Electric power converter, electric drive and electric vehicle

Abstract

Electrical power converter (1) for converting an input voltage into an output voltage, comprising: -an input terminal (2) for obtaining the input voltage, the input terminal (2) having at least two lines (5a, 5b); -an output terminal (3) for providing the output voltage, the output terminal having at least two lines (6a-c); -a converter circuit (7) connected between the input terminal (2) and the output terminal (3), comprising at least one switching element (8a, 8b) and configured to convert the input voltage into the output voltage; -a sensing device (12) configured to detect a physical quantity based on a current flowing at a sensing terminal (13) which is one of the input and output terminals (2, 3) and to provide a sensing information (14) representing the physical quantity;- a controller (17) configured to control a switching operation of at least one switching element (8a, 8b) based on the detection information (14); - an amplifier circuit (19) configured to generate a compensation signal (20) based on the detection information (14); and - an injection circuit (21) configured to inject the compensation signal (20) into an injection terminal (22) which is one of the input and output terminals (2, 3) or to inject the compensation signal (20) into a ground plane (28) of the power converter (1); wherein the detection device (12), the amplifier circuit (19) and the injection circuit (21) form an active filter (23) to suppress the interference generated by the switching operation. Fig. 1;

Description

Title of the invention: Electric power converter, electric drive and electric vehicle FIELD OF INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to an electrical power converter. Furthermore, the invention relates to an electric drive and an electric vehicle.

[0002] CONTEXT

[0003] Passive filtering to reduce electromagnetic interference in power converters for automotive applications is well known. In this case, passive filtering components must be added to the lines to or from a power converter circuit and must withstand the current flowing along the lines, resulting in bulky, heavy, and space-consuming filter stages. The size, weight, and cost of these passive filter stages can be a major bottleneck for many high-power-density applications. Therefore, active filtering has become an attractive alternative approach to reducing or even eliminating electromagnetic interference, particularly common-mode interference, in a power converter for automotive applications.

[0004] By way of example, US 2018 / 0269781 Al discloses a power supply system for an electric-powered vehicle comprising: a charging interface for receiving external power to charge a battery. The charging interface includes a power converter for converting the external alternating current into direct current; a network connecting the battery and the charging interface, in which at least a portion of the network is a direct current network; and an EMI filter between the battery and the charging interface in the direct current network.The EMI filter includes an active circuit which has a detection section to detect a noise current in a first and a second power conductor, a gain section to generate a cancellation noise based on the noise current detected in the detection section, and an injection section to inject the cancellation noise from the gain section into the first and second power conductors.

[0005] However, active filtering requires a sensor device to detect current flowing in the lines. Such a detection device, which is used only for active filtering, is quite expensive because it must be capable of detecting alternating currents up to several tens or hundreds of kilohertz in order to allow reliable compensation of electromagnetic inferences.

[0006] The present invention aims to provide a simpler way of achieving a active filtering in an electrical power converter, particularly in the context of automotive applications. Summary of the invention

[0007] According to the invention, this object is solved by an electrical power converter to convert an input voltage into an output voltage, comprising: an input terminal for obtaining the input voltage, the input terminal having at least two lines; an output terminal for providing the output voltage, the output terminal having at least two lines; a converter circuit connected between the input terminal and the output terminal, comprising at least one switching element and configured to convert the input voltage into the output voltage; a sensing device configured to detect a physical quantity based on a current flowing in a sensing terminal being one of the input and output terminals and to provide sensing information representing the physical quantity; a controller configured to control a switching operation of at least one switching element based on the sensing information;an amplifier circuit configured to generate a compensation signal based on the detection information; and an injector circuit configured to inject the compensation signal into an injection terminal that is one of the input and output terminals or to inject the compensation signal into a ground plane of the electrical power converter;

[0008] in which the detection device, the amplifier circuit and the injector circuit form an active filter to suppress interference generated by the switching operation.

