Power converter arrangement

Abstract

Power converter arrangement comprising at least one capacitor bank (6) and main circuit busbars (9), characterized in that the main circuit busbars (9) are integrated in the capacitor bank (6) and the capacitor bank (6) comprises connection points (61, 61', 5) at each of its ends.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a power converter assembly comprising at least one capacitor bank and circuit busbars. According to the invention, the main circuit busbars are integrated into the capacitor bank, and the capacitor bank includes connection points at each of its ends.

[0002] Known power converter assemblies typically include a significant number of components and electrical connections. This complexity reduces their power density and increases their size, increasing the likelihood of malfunctions of the entire assembly.

[0003] The aim of the present invention is to provide an improved power converter assembly that solves these problems. This object is achieved by a power converter assembly according to claim 1, with preferred embodiments of the invention being the subject of the dependent claims.

[0004] According to claim 1, a power converter assembly is provided comprising at least one capacitor bank and main circuit busbars. According to the invention, the main circuit busbars are integrated into the capacitor bank, and the capacitor bank includes connection points at each of its ends. The connection points can be provided at opposite ends or sides of the capacitor bank or at any suitable position on the capacitor bank. By integrating the busbars, at least two busbar sections leading into and out of the capacitor bank are present, while the capacitor bank itself provides the only connection between these two busbar sections. The capacitor bank thus represents an integral part of the busbars.

[0005] The capacitor bank provides the usual functionality of a DC link capacitor with the added capability of preferably transferring the entire DC link power through the capacitor bank, rather than providing an additional component to transfer that power. According to the invention, the DC link capacitor structure is part of the main circuit busbars. Power terminals can be provided at either end or at any other suitable location of the capacitor bank to enable power transfer through the capacitor.

[0006] The present invention increases the reliability and power density of the power converter assembly. It facilitates applications requiring a low-loss, robust, and dimensionally accurate capacitor bank. Furthermore, a stable and dimensionally accurate package can be more easily provided, which has fewer external connections, thus reducing installation time.

[0007] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the main busbars are straight and / or flat in the horizontal direction, and / or a PCB / gate driver is located adjacent to a semiconductor module. The horizontal direction of the array can be defined as a direction parallel to one of the largest sides of a housing of the array. The housing of the array can be generally cuboid-shaped, comprising two opposite larger horizontal sides and four smaller vertical sides.

[0008] In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the connection points are all arranged in the same horizontal plane. The capacitor bank integrates a section of the main busbars. It is therefore no longer necessary to provide a bypass section of the busbar to bypass the capacitor bank. All connection points for connecting components of the arrangement to their busbars can be arranged in the same horizontal plane, which contributes to effectively reducing the size of the entire arrangement.

[0009] In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the capacitor bank comprises two or more power connection points connected to two or more main busbars. The connection points can be arranged on any suitable side of the capacitor bank that is suitable for a compact design of the arrangement.

[0010] In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the capacitor bank comprises a plurality of capacitors, wherein the capacitors are connected in series and / or parallel. Alternatively, the capacitor bank comprises a single set of capacitors with a plurality of connection points connected to a plurality of main busbars. These capacitors can also be connected in series and / or parallel.

[0011] In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the main busbars comprise a liquid-cooled section, preferably a cavity provided for the liquid flow and cooling of the main busbars. The busbars can be profile elements and preferably tubes to facilitate the provision of the liquid-cooled section.

[0012] In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the main busbars are made of a heat-conducting material, preferably copper, aluminum and / or plastic.

[0013] In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the capacitor bank is mounted on a plurality of main busbars and / or fixed by fastening devices such as bolts, screws and / or nuts.

[0014] In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the connection points comprise no or a plurality of holes or threaded bores for connecting the main busbars using one or a plurality of fastening devices.

[0015] In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, a plurality of capacitors are enclosed as a unit having a plurality of connection points within a capacitor bank pack or housing.

[0016] In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the arrangement comprises a plurality of capacitor banks. The main circuit busbars can be integrated into all or only a selection of the capacitor banks.

[0017] In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the capacitors are supercapacitors.

[0018] Further details and advantages of the invention are described with reference to the figures. In the figures: Fig. 1a is a schematic view of a known power converter arrangement; Fig. 1b is a schematic view of the power converter assembly of the present invention; Fig. 2: a first perspective view of the arrangement; Fig. 3: a second perspective view of the arrangement; Fig. 4: a first view of the partially opened arrangement; Fig. 5: a second view of the partially opened arrangement; Fig. 6: a first detailed view of the arrangement; and Fig. 7: a second detailed view of the partially opened arrangement.

