a tertiary side connected to the primary side of the low voltage buck-boost converter.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Various embodiments of the present disclosure are generally directed to systems and methods for a DC-DC converter including configurable high and low voltage connections and a battery charger including a configurable DC-DC converter for an electric vehicle. Background Art

[0002] In the field of battery chargers, a two-stage layout is often used to meet the requirements for use as an on-board charger in a motor vehicle. These on-board chargers have high power density, have less weight and require less space. The configuration layout used in a single-phase or three-phase charger includes an alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC) power factor correction (PFC) converter at stage I and an isolated DC-DC converter at stage II. The battery charger is configured for a specific application and may not operate at high efficiency for different power requirements.

[0003] The present disclosure is directed to overcoming one or more of these aforementioned challenges. Summary of the invention

[0004] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a system comprising: an alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC) converter (AC-DC converter), the AC-DC converter being connectable to a line voltage; and a DC to DC converter (DC-DC converter) connected to the AC-DC converter, the DC-DC converter comprising: a high-voltage buck-boost converter having a secondary side connectable to a high-voltage battery; a low-voltage buck-boost converter having a secondary side connectable to a low-voltage battery; and one or more transformers having a primary side connected to the AC-DC converter, a secondary side connected to the primary side of the high-voltage buck-boost converter, and a third side connected to the primary side of the low-voltage buck-boost converter.

[0005] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a system wherein the DC-DC converter further comprises: a high voltage bridge rectifier connected to the secondary side of one or more transformers and the primary side of the high voltage buck-boost converter; and a low voltage bridge rectifier connected to the tertiary side of the one or more transformers and the primary side of the low voltage buck-boost converter.

[0006] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a system that also includes: one or more controllers configured to control operation of a high-voltage buck-boost converter and a low-voltage buck-boost converter to control power transfer between two or more of a line voltage, a high-voltage battery, or a low-voltage battery.

[0007] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a system wherein: a high voltage buck-boost converter includes a first high voltage switch and a second high voltage switch, and a low voltage buck-boost converter includes a first low voltage switch and a second low voltage switch.

[0008] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a system wherein one or more controllers are further configured to: control operation of a first high voltage switch, a second high voltage switch, a first low voltage switch, and a second low voltage switch to configure a DC-DC converter into each of: (i) a charging mode utilizing both HV and LV buck operations, (ii) a charging mode utilizing only LV buck operation, (iii) an HV to LV conversion mode utilizing both HV and LV buck operations, (iv) an HV to LV conversion mode utilizing only HV buck operation, and (v) an HV to LV conversion mode utilizing neither HV nor LV buck operation.

[0009] In some aspects, the techniques described herein relate to a system wherein one or more controllers are further configured to operate a DC-DC converter in a capacitor pre-charge operation.

[0010] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a system wherein the DC-DC converter further comprises a medium voltage buck-boost converter having a primary side connected in parallel with the low voltage buck-boost converter and a secondary side connectable to a medium voltage battery.

[0011] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a system wherein the DC-DC converter further includes a bridge driver having a primary side connected to the AC-DC converter and a secondary side connected to one or more transformers.

[0012] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a system wherein the DC-DC converter further comprises: one or more of a primary transformer isolation switch, a high voltage isolation switch, or a low voltage isolation switch.

[0013] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a system that also includes: one or more controllers configured to control operation of one or more of a primary transformer disconnect switch, a high voltage disconnect switch, or a low voltage disconnect switch to control power transfer between two or more of a line voltage, a high voltage battery, or a low voltage battery.

[0014] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a system that also includes: one or more controllers configured to control operation of one or more of a primary transformer isolation switch, a high voltage isolation switch, or a low voltage isolation switch based on a fault state of one or more of the AC-DC converter, the high voltage buck-boost converter, or the low voltage buck-boost converter.

[0015] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a system, the system also including: a high-voltage battery connected to a DC-DC converter; and a low-voltage battery connected to the DC-DC converter, wherein the system is provided as a bidirectional battery charger, the bidirectional battery charger being configured to: receive input AC power from a line voltage through an AC-DC converter, convert the input AC power into output DC power, and supply the output DC power to charge one or more of the high-voltage battery or the low-voltage battery in a grid-to-battery operation, and receive input DC power from one or more of the high-voltage battery or the low-voltage battery through a DC-DC converter, convert the input DC power into output AC power, and supply the output AC power to a load at the line voltage in a battery-to-grid operation.

[0016] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a system that also includes an electric vehicle including a high voltage battery connected to a DC-DC converter.

[0017] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a system comprising: a DC to DC converter (DC-DC converter), the DC-DC converter comprising: a high-voltage buck-boost converter having a secondary side connectable to a high-voltage battery; a low-voltage buck-boost converter having a secondary side connectable to a low-voltage battery; and one or more transformers having a primary side connectable to the AC-DC converter, a secondary side connected to the primary side of the high-voltage buck-boost converter, and a tertiary side connected to the primary side of the low-voltage buck-boost converter.

[0018] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a system that also includes: one or more controllers configured to control operation of the DC-DC converter to control power transfer between two or more of the AC-DC converter, the high voltage battery, or the low voltage battery.

[0019] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a method for controlling a system including a DC-DC converter including one or more transformers, a high voltage buck-boost converter, and a low voltage buck-boost converter, the method including performing operations by one or more controllers, the operations including: controlling operation of the high voltage buck-boost converter and the low voltage buck-boost converter to control power transmission through one or more of the high voltage buck-boost converter or the low voltage buck-boost converter and the one or more transformers.

[0020] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a method wherein the operations further include controlling operation of a bridge driver of a DC-DC converter to operate in each of a half-bridge driver configuration and a full-bridge driver configuration, and controlling operation of a high-voltage buck-boost converter and a low-voltage buck-boost converter based on the operation of the bridge driver.

[0021] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a method wherein the operation further comprises controlling operation of a high voltage buck-boost converter and a low voltage buck-boost converter based on one or more of a voltage of a line voltage connected to the DC-DC converter, a battery connected to the DC-DC converter, or a power demand of the DC-DC converter.