[0009] The electrical power converter according to the invention includes an input terminal for obtaining an input voltage. The input terminal has at least two lines. The electrical power converter also includes an output terminal for providing the output voltage. The output terminal has at least two lines. The electrical power converter further includes a conversion circuit. The conversion circuit is connected between the input terminal and the output terminal. The conversion circuit includes at least one switching element. The converter circuit is configured to convert the input voltage into an output voltage. The electrical power converter further includes a sensing device. The sensing device is configured to detect a physical quantity. The physical quantity depends on a current flowing at a sensing terminal. The sensing terminal is one of the input and output terminals.The detection device is also configured to provide detection information representing the physical quantity. The electrical power converter further includes a controller. The controller is configured to control an operation of... The switching of at least one switching element is performed based on the sensing information. The power converter also includes an amplifier circuit. The amplifier circuit is configured to generate a compensation signal based on the sensing information. The power converter also includes an injection circuit. The injection circuit is configured to inject the compensation signal into an injection terminal or into a ground plane of the power converter. The injection terminal is one of the input and output terminals. The sensing device, the amplifier circuit, and the injection circuit form an active filter to suppress interference generated by the switching operation.

[0010] The invention proposes using the detection information provided by the sensing device not only for active filtering but also for controller control. The multiple uses of the detection information can justify the higher cost of a sensing device capable of detecting the physical quantity sufficiently for active filtering. On the one hand, it is possible to eliminate the need for another sensing device to provide detection information to the controller. In particular, an electrical power converter according to the invention can be less expensive than a conventional power converter with passive filtering components and a sensing device for use with the controller. On the other hand, in addition to active filtering, other functions can be implemented in the controller thanks to the detection information provided by the sensing device.

[0011] With regard to the electrical power converter according to the invention, the conversion circuit can be implemented in different ways depending on the type of conversion between the input voltage and the output voltage. The number of switching elements can also correspond to the type of conversion. For example, the converter circuit can be an inverter circuit, a DC / DC converter circuit, an active rectifier, or a frequency converter.

[0012] Preferably, the switching elements are voltage-controlled semiconductor switching elements, such as insulated-gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs) or power MOSFETs. The switching elements can be interconnected in one or more half-bridges so as to provide the output voltage or obtain the input voltage at a center tap of a respective half-bridge. To control the switching operation, the controller can be configured to provide a control signal to each of at least one switching element indicating whether the respective switching element is being controlled to be turned on or off.

[0013] In general, the detection device, the amplifier circuit, and the injector circuit can be connected so as to form a feedback active filter or an active filter in anticipation.

[0014] In the electrical power converter according to the invention, the controller can be configured to regulate the output voltage by controlling the switching operation based on sensing information. In particular, the controller can be configured to regulate the output voltage based on space vector modulation and / or to provide the control signals in the form of pulse-width modulated signals.

[0015] Furthermore, the controller can be configured to place at least one switching element in a predetermined safety switching state by controlling the switching operation based on detection information. For example, the detection information can detect an abnormal current flow, such as an overcurrent. The safety switching state can be an active short circuit of at least one switching element or a switching state in which at least one switching element is permanently deactivated.

[0016] Preferably, the power converter includes a second sensing device configured to detect a physical quantity based on the current flowing through the sensing terminal and to provide a second sensing information representing the physical quantity. The controller is configured to use the first sensing information as redundant information to control the switching operation. This allows for a higher level of safety (ASIL) for the detection of abnormal current flow. For example, using the first sensing information, the controller can verify whether the second sensing information is plausible before triggering the safety switching state. The second sensing device can be implemented differently from the first sensing device. For example, the second sensing device can be equipped with a shunt.

[0017] With regard to the electrical power converter according to the invention, it is preferable that the voltage at the sensing terminal be an n-phase alternating voltage and that the sensing terminal be provided with n lines carrying the current at the sensing terminal. In this case, the sensor information may comprise n sensor signals, each representing the physical quantity with respect to one of the n respective lines of the sensing terminal. For each of the n lines of the sensing terminal, the sensing device may comprise a sensing unit configured to detect the physical quantity with respect to the line of the sensing terminal and to provide the sensor signal representing the physical quantity with respect to the line of the sensing terminal.

[0018] The physical quantity may be a derivative of the current with respect to time. The detection unit may include a flux concentrator, which surrounds the terminal line detection, and a monitoring loop. The detection unit may also include a Rogowski coil.