[0019] The Fig. 1a and Fig. 1b are schematic views of power converter arrangements, where Fig. 1a shows a known power converter arrangement and Fig. 1b shows the power converter assembly of the present invention. The assemblies include at least one capacitor bank 6 and main circuit busbars 9. Other typical components of the assemblies include a fan 1, a heat sink 2, semiconductors 3, a PCB / gate driver 4, AC terminals 5, a capacitor bank 6, DC busbar terminals 7, and a housing 8.

[0020] The main circuit busbars 9 of known power converter arrangements are not integrated into the capacitor bank 6, but run along the capacitor bank 6, as in Fig. 1a is shown.

[0021] In contrast, and as in Fig. As shown in Figure 1b, according to the invention, the main circuit busbars 9 are integrated into the capacitor bank 6. The capacitor bank 6 comprises connection points 61, 61' at each of its ends, to which the main circuit busbars 9 are connected. The capacitor bank 6 thus becomes a structural part of the path of the main circuit busbars 9. Additional connection points for connecting to the main circuit busbars 9 can be provided on internal components of the arrangement, such as the circuit board / gate driver 4 and / or the AC terminals 5.

[0022] The connection points 61, 61' can be provided at opposite ends of the capacitor bank 6 or at any suitable position of the capacitor bank 6. By integrating the busbars 9, at least two busbar sections are present, one leading into the capacitor bank 6 and one leading out of it, while the capacitor bank 6 itself provides the only connection between the two busbar sections.

[0023] The capacitor bank 6 thus offers the usual functionality of a DC link capacitor with the additional capability of preferably transmitting the entire power of the DC link through the capacitor bank 6, instead of having to provide an additional component for transmitting this power in addition to the capacitor bank 6. According to the invention, the main circuit busbars 9 are part of the DC link capacitor structure.

[0024] Power terminals may be provided at two opposite ends or sides or at any other suitable position of the capacitor bank 6 to enable power transfer through the capacitor.

[0025] The main circuit busbars 9 can be aligned straight and / or flat in the horizontal direction, thereby minimizing the space required by the busbars 9. The main circuit busbars 9 can be arranged parallel to a lower part of the housing 8. The PCB / gate driver 4 can be located next to the semiconductor module 3.

[0026] The PCB / gate driver 4 may be arranged in series with the PCB / gate driver 4 and / or the capacitor bank 6. The PCB / gate driver 4 may be an integral part of the main circuit busbars 9.

[0027] The capacitor bank 6 integrates a section of the main circuit busbars 9. It is therefore no longer necessary to provide a bypass section of the busbar 9 for bypassing the capacitor bank 6, and all connection points 61, 61', 5 can be arranged in the same horizontal plane, which effectively contributes to reducing the size of the entire arrangement.

[0028] The capacitor bank 6 may comprise two or more power connection points 61, 61' connected to two or more main circuit busbars 9. The connection points 61, 61' may be arranged on any suitable side of the capacitor bank 6 to ensure a compact design of the arrangement.

[0029] The capacitor bank 6 may comprise a plurality of capacitors, wherein the capacitors are connected in series and / or parallel. Alternatively, the capacitor bank 6 comprises a single set of capacitors having a plurality of connection points 61, 61' connected to a plurality of main circuit busbars 9. These capacitors may be connected in series and / or parallel.

[0030] The main circuit busbars 9 may include a liquid-cooled section, preferably a cavity, provided for the liquid flow and cooling of the main circuit busbars 9. The busbars 9 may be profile elements and preferably tubes to facilitate the provision of the liquid-cooled section.

[0031] The main circuit busbars 9 are made of a heat-conducting material, preferably copper, aluminum and / or plastic.

[0032] The capacitor bank 6 can be mounted on a plurality of main circuit busbars 9 and / or fixed by fastening devices such as bolts, screws and / or nuts.

[0033] The connection points 61, 61', 5 may comprise none or a plurality of holes or threaded bores for connecting the main busbars 9 using a plurality of fastening devices.

[0034] A plurality of capacitors may be enclosed as a unit with multiple connection points 61, 61', 5 within a capacitor bank 6 pack or housing.

[0035] The arrangement may comprise a plurality of capacitor banks 6. The main circuit busbars 9 may be integrated into all or only a selection of the capacitor banks 6. The capacitors may be supercapacitors.