[0022] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a method, wherein the operation also includes: controlling the operation of one or more switches of a DC-DC converter to configure the DC-DC converter into each of the following: (i) a charging mode utilizing both HV and LV buck operations, (ii) a charging mode utilizing only LV buck operation, (iii) an HV to LV conversion mode utilizing both HV and LV buck operations, (iv) an HV to LV conversion mode utilizing only HV buck operation, and (v) an HV to LV conversion mode utilizing neither HV nor LV buck operation.

[0023] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to a method wherein the operations further include controlling operation of the high voltage buck-boost converter and the low voltage buck-boost converter to operate the DC-DC converter in a capacitor pre-charge operation.

[0024] Additional objects and advantages of the disclosed embodiments will be set forth in part in the following description, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practicing the disclosed embodiments. The objects and advantages of the disclosed embodiments will be realized and obtained by the elements and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

[0025] It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the disclosed embodiments, as claimed. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate various exemplary embodiments and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the disclosed embodiments.

[0027] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate various exemplary embodiments and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the disclosed embodiments.

[0028] Figure 1 Depicted is an exemplary system infrastructure for a battery charger in accordance with one or more implementations.

[0029] Figure 2 Depicted is an exemplary system infrastructure for a vehicle including a battery charger according to one or more implementations.

[0030] Figure 3 Depicted are implementations of a computer system that can perform the techniques presented herein, according to one or more implementations.

[0031] Figure 4 Depicted is an exemplary electrical schematic of a battery charger with a configurable DC-DC converter in a charging mode with HV and LV buck operation in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0032] Figure 5 Depicted is an exemplary electrical schematic of a battery charger with a configurable DC-DC converter in a charging mode with LV-only buck operation in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0033] Figure 6 Depicted is an exemplary electrical schematic of a battery charger with a configurable DC-DC converter in HV to LV conversion mode with HV and LV step-down operation according to one or more embodiments.

[0034] Figure 7 Depicted is an exemplary electrical schematic of a battery charger with a configurable DC-DC converter in HV to LV conversion mode with HV-only buck operation in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0035] Figure 8 Depicted is an exemplary electrical schematic of a battery charger with a configurable DC-DC converter in an HV to LV conversion mode without utilizing HV or LV step-down operation in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0036] Fig. 9 Depicted is an exemplary electrical schematic of a battery charger with a configurable DC-DC converter in capacitor pre-charge operation and HV to LV conversion without HV or LV step-down operation according to one or more embodiments.

[0037] Fig.10 Depicted is an exemplary electrical schematic diagram of a battery charger having a configurable DC-DC converter that alternatively includes a series primary transformer or a shunt primary transformer in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0038] Fig.11 Depicted is an exemplary electrical schematic of a battery charger having a configurable DC-DC converter including switches and connections for three batteries in accordance with one or more implementations.

[0039] Fig.12 A flow chart is depicted of a method of operating a battery charger having a configurable DC-DC converter in accordance with one or more embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0040] The foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and illustrative only and are not limitations on the claimed features. As used herein, the terms "comprises," "comprising," "having," "having," or other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions such that a process, method, article, or device that includes a series of elements includes not only those elements, but may also include other elements that are not expressly listed or inherent to such processes, methods, articles, or devices. In this disclosure, unless otherwise stated, relative terms such as "about," "substantially," and "approximately" are used to indicate a possible variation of ±10% of the stated value. In this disclosure, unless otherwise stated, any numerical value may include a possible variation of ±10% of the stated value.

[0041] Various embodiments of the present disclosure are generally directed to systems and methods for a DC-DC converter including configurable high and low voltage connections and a battery charger for an electric vehicle including a configurable DC-DC converter.

[0042] The terms used below may be interpreted in their broadest reasonable manner, even when used in conjunction with the detailed description of certain specific examples of the present disclosure. In fact, certain terms may even be emphasized below; however, any term intended to be interpreted in any limited manner will be clearly and specifically defined as such in this detailed description.

[0043] The battery charger according to the present disclosure can operate with multiple types of alternating current (AC) input power sources, including single-phase, split / dual / two-phase and three-phase power sources. The charger can be compatible with a wide range of configurations. An inductor-inductor-capacitor (LLC) converter can be used as a second-stage converter, using a direct current (DC) link voltage generated from a power factor correction (PFC) as the input voltage of the converter. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0044] The input and output layout of the charger can follow automotive standards. The battery charger according to the present disclosure may include a two-stage configuration, including an AC-DC power factor correction converter stage and an isolated DC-DC converter stage. The isolated DC-DC converter may include a full-bridge driver configuration with a resonant tank element to achieve better efficiency. The DC-DC converter may be designed to charge the battery from a minimum voltage to a maximum voltage. The AC-DC converter may be, for example, a totem pole full bridge, an AC-AC matrix, a half bridge (e.g., three branches and six switches), a three-level active midpoint clamp type, a Vienna rectifier, or a T-type converter. One or more of the DC-DC converter may be, for example, a phase-shifted dual active bridge, a CLLLC, or an LLC converter.

[0045] A battery charger according to the present disclosure may be operated only as a battery charger, or bidirectionally for charging operation or power supply operation. The converter may receive power from an AC power source and provide DC power to a battery, or receive power from a battery and provide power as an AC power source. A vehicle to grid (V2G) configuration may be implemented using control strategies designed for single-phase, two-phase, and three-phase systems. The switches of the battery charger may be any device, such as a GTO, a thyristor, or a MOSFET / IGBT with a series diode. These switches may also be mechanical components (such as relays or contactors) if sufficient failure rates and arc discharge conditions are met during operation. In addition, if the position of the switch is semi-permanent, the switch may be implemented as one or more jumper connectors or dual in-line package (DIP) switches.

[0046] Electric vehicles, energy storage systems, and backup generators, for example, convert electricity from one form to another. In addition, for example, an on-board charger for a vehicle can have a dual purpose. The on-board charger can be a bidirectional system that converts an AC voltage to a DC voltage in a charging mode (grid to battery) and converts a DC voltage to an AC voltage in a discharge or inverter mode (battery to grid). For example, the charging mode can convert the grid AC to a DC voltage to charge the vehicle high voltage (HV) battery, and the discharge or inverter mode can convert the HV battery DC voltage to an AC voltage that can be supplied to a load of the grid line voltage, which is supplied as a backup generator to power the house when the grid fails, or as an inverter supply voltage to the vehicle AC socket. The on-board charger can have a two-stage design to meet automotive requirements, with an AC-DC power factor converter in the first stage and an isolated DC-DC converter in the second stage.