[0019] With regard to the electrical power converter according to the invention, it is also preferable that the voltage at the sensing terminal be a direct current voltage and that the lines of the sensing terminal be configured to carry the current at the sensing terminal. The sensing device may include at least one sensing unit configured to detect the physical quantity with respect to one of the two lines of the sensing terminal.

[0020] In this case, the electrical power converter may also include a filter core, through which the sensing terminal lines extend. The filter core has an outer section, which forms a magnetic flux path surrounding the sensing terminal lines and has a space for each sensor unit, and an inner section, which forms a magnetic flux path between the sensing terminal lines, the sensor unit being disposed within the space. The inner section may include another space providing magnetic resistance to differential-mode interference. According to this embodiment, the filter core can provide additional interference reduction by passive filtering means, for example, differential-mode interference reduction.

[0021] Instead of the aforementioned derivation of current as a physical quantity, the physical quantity may be the current at the sensing terminal. The sensing unit may include a Hall effect sensor.

[0022] In addition, it is possible that the detection unit includes a printed circuit board, on which the Rogowski coil or the Hall effect sensor is mounted.

[0023] In the electrical power converter according to the invention, the injection circuit can be configured to inject the correction signal into the injection terminal by injecting the correction signal into each line of the injection terminal. The injection circuit may include a network of coupling capacitors for injecting the compensation signal. The injection circuit may also include a network of coupling inductors for injecting the compensation signal.

[0024] Furthermore, the injection terminal and the detection terminal of the electrical power converter according to the invention can be the input terminal or the output terminal. In other words, the detection terminal and the injection terminal can be identical.

[0025] The electrical power converter according to the invention may further include a signal separator configured to obtain the detection information and having a first filter with high-pass characteristics configured to filter the detection information, to generate a high-pass filtered detection information and to provide the high-pass filtered detection information to the amplifier circuit to generate the compensation signal as a function of the detection information and a A second filter with low-pass characteristics is configured to filter the detection information, generate low-pass filtered detection information, and provide this low-pass filtered detection information to the controller to control the switching operation of at least one switching element based on the detection information. Preferably, the cutoff frequency of the high-pass characteristics is higher than the cutoff frequency of the low-pass characteristics.

[0026] The above object is also solved by an electric drive for an electric vehicle, comprising an electric motor and an electric power converter as described above, in which the electric motor is connected to the output terminal of the electric power converter.

[0027] The above-mentioned object is also solved by an electric vehicle, comprising an electric drive as described above, in which the electric drive is configured to propel the electric vehicle. The electric vehicle may be a battery electric vehicle (BEV) or a hybrid electric vehicle with an additional combustion engine.

[0028] All statements relating to the inventive electric power converter apply by analogy to the inventive electric drive and the inventive electric vehicle, so that the aforementioned advantages of the inventive electric power converter can also be obtained. Brief description of the drawings

[0029] Other details and advantages of the invention are described below. Reference is made to the schematic drawings, which show:

[0030] [Fig. 1] a functional diagram of a first embodiment of an electrical energy converter according to the invention;

[0031] [Fig.2] a functional diagram of a second embodiment of a converter electrical energy according to the invention;

[0032] [Fig.3] a functional diagram of another embodiment of a converter electrical energy according to the invention;

[0033] [Fig.4] a partial functional diagram of another embodiment of a electrical energy converter according to the invention;

[0034] [Fig.5] is a schematic diagram of a sensor unit of a converter electrical power according to the embodiments of the invention;

[0035] [Fig.6] is a schematic diagram of a sensor for an electrical energy converter according to other embodiments of the invention;

[0036] [Fig.7] a schematic diagram of a filter core and a sensor of a converter electrical energy according to other embodiments of the invention;

[0037] [Fig.8] and [Fig.9] each a schematic diagram of a sensor of a converter of electrical energy according to other embodiments of the invention; and

[0038] [Fig. 10] a schematic diagram of an electric vehicle comprising an electric drive according to the invention.

[0039] Figure 1 is a functional diagram of a first embodiment of a electrical power converter 1.

[0040] The electrical power converter 1 includes an input terminal 2 for obtaining an input voltage and an output terminal 3 for providing an output voltage, into which the input voltage is to be converted by the electrical power converter 1. In this embodiment, the input voltage is a DC voltage supplied by an external DC voltage source 100. Thus, the input terminal 2 includes a line 5a for a high potential of the input voltage and a line 5b for a low potential of the input voltage. The output voltage is a three-phase AC voltage supplied, for example, to an external electric motor 101. Therefore, the output terminal 3 includes a number of lines 6a, 6b, 6c corresponding to the number of phases of the three-phase AC voltage.