[0036] Fig. Figure 2 is a first perspective view of the assembly showing part of the outside of its housing 8 and three AC terminals 5 on one side of the housing 8.

[0037] Fig. Figure 3 is a second perspective view of the arrangement, wherein in addition to the three AC terminals 5 of Fig. 2 two DC busbar terminals 7 are shown emerging from the housing 8.

[0038] Fig. Figure 4 is a first view of the partially opened arrangement. Two capacitor banks 6 are shown side by side. The capacitor banks 6 can be connected to each other to form the Fig. 1b. The capacitor banks 6 can be positioned within the housing 8 and between the AC terminals 5 and the DC busbar terminals 7.

[0039] Fig. 5 is a second view of the partially opened and partially exploded assembly. Again, two capacitor banks 6 are shown. One of the capacitor banks 6 is provided within the housing 8. The other capacitor bank 6 is shown in a separated position outside the housing 8, which can be achieved, for example, during manufacture of the assembly. Each of the capacitor banks 6 can comprise one or more connection points 61, 61' for connection to the busbars 9. The connection points 61, 61' can be provided on opposite sides of the capacitor banks 6.

[0040] Fig. Figure 5 shows the placement of the capacitor bank 6 within the inverter assembly. The capacitor bank 6 is mounted on the aluminum frame of the inverter and secured with mounting screws. Generally, bolts, screws, and nuts can be used for fastening. The main busbars 9 are mounted after the capacitor bank 6. The main advantage is that all large and heavy components, such as capacitors, are mounted directly on the inverter frame without the need to rotate the frame during inverter module manufacturing. One advantage of the present invention is the bottom-up installation process for all components during manufacturing.

[0041] Fig. Figure 6 is a first detailed view of the assembly. The solid black line indicates the general position of the main circuit busbars 9 relative to the other components of the assembly. The main circuit busbars 9 may extend in a substantially horizontal plane between and / or within the components of the assembly. Heat sinks 2 may be provided near or on a bottom wall of the housing 8 to increase heat transfer between the interior and exterior of the housing 8.

[0042] The main circuit busbars 9 can be made of copper or aluminum. Typically, electrical insulation, such as a plastic component, can be provided between two or more busbars 9. The left-hand reference numeral 9 indicates busbar connection structures between an IGBT module and the capacitor bank 6. The positive and negative busbars can be provided with an electrically insulating plastic between them.

[0043] Fig. Figure 7 is a second detailed view of the partially opened assembly. The PCB / gate driver 4 is shown near an opened portion of the housing 8. A fan 1 and the AC terminals 5 are arranged on adjacent walls of the housing 8.

Claims

[1] Power converter arrangement comprising at least one capacitor bank (6) and main circuit busbars (9), characterized by that the main circuit busbars (9) are integrated in the capacitor bank (6) and the capacitor bank (6) comprises connection points (61, 61', 5) at each of its ends. [2] Power converter arrangement according to claim 1, characterized by that the main busbars (9) are straight and / or flat in the horizontal direction and / or that a PCB / gate driver (4) is located next to a semiconductor (3) module. [3] Power converter arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the connecting points (61, 61', 5) are all positioned in the same horizontal plane. [4] Power converter arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized bythat the capacitor bank (6) comprises two or more power connection points (61, 61', 5) which are connected to two or more main busbars (9). [5] Power converter arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the capacitor bank (6) comprises a plurality of capacitors, the capacitors being connected in series and / or in parallel, or that the capacitor bank (6) comprises a single set of capacitors having a plurality of connection points (61, 61', 5) connected to a plurality of main circuit busbars (9). [6] Power converter arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the main circuit busbars (9) comprise a liquid-cooled section, preferably a cavity provided for the liquid flow and the cooling of the main circuit busbars (9). [7] Power converter arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the main circuit busbars (9) are made of a heat-conducting material, preferably copper, aluminum and / or plastic. [8] Power converter arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the capacitor bank (6) is mounted on several main circuit busbars (9) and / or is fixed by fastening devices such as bolts, screws and / or nuts. [9] Power converter arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the connection points (61, 61', 5) comprise no or a plurality of holes or threaded bores for connecting the main circuit busbars (9) using a plurality of fastening devices. [10] Power converter arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized bythat a plurality of capacitors are enclosed as a unit having a plurality of connection points (61, 61', 5) within a capacitor bank (6) pack or housing. [11] Power converter arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that it comprises a plurality of capacitor banks (6). [12] Power converter arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the capacitors are supercapacitors.

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