[0047] The on-board charger can be designed to have high power density, low weight and small space requirements. The on-board charger may include a low voltage DC-DC converter to convert high voltage (HV) to low voltage (LV) for use in auxiliary circuits such as electric vehicles or plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. For example, the high voltage may be 400V or 800V. For example, the low voltage may be 12V or 48V. For example, the low voltage DC-DC converter may include a buck converter to charge the LV battery. The buck converter may operate as a buck-boost converter in a bidirectional manner. The buck converter may operate as one or more of a buck converter, a boost converter, an isolated phase-shift converter, an LLC half-bridge converter or an LLC full-bridge converter. For example, the on-board charger may operate in different modes, such as precharging a bulk capacitor. For high power density designs, the separation of the HV and LV converters in the on-board charger may increase component count, reduce efficiency, and increase the cost of the on-board charger. One or more embodiments may provide an integrated HV-LV converter to solve the above problems and provide efficient and flexible operation. One or more embodiments may configure the DC-DC converter to operate the transformer at optimal resonance.

[0048] Figure 1 An exemplary system infrastructure for a battery charger according to one or more embodiments is depicted. Figure 1 As shown, the battery charger 100 may include or be electrically connected to a charging connector 110. The charging connector 110 may provide an electrical connection from an external power source to the battery charger 100 and may be, for example, a type 1 or type 2 connector. The charging connector 110 may transmit single-phase, two-phase, or three-phase power.

[0049] The battery charger 100 may include a PFC converter as a power factor correction (PFC) converter 120, a DC-DC converter 130, and a controller 300 that receives a signal from an input sensor 150. The PFC converter 120 may be an AC-DC converter. The controller 300 may include one or more controllers. The battery charger 100 may include or may be electrically connected to a battery 140. The battery charger 100 may be used as an on-board charger in a motor vehicle to transmit power from an external power source to the battery 140 through a charging connector 110 in a grid-to-battery operation, or to transmit power from the battery 140 in a vehicle-to-grid configuration (battery-to-grid operation). The battery charger 100 may be included in a system provided as an electric vehicle that includes a motor configured to rotate based on power received from the battery 140.

[0050] Figure 2 An exemplary system infrastructure for a vehicle including a battery charger is depicted in accordance with one or more embodiments. The battery charger 100 may be a combined inverter and converter. Figure 2 As shown, the electric vehicle 185 may include a battery charger 100, a motor 190, and a battery 140. The battery charger 100 may include a component that receives power from an external source and outputs power to charge the battery 140 of the electric vehicle 185. For example, the battery charger 100 may convert DC power from the battery 140 in the electric vehicle 185 into AC power to drive the motor 190 of the electric vehicle 185, but the embodiment is not limited thereto. For example, the battery charger 100 may include a component for receiving power from an external source and outputting power to charge the battery 140 without the motor 190 being connected to the battery charger 100. The battery charger 100 may convert DC power from the battery 140 in the electric vehicle 185 into AC power to drive AC components of the electric vehicle 185 other than the motor 190. The battery charger 100 may be bidirectional and may convert DC power into AC power, or convert AC power into DC power, such as during regenerative braking. The battery charger 100 may be a three-phase inverter, a single-phase inverter, or a multi-phase inverter.

[0051] Figure 3 An implementation of a controller 300 is depicted that can perform the techniques presented herein in accordance with one or more implementations.

[0052] Any suitable system infrastructure may be put in place to allow control of the battery charger. Figure 3 The following discussion provides a brief general description of a suitable computing environment in which the present disclosure may be implemented. In one embodiment, any of the disclosed systems, methods, and / or graphical user interfaces may be implemented by a computer program that is compatible with the disclosed system. Figure 3, or similar computing systems depicted in . Although not required, aspects of the present disclosure are described in the context of computer-executable instructions, such as routines executed by a data processing device (e.g., a server computer, a wireless device, and / or a personal computer). Those skilled in the relevant art will appreciate that aspects of the present disclosure may be practiced with other communication, data processing, or computer system configurations, including: Internet appliances, handheld devices (including personal digital assistants ("PDAs")), wearable computers, all manner of cellular or mobile phones (including voice over IP ("VoIP") phones), dumb terminals, media players, gaming devices, virtual reality devices, multiprocessor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, set-top boxes, network PCs, minicomputers, mainframe computers, and the like. In practice, the terms "computer," "server," and the like are generally used interchangeably herein and refer to any of the above devices and systems and any data processor.

[0053] Aspects of the present disclosure may be embodied in a special-purpose computer and / or data processor that is specially programmed, configured, and / or constructed to perform one or more computer executable instructions explained in detail herein. Although aspects of the present disclosure (such as certain functions) are described as being performed exclusively on a single device, the present disclosure may also be practiced in a distributed environment in which functions or modules are shared between different processing devices, which are linked by a communication network (such as a local area network ("LAN"), a wide area network ("WAN"), and / or the Internet). Similarly, the technology presented herein as involving multiple devices may be implemented in a single device. In a distributed computing environment, program modules may be located in local and / or remote memory storage devices.

[0054] Aspects of the present disclosure may be stored and / or distributed on non-transitory computer readable media, including magnetic or optical readable computer disks, hardwired or pre-programmed chips (e.g., EEPROM semiconductor chips), nanotechnology memories, biological memories, or other data storage media. Alternatively, computer-implemented instructions, data structures, screen displays, and other data under aspects of the present disclosure may be distributed on the Internet and / or other networks (including wireless networks), distributed over a period of time on propagation signals on propagation media (e.g., electromagnetic waves, sound waves, etc.), and / or they may be provided on any analog or digital network (packet switching, circuit switching, or other schemes).

[0055] The controller 300 may include a set of instructions that can be executed to cause the controller 300 to perform any one or more of the methods or computer-based functions disclosed herein. The controller 300 may operate as a standalone device, or may be connected to other computer systems or peripherals, for example using a network.