[0041] Furthermore, the electrical power converter 1 includes a conversion circuit 7 connected between the input terminal 2 and the output terminal 3. The converter circuit 7 is configured to convert the input voltage into the output voltage. In this embodiment, the converter circuit 7 is an inverting circuit and includes, for each phase of the output voltage, two switching elements 8a, 8b interconnected in half-bridges. By way of example, the switching elements 8a, 8b each include an IGBT 9 and a freewheeling diode 10 connected in antiparallel. The switching elements 8a are connected to line 5a and the switching elements 8b are connected to line 5b. In each half-bridge, a center tap 11 is connected to one of the lines 6a, 6b, 6c of the output terminal 3.

[0042] Furthermore, the electrical power converter 1 includes a sensing device 12 configured to detect a physical quantity as a function of a current flowing in a sensing terminal 13 and to provide sensing information 14 representing the physical quantity. In this embodiment, the output terminal 3 is the sensing terminal 13, and the current is a three-phase alternating current flowing along lines 6a, 6b, 6c. In detail, for each of the lines 6a, 6b, 6c, a sensing unit 15a, 15b, 15c of the sensing device 12 is provided. Consequently, the sensing information 14 comprises sensor signals 16a, 16b, 16c, each representing the physical quantity with respect to one of the lines 6a, 6b, 6c of the sensing terminal 13.According to the present embodiment, each detection unit 15a, 15b, 15c is a Hall effect sensor, which detects the current at the detection terminal 13 as the aforementioned electrical quantity.

[0043] The electrical power converter 1 also includes a controller 17 configured to control a switching operation of the switching elements 8a, 8b based on the sensing information 14. In this embodiment, the controller 17 is configured to regulate the output voltage by controlling the switching operation based on the sensing information 14. To do this, the controller 17 is configured to provide a control signal 18 to one of the switching elements 8a, 8b indicating whether the switching element 8a, 8b is being controlled to be turned on or off. For example, the controller 17 performs vector control based on the signals from sensors 16a, 16b, 16c and angle information (not shown) from the electric motor 101 and provides the control signals 18 as pulse-width modulation (PWM) signals.

[0044] Furthermore, the power converter 1 includes an amplifier circuit 19, which is configured to generate a compensation signal 20 based on the sensing information 14, and an injector circuit 21 configured to inject the compensation signal into an injection terminal 22. The sensing device 12, the amplifier circuit 19, and the injector circuit 21 form an active filter 23 to suppress interference, particularly common-mode interference, generated by the switching operation. Therefore, the sensing device 12, or the sensor information 14 provided by it, respectively, is used for two purposes: to regulate the conversion by the controller 17 and to actively filter interference.

[0045] In this embodiment, the injection terminal 22 is the output terminal 3. Thus, the detection terminal 13 and the injection terminal 22 are chosen to be identical. More specifically, the injection circuit is formed by a capacitor network, including a coupling capacitor 24 for each of the lines 6a, 6b, 6c of the injection terminal 22.

[0046] Figure 2 is a functional diagram of a second embodiment of an electrical power converter 1, which corresponds to the first embodiment unless differences are described below. Identical or equivalent components are designated by the same reference numerals.

[0047] According to the second embodiment, the input terminal 2 is the sensing terminal 13 and the injection terminal 22. Therefore, the sensing information 14 represents the direct current flowing along lines 5a, 5b. Again, for each of lines 5a, 5b, a sensing unit 15a, 15b of the sensing device 12 is provided. Consequently, the sensing information 14 comprises sensor signals 16a, 16b, each representing the physical quantity with respect to one of lines 5a, 5b of the sensing terminal 13.

[0048] In this embodiment, the controller 17 is configured to place the switching element 8a, 8b in a predetermined safety switching state by controlling the switching operation based on detection information 14. In other words, the controller 17 considers the detection information as a safety measure in the operation of the electrical power converter. The safety switching state can be adopted if the current at input terminal 2 has exhibited malicious behavior, for example, an overcurrent.

[0049] The safety switching state is an active short circuit of the switching elements 8a, 8b, in which the switching elements 8a connected to line 5a are commanded to be switched off and the switching elements 8b connected to line 5b are commanded to be switched on by the control signals 18, or vice versa. Alternatively, the predetermined safety switching state is a freewheeling mode, in which all switching elements 8a, 8b are permanently switched off.

[0050] In detail, the power converter 1 includes a second sensing device 25 configured to detect the current flowing at the sensing terminal 13 and to provide a second sensing information 26 representing the physical quantity. The controller 17 is configured to use the first sensing information 14 provided by the first sensing device 12 as redundant information to check whether the switching elements 8a, 8b should be placed in the safe switching state. For example, the controller 17 performs a plausibility check of the second sensing information 26 based on the first sensing information 14 in order to decide whether the safe switching state should be adopted.

[0051] In the present embodiment, the active filter 23 actively filters interference at the input terminal 2. It should be noted that in the second embodiment, the regulation of the output voltage by the controller 17 can be carried out by adding the active filter 23 according to the first embodiment to the circuit illustrated in [Fig.2] or by using a dedicated sensor device at the output terminal 3.

[0052] According to another embodiment, the second sensor device 25 shown in [Fig. 2] is omitted, and the first sensor information 14 is used to place the switching elements 8a, 8b in the predetermined safety switching state. For example, the controller 17 can place the switching elements 8a, 8b in the predetermined safety switching state if the physical quantity of current exceeds a predetermined threshold value.

[0053] Figure 3 is a functional diagram of another embodiment of an electrical power converter 1, which corresponds to the first or second embodiment, unless differences are described below. Identical or equivalent components are designated by the same symbols. reference.

[0054] Figure 3 shows a sensor device 12' at the output terminal 3 as a detection terminal 13' corresponding to the sensor device 12 of the first embodiment, and a sensor device 12" at the input terminal 2 as a detection terminal 13" corresponding to the second embodiment. The detection devices 12', 12" providing the respective detection information 14', 14" can be used selectively in this embodiment. Furthermore, the parasitic capacitances 27, which connect lines 6a, 6b, 6c and the motor 101 to a ground plane 28 of the power converter 1 and cause interference, are shown.

[0055] Instead of injecting the compensation signal 20 into an injection terminal 22 (see [Fig.1] and [Fig.2]) as described for the first and second embodiments, the injection circuit 21 is configured to inject the compensation signal 20 into the ground plane 28.

[0056] Figure 4 is a partial functional diagram of another embodiment of an electrical power converter 1 according to the invention, which corresponds to the aforementioned embodiments, unless differences are described below. Identical or equivalent components are designated by the same reference numerals.

[0057] According to the present embodiment, the electrical power converter 1 further includes a signal separator 29 configured to obtain the detection information 14. The signal separator 29 has a first high-pass filter 30 configured to filter the detection information 14, to generate high-pass filtered detection information 31 and to provide the high-pass filtered detection information 31 to the amplifier circuit 19 in order to generate the compensation signal 20 as a function of the detection information 14.In addition, the signal separator 29 has a second filter 32 with low-pass characteristics configured to filter the detection information 14, to generate low-pass filtered detection information 33 and to provide the low-pass filtered detection information 33 to the controller 17 to control the switching operation of the switching element 8a, 8b according to the detection information 14.

[0058] According to other embodiments, the input voltage of the power converter 1 may be an alternating voltage and / or the output voltage of the power converter 1 may be a direct current voltage. Consequently, the converter circuit 7 may be an active rectifier, a DC / DC converter circuit, or a frequency converter (AC / AC converter).

[0059] The [Fig.5] is a schematic diagram of a sensor unit 15a, 15b, 15c of the electrical power converter 1 according to the aforementioned embodiments.

[0060] The detection unit 15a, 15b, 15c comprises the Hall effect sensor 34 and a core of The flow guide 35, which may be made of ferrite, is annular in shape and includes a space 36 in which the Hall effect sensor 34 is arranged. The respective lines 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 6c are conducted through the flow guide 35.

[0061] The [Fig.6] is a schematic diagram of a sensor unit 15a, 15b, 15c of the electrical energy converter 1 according to other embodiments, which correspond to the previous ones.