[0056] In a networked deployment, the controller 300 can operate with the capacity of a server, or as a client in a server-client user network environment, or as a peer-to-peer computer system in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. The controller 300 can also be implemented as or incorporated into various devices, such as a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box (STB), a personal digital assistant (PDA), a mobile device, a palmtop computer, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a communication device, a wireless phone, a landline phone, a control system, a camera, a scanner, a fax machine, a printer, a pager, a personal trusted device, a network appliance, a network router, a switch or a bridge, or any other machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or other) specifying the actions to be taken by the machine. In a specific implementation, the controller 300 can be implemented using an electronic device that provides voice, video or data communication. In addition, although the controller 300 is shown as a single system, the term "system" should also be considered to include any collection of systems or subsystems that execute one or more sets of instructions to perform one or more computer functions individually or jointly.

[0057] like Figure 3 As shown in , the controller 300 may include a processor 302, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), or both. The processor 302 may be a component in a variety of systems. For example, the processor 302 may be part of a standard computer. The processor 302 may be one or more general-purpose processors, digital signal processors, application-specific integrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays, servers, networks, digital circuits, analog circuits, combinations thereof, or other now known or later developed devices for analyzing and processing data. The processor 302 may implement a software program, such as a manually generated (i.e., programmed) code.

[0058] The controller 300 may include a memory 304 that can communicate via a bus 308. The memory 304 may be a main memory, a static memory, or a dynamic memory. The memory 304 may include, but is not limited to, computer-readable storage media, such as various types of volatile and non-volatile storage media, including but not limited to random access memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, electrically programmable read-only memory, electrically erasable read-only memory, flash memory, tape or disk, optical media, etc. In one implementation, the memory 304 includes a cache or random access memory for the processor 302. In an alternative implementation, the memory 304 is separated from the processor 302 (such as a cache memory, system memory, or other memory of the processor). The memory 304 may be an external storage device or database for storing data. Examples include a hard drive, a compact disc ("CD"), a digital video disc ("DVD"), a memory card, a memory stick, a floppy disk, a universal serial bus ("USB") memory device, or any other device operable to store data. The memory 304 is operable to store instructions that can be executed by the processor 302. The functions, actions, or tasks shown in the figures or described herein may be performed by the processor 302 executing instructions stored in the memory 304. The functions, actions, or tasks are independent of the specific type of instruction set, storage medium, processor, or processing strategy, and may be performed by software, hardware, integrated circuits, firmware, microcode, etc. operating alone or in combination. Likewise, processing strategies may include multi-processing, multi-tasking, parallel processing, etc.

[0059] As shown, the controller 300 may also include a display 310, such as a liquid crystal display (LCD), an organic light emitting diode (OLED), a flat panel display, a solid state display, a cathode ray tube (CRT), a projector, a printer, or other display devices known now or developed later for outputting the determined information. The display 310 may serve as an interface for a user to see the functions of the processor 302, or specifically serve as an interface with the software stored in the memory 304 or the drive unit 306.

[0060] Additionally or alternatively, the controller 300 may include an input device 312 configured to allow a user to interact with any component of the controller 300. The input device 312 may be a numeric keypad, a keyboard, or a cursor control device such as a mouse or joystick, a touch screen display, a remote control, or any other device operable to interact with the controller 300.

[0061] The controller 300 may also or alternatively include a drive unit 306 implemented as a disk or optical drive. The drive unit 306 may include a computer-readable medium 322 in which one or more sets of instructions (instructions 324), such as software, may be embedded. In addition, the instructions 324 may embody one or more of the methods or logics described herein. The instructions 324 may reside in the memory 304 and / or in the processor 302 in whole or in part during execution by the controller 300. The memory 304 and the processor 302 may also include computer-readable media as described above.

[0062] In some systems, the computer-readable medium 322 includes instructions 324, or receives and executes instructions 324 in response to a propagation signal, so that a device connected to the network 370 can transmit voice, video, audio, images, or any other data through the network 370. In addition, instructions 324 can be sent or received through the network 370 via a communication port or interface 320 and / or using a bus 308. The communication port or interface 320 can be part of the processor 302, or it can be a separate component. The communication port or interface 320 can be created in software, or it can be a physical connection in hardware. The communication port or interface 320 can be configured to connect to the network 370, external media, display 310, or any other component or combination thereof in the controller 300. The connection to the network 370 can be a physical connection, such as a wired Ethernet connection, or it can be established wirelessly as described below. Similarly, additional connections to other components of the controller 300 can be physical connections or can be established wirelessly. The network 370 can be directly connected to the bus 308 instead.

[0063] Although the computer-readable medium 322 is shown as a single medium, the term "computer-readable medium" may include a single medium or multiple media, such as a centralized or distributed database, and / or associated caches and servers storing one or more instruction sets. The term "computer-readable medium" may also include any medium capable of storing, encoding, or carrying instruction sets for execution by a processor or causing a computer system to perform any one or more of the methods or operations disclosed herein. The computer-readable medium 322 may be non-transitory and may be tangible.

[0064] Computer readable medium 322 may include solid state memory, such as a memory card or other package that accommodates one or more non-volatile read-only memories. Computer readable medium 322 may be a random access memory or other volatile rewritable memory. Additionally or alternatively, computer readable medium 322 may include magneto-optical or optical media, such as a disk or tape or other storage device, to capture carrier signals, such as signals transmitted through a transmission medium. Digital file attachments to e-mails or other self-contained information archives or archives may be considered as distribution media as tangible storage media. Therefore, the present disclosure is considered to include any one or more of computer readable media or distribution media and other equivalents and successor media in which data or instructions may be stored.

[0065] In alternative implementations, dedicated hardware implementations (e.g., application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic arrays, and other hardware devices) may be constructed to implement one or more of the methods described herein. Applications that may include various implementations of the device and system may broadly include various electronic and computer systems. One or more implementations described herein may use two or more specific interconnected hardware modules or devices to implement functions, wherein related control and data signals may be transmitted between and through the modules, or as part of an application specific integrated circuit. Therefore, the present system encompasses software, firmware, and hardware implementations.