[0062] The detection unit 15a, 15b, 15c comprises a printed circuit board 37 on which the Hall effect sensor 34 is mounted. The respective lines 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 6c are also mounted on the printed circuit board 37, so that the magnetic field lines around the line 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 6c can be detected by the Hall effect sensor 34.

[0063] Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram of a filter core 38 and a detection unit 15a of the electrical power converter 1 according to other embodiments, which correspond to the aforementioned embodiments, where the voltage at the detection terminal 13 is a DC voltage.

[0064] Lines 5a, 5b pass through the filter core 38. The filter core 38 comprises an outer section 39, which forms a magnetic flow path surrounding lines 5a, 5b of the detection terminal 13 and has a space 40 for the detection unit 15a comprising a Hall effect sensor 34. In addition, the filter core comprises an inner section 41, which forms a magnetic flow path between lines 5a, 5b. Another space 42 in the inner section 41 provides magnetic resistance for differential mode interference. The additional space 42 provides a free space for the detection of differential mode interference by another sensor.

[0065] Instead of the space 40 illustrated in [Fig.7], a hole can be made in the outer section 39, for example by drilling, and the detection unit 15a can be disposed inside the hole.

[0066] Figures 8 and 9 are schematic diagrams of a detection unit 15a, 15b, 15c of the electrical power converter 1 according to other embodiments, which correspond to those mentioned above, where the voltage at the detection terminal 13 is an alternating voltage.

[0067] According to the embodiment of [Fig. 8], the detection unit 15a, 15b, 15c comprises a Rogowski coil 38, through which the respective lines 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 6c are conducted. It should be noted that, in this case, the physical quantity is a derivative of the current with respect to time. As in the case of [Fig. 6], the Rogowski coil 43 and the lines 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 6c can be arranged on a printed circuit board 37.

[0068] According to the embodiment of [Fig. 9], the detection unit 15a, 15b, 15c comprises a flux concentrator 44, through which the respective line 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 6c is conducted. In this case as well, the physical quantity is a derivative of the current with respect to time. The detection unit 15a, 15b, 15c further comprises a monitoring loop 45 wound around the flux concentrator 39 to provide the detection signal 16a, 16b, 16c.

[0069] Although the injection circuit 21 is shown with coupling capacitors 24 in Figures 1 to 2, the coupling capacitors 24 can be replaced by inductors in order to achieve inductive coupling.

[0070] The [Fig. 10] is a schematic diagram of an example of an electric vehicle 102 comprising an electric drive 103.

[0071] The electric drive 103 includes an electrical power converter conforming to one of the aforementioned embodiments and the electric motor 101. The vehicle 102 includes the DC voltage source 100, which may be a battery or a fuel cell. The electric motor 101 is configured to drive the electric vehicle 102, which may be a battery electric vehicle (BEV) or a hybrid vehicle.

Claims

Claims

1. An electrical power converter (1) for converting an input voltage into an output voltage, comprising: - an input terminal (2) for obtaining the input voltage, the input terminal (2) having at least two lines (5a, 5b); - an output terminal (3) for providing the output voltage, the output terminal having at least two lines (6a-c); - a converter circuit (7) connected between the input terminal (2) and the output terminal (3), comprising at least one switching element (8a, 8b) and configured to convert the input voltage into an output voltage; - a detection device (12) configured to detect a physical quantity based on a current flowing at a detection terminal (13) which is one of the input and output terminals (2, 3) and to provide detection information (14) representing the physical quantity;-a controller (17) configured to control a switching operation of the at least one switching element (8a, 8b) as a function of the detection information (14); -an amplifier circuit (19) configured to generate a compensation signal (20) as a function of the detection information (14); and -an injection circuit (21) configured to inject the compensation signal (20) into an injection terminal (22) which is one of the input and output terminals (2, 3) or to inject the compensation signal (20) into a ground plane (28) of the electrical power converter (1); wherein the detection device (12), the amplifier circuit (19) and the injector circuit (21) form an active filter (23) for suppressing interference generated by the switching operation.;

2. An electric power converter according to claim 1, wherein the controller (17) is configured to regulate the output voltage by controlling the switching operation based on the detection information (14).