[0066] The controller 300 can be connected to a network 370. The network 370 can define one or more networks including wired or wireless networks. The wireless network can be a cellular telephone network 802.11, 802.16, 802.20 or WiMAX network. In addition, such a network can include a public network (such as the Internet), a private network (such as an intranet) or a combination thereof, and can utilize various network protocols that are now available or developed later, including but not limited to network protocols based on TCP / IP. The network 370 can include a wide area network (WAN), such as the Internet, a local area network (LAN), a campus LAN, a metropolitan area network, such as a direct connection through a universal serial bus (USB) port, or any other network that can allow data communication. The network 370 can be configured to connect a computing device to another computing device to achieve data communication between devices. The network 370 is generally capable of using any form of machine-readable media to transmit information from one device to another. The network 370 can include a communication method by which information can be propagated between computing devices. The network 370 can be divided into subnetworks. A subnetwork may allow access to all other components connected thereto, or a subnetwork may restrict access between components. Network 370 may be considered a public or private network connection, and may include, for example, a virtual private network or encryption or other security mechanisms employed over the public Internet.

[0067] According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the methods described herein can be implemented by a software program that can be executed by a computer system. In addition, in an exemplary non-limiting implementation, the implementation can include distributed processing, component / object distributed processing, and parallel processing. Alternatively, a virtual computer system process can be constructed to implement one or more of the methods or functions described herein.

[0068] Although this specification describes components and functions that can be implemented in a specific implementation with reference to specific standards and protocols, the present disclosure is not limited to such standards and protocols. For example, standards for Internet and other packet-switched network transmissions (e.g., TCP / IP, UDP / IP, HTML, and HTTP) represent examples of the prior art. Such standards are periodically replaced by faster or more efficient equivalents having substantially the same functionality. Therefore, replacement standards and protocols having the same or similar functionality as that disclosed herein are considered to be equivalents thereof.

[0069] It will be appreciated that, in one embodiment, the steps of the method discussed are performed by an appropriate one or more processors of a processing (i.e., computer) system executing instructions (computer readable code) stored in a storage device. It will also be appreciated that the present disclosure is not limited to any particular implementation or programming technique, and that the present disclosure may be implemented using any appropriate technique for implementing the functionality described herein. The present disclosure is not limited to any particular programming language or operating system.

[0070] Figure 4 An exemplary electrical schematic diagram of a battery charger with a configurable DC-DC converter in a charging mode with HV and LV buck operation according to one or more embodiments is depicted. Figure 4 As shown, the battery charger 100 may operate in a charging mode 400 utilizing high voltage (HV) and low voltage (LV) buck operations.

[0071] The battery charger 100 may include a PFC converter 120 and a DC-DC converter 130. The PFC converter 120 may be an AC-DC converter. The battery charger 100 may include or may be electrically connected to a battery 140. The DC-DC converter 130 may include an HV buck converter 401, an LV buck converter 402, an HV filter 461, and an LV filter 462. The battery 140 may include an HV battery 141 and an LV battery 142.

[0072] like Figure 4As shown, the PFC converter 120 according to the present disclosure can operate with a three-phase input. However, the PFC converter 120 can also operate with a two-phase or single-phase input. The PFC converter 120 may include inductors L1, L2, L3, and L4 disposed on phases A, B, and C, respectively, and a neutral branch. The capacitor C PFC At the output of the PFC converter 120 a DC link capacitor may be provided, where the voltage V PFC is provided to an input of a DC-DC converter 130. The DC-DC converter 130 is operable to isolate the PFC converter 120 from the battery 140. For example, the DC-DC converter 130 may be a CLLLC converter or any suitable DC-DC converter.

[0073] The battery charger 100 may be a system including a PFC converter 120. The PFC converter 120 may include a first phase (eg, V A ) receives power from a first (e.g., A) phase switch group (e.g., switches S1a and S1b). The system may include a first (e.g., A) phase switch group (e.g., switches S1a and S1b) connected to a second node to receive power from a second phase (e.g., V B ) receives power from a second (e.g., B) phase switch group (e.g., switches S2a and S2b). The system may include a third phase (e.g., V C ) receives power from a third (e.g., C) phase switch group (e.g., switches S3a and S3b). The system may include a neutral phase switch group (e.g., switches S4a and S4b) connected to a fourth node to provide a neutral return path to the voltage source or create a virtual neutral when operating in a line-to-line input. The battery charger 100 may include a controller 300 (see Figure 3 ), which is configured to control the operation of the first phase switch group, the second phase switch group and the third phase switch group (e.g., S1a and S1b, S2a and S2b, S3a and S3b, and S4a and S4b).

[0074] The DC-DC converter 130 may be connected to the outputs of the first phase switch group, the second phase switch group, the third phase switch group, and the neutral phase switch group. A voltage source may be connected to one or more of the first node, the second node, the third node, and the neutral node of the PFC converter 120, and the battery 140 may be connected to the output of the DC-DC converter 130. In addition, the HV filter 461 and the LV filter 462 may be provided between the DC-DC converter 130 and the battery 140, or as part of the DC-DC converter 130.

[0075] The battery charger 100 can operate bidirectionally. Vehicle-to-grid (V2G) operation can be achieved using a control strategy designed for multiple voltages. The PFC converter 120 can be configured to receive DC power from the battery 140 through the DC-DC converter 130, convert the DC power into AC power, and provide AC power through one or more of the first node, the second node, and the third node. The controller 300 can be designed with an algorithm to control the operation of the first phase switch group, the second phase switch group, the third phase switch group, and the neutral phase switch group to provide AC power through one or more of the first node, the second node, the third node, and the fourth node.

[0076] The DC-DC converter 130 may include a bridge driver, a HV bridge rectifier, and a LV bridge rectifier. The bridge driver may include a first switch Tp1, a second switch Tp2, a third switch Tp3, and a fourth switch Tp4. The bridge driver may operate as a full-bridge driver or a half-bridge driver, and transmit power as a square wave signal from the PFC converter 120 to the transformer 440. The transformer 440 may be one or more high-frequency transformers, and may be a single transformer with multiple coils or windings, multiple transformers with a single coil or winding, or any combination thereof. The HV bridge rectifier may include a first switch Hs1, a second switch Hs2, a third switch Hs3, and a fourth switch Hs4. The LV bridge rectifier may include a first switch Gs1, a second switch Gs2, a third switch Gs3, and a fourth switch Gs4. The switches of the HV bridge rectifier and the LV bridge rectifier may convert the square wave signal into DC power.