3. An electrical power converter according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the controller (17) is configured to place the at least one element of switching (8a, 8b) into a predetermined safety switching state by controlling the switching operation according to the detection information (14).

4. An electrical power converter according to one of the preceding claims, further comprising a second detection device (25) configured to detect a physical quantity as a function of the current flowing in the detection terminal (13) and to provide a second detection information (26) representing the physical quantity, the controller (17) being configured to use the first detection information (14) as redundant information for controlling the switching operation.

5. An electric power converter according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the voltage at the sensing terminal (13) is an n-phase alternating voltage and the sensing terminal (13) is provided with n lines (6a-c) carrying the current to the sensing terminal (13); wherein the sensor information comprises n sensor signals (16a-c) each representing the physical quantity with respect to a respective one of the n lines (6a-c) of the sensing terminal (13); wherein, for each of the n lines (6a-c) of the sensing terminal (13), the sensing device (12) comprises a sensing unit (15a-c) configured to sense the physical quantity with respect to the line (6a-c) of the sensing terminal (13) and to output the sensor signal (16a-c) representing the physical quantity with respect to the line (6a-c) of the sensing terminal (13).

6. An electrical power converter according to claim 5, wherein the physical quantity is a derivative of the current with respect to time.

7. An electrical power converter according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the detection unit (15a-c) comprises - a flux concentrator (44), which surrounds the line of the detection terminal (6a-c), and a monitoring loop (45) or a Rogowski coil (43).

8. An electrical power converter according to one of claims 1 to 4, wherein -the voltage at the detection terminal (13) is a direct voltage and the lines (5a, 5b) of the detection terminal (13) are configured to carry the current to the detection terminal (13); where the detection device (12) comprises at least one detection unit (15a, 15b) configured to detect the physical quantity with respect to one of the two lines (5a, 5b) of the detection terminal (13).

9. An electric power converter according to claim 8, wherein for each line (5a, 5b) of the sensing terminal (13), a sensor unit (15a, 15b) is provided, wherein the sensor information comprises two sensor signals (16a, 16b) each representing the physical quantity with respect to a respective line (5a, 5b) of the sensing terminal, wherein each sensor unit (15a, 15b) is configured to provide the sensor signal (16a, 16b) representing the physical quantity with respect to the line (5a, 5b) of the sensing terminal (13).

10. An electric power converter according to claim 8 or 9, further comprising a filter core (38), through which the lines (5a, 5b) of the detection terminal (13) extend, the filter core (38) having an outer section (39), which forms a magnetic flux path surrounding the lines (5a, 5b) of the detection terminal (13) and has a gap (40) for the detection unit (15a), and an inner section (41), which forms a magnetic flow path between the lines (5a, 5b) of the detection terminal (13), the detection unit (15a) being disposed inside the gap (40).

11. An electrical power converter according to one of claims 1 to 5 or according to one of claims 8 to 10, wherein the physical quantity is the current at the detection terminal (13).

12. An electrical power converter according to claim 11, wherein the sensing unit (15a) comprises a Hall effect sensor (34).

13. An electrical power converter according to claim 7 or 12, wherein the sensing unit (15a) comprises a printed circuit board (37), the Rogowski coil (43) or the Hall effect sensor (34) being mounted on the printed circuit board (37).

14. An electrical power converter according to any preceding claim, wherein -the injection circuit (21) is configured to inject the correction signal (20) into the injection terminal (22) by injecting the correction signal correction (20) in each line of the injection terminal (5a, 5b, 6a-c) and / or - the injection terminal (22) and the detection terminal (13) being the input terminal (2) or the output terminal (3).

15. An electrical power converter according to any preceding claim, further comprising a signal separator (29) configured to obtain the detection information (14) and comprising -a first filter (31) with high-pass characteristics configured to filter the detection information (14), to generate high-pass filtered detection information (31) and to provide the high-pass filtered detection information (31) to the amplifier circuit (19) to generate the compensation signal (20) as a function of the detection information (14) and -a second filter (32) with low-pass characteristics configured to filter the detection information (14), to generate low-pass filtered detection information (32) and to provide the low-pass filtered detection information (32) to the controller (17) for controlling the switching operation of the at least one switching element (8a, 8b) according to the detection information (14).

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