[0077] The HV buck converter 401 may include a first HV switch 411 and a second HV switch 412. The LV buck converter 402 may include a first LV switch 421 and a second LV switch 422. The HV buck converter 401 may be operated to control voltage conversion to and from the HV battery 141. For example, the HV buck converter 401 may convert a 400V input to a 300V output to the HV battery 141, and vice versa. The LV buck converter 402 may be operated to control voltage conversion to and from the LV battery 142. For example, the LV buck converter 402 may convert a 48V input to a 12V output to the LV battery 142, and vice versa.

[0078] like Figure 4 As shown, in a charging mode 400 utilizing HV and LV step-down operations to convert voltages from VA, VB, and VC, for example, the controller 300 may operate a first HV switch 411 and a second HV switch 412 to convert the voltage to charge the HV battery 141, and operate a first LV switch 421 and a second LV switch 422 to convert the voltage to charge the LV battery 142.

[0079] Figure 5 An exemplary electrical schematic diagram of a battery charger with a configurable DC-DC converter in a charging mode utilizing LV-only buck operation according to one or more embodiments is depicted. Figure 5 As shown, the battery charger 100 can operate in a charging mode 500 utilizing only LV buck operation. For example, under some operating conditions, when the inputs of the HV buck converter 401 (e.g., 400V) and the HV battery 141 (e.g., 400V) are the same, the HV buck converter 401 can operate as an LC filter to remove high frequency components.

[0080] like Figure 5 As shown, in charging mode 500 utilizing only LV buck operation to convert voltages from VA, VB, and VC, for example, the controller 300 can perform operations including closing (e.g., 100% duty cycle) the first HV switch 411 and opening (e.g., 0% duty cycle) the second HV switch 412 to operate the HV buck converter 401 as an LC filter and pass voltage without conversion to charge the HV battery 141, and operate the first LV switch 421 and the second LV switch 422 to convert the voltage to charge the LV battery 142.

[0081] Figure 6 An exemplary electrical schematic diagram of a battery charger with a configurable DC-DC converter in HV to LV conversion mode with HV and LV step-down operation according to one or more embodiments is depicted. Figure 6 As shown, the battery charger 100 can operate in the HV to LV conversion mode 600 using HV and LV step-down operation. For example, when AC charging is turned off, the battery charger 100 can operate in the HV to LV conversion mode 600. During this conversion, the controller 300 can open the primary transformer isolation switch 1101 (see Fig.11 ) with isolation capacitor C PFC .

[0082] like Figure 6 As shown, in the HV to LV conversion mode 600 utilizing HV and LV step-down operations, for example, the controller 300 can operate the first HV switch 411 and the second HV switch 412 to convert the voltage (e.g., 450V) from the HV battery 141, and operate the first LV switch 421 and the second LV switch 422 to further convert (e.g., to 12V) the voltage converted from the HV battery 141 to charge the LV battery 142.

[0083] Figure 7An exemplary electrical schematic diagram of a battery charger with a configurable DC-DC converter in HV to LV conversion mode with HV-only buck operation according to one or more embodiments is depicted. Figure 7 As shown, the battery charger 100 may operate in an HV to LV conversion mode 700 utilizing only HV buck operation.

[0084] like Figure 7 As shown, in the HV to LV conversion mode 700 utilizing only HV step-down operation, for example, the controller 300 may operate the first HV switch 411 and the second HV switch 412 to convert the voltage from the HV battery 141, and perform operations including closing the first LV switch 421 and opening the second LV switch 422 to pass the voltage converted from the HV battery 141 to charge the LV battery 142 without further conversion.

[0085] Figure 8 An exemplary electrical schematic diagram of a battery charger with a configurable DC-DC converter in HV to LV conversion mode without HV or LV step-down operation is depicted in accordance with one or more embodiments. Figure 8 As shown, the battery charger 100 may operate in an HV to LV conversion mode 800 without utilizing HV or LV step-down operation.

[0086] like Figure 8 As shown, in the HV to LV conversion mode 800 without utilizing the HV or LV step-down operation, for example, the controller 300 may perform an operation including closing the first HV switch 411 and opening the second HV switch 412 to pass the voltage from the HV battery 141 without conversion, and perform an operation including closing the first LV switch 421 and opening the second LV switch 422 to pass the voltage from the HV battery 141 without conversion to charge the LV battery 142. Here, the secondary side of the transformer (e.g., transformer 1040A or transformer 1040B) may convert the voltage from the HV battery 141 to charge the LV battery 142.

[0087] Fig. 9 An exemplary electrical schematic diagram of a battery charger with a configurable DC-DC converter in capacitor pre-charge operation and HV to LV conversion without HV or LV step-down operation is depicted in accordance with one or more embodiments. Fig. 9 As shown, the battery charger 100 may operate in a capacitor pre-charging operation 900 and an HV to LV conversion without utilizing an HV or LV step-down operation.

[0088] like Fig. 9As shown, in the HV to LV conversion mode without utilizing the HV or LV step-down operation, for example, the controller 300 may perform an operation including closing the first HV switch 411 and opening the second HV switch 412 to pass the voltage from the HV battery 141 without conversion, and perform an operation including closing the first LV switch 421 and opening the second LV switch 422 to pass the voltage from the HV battery 141 without conversion to charge the LV battery 142. Here, the secondary side of the transformer (e.g., transformer 1040A or transformer 1040B) may convert the voltage from the HV battery 141 to charge the LV battery 142. In addition, the primary side of the transformer may convert the voltage from one or more of the HV battery 141 and the LV battery 142 to charge a capacitor (e.g., capacitor C PFC ) for pre-charging. The battery charger 100 may also operate, for example, in one or more stages of operation using a HV or LV boost operation to pre-charge the HV bus to a desired voltage. For example, the second LV switch 422 may be used to boost the voltage from the LV battery 142 to increase the voltage of the capacitor Cf2.

[0089] Fig.10 An exemplary electrical schematic 1000 of a battery charger having a configurable DC-DC converter and alternatively including a series primary transformer or a parallel primary transformer is depicted in accordance with one or more embodiments. Fig.10 As shown, the battery charger 100 may include one or more of a transformer 1040A or a transformer 1040B. The transformer 1040A may be a parallel primary transformer, and the transformer 1040B may be a series primary transformer. The transformer 1040A and the transformer 1040B may be one or more high frequency transformers, and may be a single transformer with multiple coils or windings, multiple transformers with a single coil or winding, or any combination thereof.

[0090] Fig.11 Depicted is an exemplary electrical schematic 1100 of a battery charger having a configurable DC-DC converter including switches and connections for three batteries in accordance with one or more implementations.

[0091] like Fig.11As shown, the battery charger 100 may include a DC-DC converter 1130. The DC-DC converter 1130 may include a transformer 1140, an HV buck converter 401, an LV buck converter 402, and a second LV buck converter 403. The second LV buck converter 403 may be connected to a third side (or another secondary side) of the transformer 1140. The second LV buck converter 403 may be referred to as a medium voltage buck converter. The DC-DC converter 1130 may include one or more of a primary transformer isolation switch 1101, an HV isolation switch 1102, a first LV isolation switch 1103, or a second LV isolation switch 1104. The battery 140 may include an HV battery 141, an LV battery 142, and an LV battery 143. For example, the HV battery 141 may be a 400V battery, the LV battery 142 may be a 12V battery, and the LV battery 143 may be a 48V battery. The LV battery 143 may be referred to as a medium voltage battery. Alternatively, the second LV buck converter 403 may be omitted so that the LV battery 143 is directly connected in parallel with the LV buck converter 402. For example, when the primary side of the LV buck converter 402 is 48V and the LV battery 143 is a 48V battery, the second LV buck converter 403 may be omitted or may be operated as an LC filter.

[0092] The controller 300 may operate one or more of the primary transformer isolating switch 1101, the HV isolating switch 1102, the first LV isolating switch 1103, or the second LV isolating switch 1104. For example, the controller 300 may disconnect the primary transformer isolating switch 1101 to disconnect the primary side of the transformer 1140, thereby disconnecting the voltages from VA, VB, and VC, for example, in the HV to LV conversion mode 800 without HV or LV step-down operation. For example, the controller 300 may disconnect the HV isolating switch 1102 to disconnect the voltage from the HV battery 141. For example, the controller 300 may disconnect the first LV isolating switch 1103 to disconnect the voltage from the LV battery 142. For example, the controller 300 may disconnect the second LV isolating switch 1104 to disconnect the voltage from the LV battery 143. The controller 300 may operate one or more of the primary transformer isolating switch 1101, the HV isolating switch 1102, the first LV isolating switch 1103, or the second LV isolating switch 1104 based on a fault state of one or more of the PFC converter 120, the HV buck converter 401, the LV buck converter 402, or the second LV buck converter 403. For example, the controller 300 may operate one or more of the primary transformer isolating switch 1101, the HV isolating switch 1102, the first LV isolating switch 1103, or the second LV isolating switch 1104 based on the fault state to avoid a short circuit condition.

[0093] Fig.12 A flow chart of a method of operating a battery charger having a configurable DC-DC converter according to one or more embodiments is depicted. For example, the controller 300 may perform the method 1200. The method 1200 may include receiving input parameters including, for example, one or more of an input voltage, a battery voltage, or a DC link voltage (operation 1205). The method 1200 may include determining whether the battery voltage is within a first voltage range (operation 1210). When it is determined that the battery voltage is within the first voltage range, the method 1200 may include setting a DC link voltage reference (operation 1215).

[0094] The method 1200 may include determining whether the DC link voltage is within the second voltage range (operation 1220). When the DC link voltage is determined to be within the second voltage range, the method 1200 may include operating the primary side in a full-bridge operation (operation 1225). The method 1200 may include operating the secondary side according to the full-bridge operation (operation 1230). The method 1200 may include generating a PWM signal based on the desired output voltage and returning to the start of the method 1200 at operation 1205 (operation 1235).

[0095] When it is determined that the DC link voltage is not within the second voltage range, method 1200 may include operating the primary side in half-bridge operation (operation 1240). Method 1200 may include operating the secondary side according to half-bridge operation (operation 1245). Method 1200 may include generating a PWM signal based on the desired output voltage and returning to the beginning of method 1200 at operation 1205 (operation 1235).

[0096] When it is determined that the battery voltage is not within the first voltage range, the method 1200 may include determining whether the battery voltage is outside the third voltage range (operation 1250). When it is determined that the battery voltage is outside the third voltage range, the method 1200 may include operating the primary side in a full-bridge operation (operation 1255). The method 1200 may include determining whether the power demand is within the power range (operation 1260). When it is determined that the power demand is not within the power range, the method 1200 may include operating the buck converter as a pass-through voltage converter (operation 1265). When it is determined that the power demand is within the power range, the method 1200 may include operating the buck converter with a duty cycle (operation 1270). The method 1200 may include generating a PWM signal based on the desired output voltage and returning to the start of the method 1200 at operation 1205 (operation 1235).

[0097] When it is determined that the battery voltage is not outside the third voltage range, the method 1200 may include determining whether the battery voltage is within a fourth voltage range (operation 1275). When it is determined that the battery voltage is not within the fourth voltage range, the method 1200 may include returning to the beginning of the method 1200 at operation 1205. When it is determined that the battery voltage is within the fourth voltage range, the method 1200 may include operating the primary side in a full-bridge operation (operation 1280). The method 1200 may include operating the buck converter with a duty cycle (operation 1285). The method 1200 may include generating a PWM signal based on the desired output voltage and returning to the beginning of the method 1200 at operation 1205 (operation 1235).

[0098] The on-board charger can be designed to have high power density, low weight and small space requirements. The on-board charger may include a low voltage DC-DC converter to convert high voltage (HV) to low voltage (LV) for use in auxiliary circuits in, for example, electric vehicles or plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. For example, the high voltage may be 400V or 800V. For example, the low voltage may be 12V or 48V. For example, the low voltage DC-DC converter may include a buck converter to charge the LV battery. The buck converter may operate as a buck-boost converter in a bidirectional manner. For example, the on-board charger may operate in different modes, such as precharging a large-capacity capacitor. For high power density designs, the separation of the HV and LV converters in the on-board charger may increase component count, reduce efficiency, and increase the cost of the on-board charger. One or more embodiments may provide an integrated HV-LV converter to solve the above problems and provide efficient and flexible operation. One or more embodiments may configure the DC-DC converter to operate the transformer at optimal resonance.

[0099] Other embodiments of the present disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art through consideration of the specification and practice of the invention disclosed herein. It is intended that the specification and examples be considered exemplary only, with the true scope and spirit of the invention being indicated by the following claims.

Claims

1. A system, comprising: an alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC) converter, i.e. an AC-DC converter, which is connectable to a line voltage; as well as A DC-DC converter is connected to the AC-DC converter, and the DC-DC converter includes: a high voltage buck-boost converter having a secondary side connectable to a high voltage battery; a low voltage buck-boost converter having a secondary side connectable to a low voltage battery; and One or more transformers having a primary side connected to the AC-DC converter, a secondary side connected to the primary side of the high voltage buck-boost converter, and a third side connected to the primary side of the low voltage buck-boost converter.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein: The DC-DC converter further comprises: a high voltage bridge rectifier connected to the secondary side of the one or more transformers and the primary side of the high voltage buck-boost converter; and A low voltage bridge rectifier is connected to the third side of the one or more transformers and the primary side of the low voltage buck-boost converter.

3. The system according to claim 1, further comprising: One or more controllers configured to control operation of the high voltage buck-boost converter and the low voltage buck-boost converter to control power transfer between two or more of the line voltage, the high voltage battery, or the low voltage battery.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein: The high-voltage buck-boost converter includes a first high-voltage switch and a second high-voltage switch, and The low voltage buck-boost converter includes a first low voltage switch and a second low voltage switch.

5. The system according to claim 4, wherein: The one or more controllers are further configured to: Controlling the operation of the first high voltage switch, the second high voltage switch, the first low voltage switch, and the second low voltage switch to configure the DC-DC converter into each of the following: (i) a charging mode utilizing both HV and LV buck operations, (ii) a charging mode utilizing only LV buck operation, (iii) an HV to LV conversion mode utilizing both HV and LV buck operations, (iv) an HV to LV conversion mode utilizing only HV buck operation, and (v) an HV to LV conversion mode utilizing neither HV nor LV buck operation.

6. The system according to claim 5, wherein: The one or more controllers are also configured to operate the DC-DC converter in a capacitor pre-charge operation.

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein: The DC-DC converter further comprises: A medium voltage buck-boost converter has a primary side connected in parallel with the low voltage buck-boost converter and a secondary side connectable to a medium voltage battery.

8. The system according to claim 1, wherein: The DC-DC converter further comprises: A bridge driver has a primary side connected to the AC-DC converter and a secondary side connected to the one or more transformers.

9. The system according to claim 1, wherein: The DC-DC converter further comprises: One or more of a primary transformer disconnect switch, a high voltage disconnect switch, or a low voltage disconnect switch.

10. The system according to claim 9, further comprising: One or more controllers configured to control the operation of one or more of the primary transformer disconnect switch, the high voltage disconnect switch, or the low voltage disconnect switch to control power transfer between two or more of the line voltage, the high voltage battery, or the low voltage battery.

11. The system according to claim 9, further comprising: One or more controllers configured to control operation of one or more of the primary transformer disconnect switch, the high voltage disconnect switch, or the low voltage disconnect switch based on a fault state of one or more of the AC-DC converter, the high voltage buck-boost converter, or the low voltage buck-boost converter.

12. The system according to claim 1, further comprising: the high voltage battery connected to the DC-DC converter; as well as the low voltage battery connected to the DC-DC converter, Wherein, the system is provided as a bidirectional battery charger, and the bidirectional battery charger is configured as follows: receiving input AC power from the line voltage through the AC-DC converter, converting the input AC power to output DC power, and supplying the output DC power to charge one or more of the high voltage battery or the low voltage battery in a grid-to-battery operation, and The DC-DC converter receives input DC power from one or more of the high voltage battery or the low voltage battery, converts the input DC power into output AC power, and supplies the output AC power to a load at the line voltage in battery-to-grid operation.

13. The system according to claim 1, further comprising: An electric vehicle comprising the high voltage battery connected to the DC-DC converter.

14. A system, comprising: A DC to DC converter, i.e. a DC-DC converter, comprises: a high voltage buck-boost converter having a secondary side connectable to a high voltage battery; a low voltage buck-boost converter having a secondary side connectable to a low voltage battery; and One or more transformers having a primary side connectable to the AC-DC converter, a secondary side connected to the primary side of the high voltage buck-boost converter, and a third side connected to the primary side of the low voltage buck-boost converter.

15. The system according to claim 14, further comprising: One or more controllers configured to control operation of the DC-DC converter to control power transfer between two or more of the AC-DC converter, the high voltage battery, or the low voltage battery.

16. A method for controlling a system including a DC-DC converter, the DC-DC converter including one or more transformers, a high voltage buck-boost converter, and a low voltage buck-boost converter, the method comprising performing operations by one or more controllers, the operations comprising: Operation of the high voltage buck-boost converter and the low voltage buck-boost converter is controlled to control power transmission through one or more of the high voltage buck-boost converter or the low voltage buck-boost converter and the one or more transformers.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein: The operations also include: controlling operation of a bridge driver of the DC-DC converter to operate in each of a half-bridge driver configuration and a full-bridge driver configuration, and Operation of the high voltage buck-boost converter and the low voltage buck-boost converter are controlled based on the operation of the bridge driver.

18. The method according to claim 16, wherein: The operations also include: Operation of the high voltage buck-boost converter and the low voltage buck-boost converter is controlled based on one or more of a voltage of a line voltage connected to the DC-DC converter, a battery connected to the DC-DC converter, or a power demand of the DC-DC converter.

19. The method according to claim 16, wherein: The operations also include: Controlling operation of one or more switches of the DC-DC converter to configure the DC-DC converter into each of: (i) a charging mode utilizing both HV and LV buck operations, (ii) a charging mode utilizing only LV buck operation, (iii) an HV to LV conversion mode utilizing both HV and LV buck operations, (iv) an HV to LV conversion mode utilizing only HV buck operation, and (v) an HV to LV conversion mode utilizing neither HV nor LV buck operation.

20. The method according to claim 16, wherein: The operations also include: Operations of the high voltage buck-boost converter and the low voltage buck-boost converter are controlled to operate the DC-DC converter in a capacitor precharging operation.

Images