Motor Drive Backplane with Independent Data Lines for Legacy Flexibility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current motor drive technologies lack flexibility in communication protocols, speeds, and physical hardware, making it difficult to adapt control circuitry to a wide range of power ratings and accommodate improvements while maintaining compatibility with existing or legacy circuits.
Innovation Solution
A system with converter and inverter circuitry, coupled with control circuitry and a physical backplane, allows for independent communication between control circuitry and functional circuits using separate and independent conductive data lines, enabling adaptable communication protocols and data rates.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If a shared backplane communication bus is used to connect control circuitry and functional circuits, then device complexity is reduced and ease of manufacture is improved, but communication speed and data exchange capability are limited by the shared bus bandwidth
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the shared communication bus into multiple separate and independent data lines, with each line dedicated to a specific functional circuit. This segmentation allows each functional circuit to have its own dedicated communication channel, enabling higher data exchange rates without being constrained by shared bus bandwidth, while maintaining modular architecture for manageable complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The backplane is designed with a universal architecture that can accommodate multiple types of functional circuits with different communication requirements. Each functional circuit type can utilize the appropriate data line configuration, allowing the system to adapt to various power ratings and application requirements while maintaining a standardized backplane interface
2Adaptability or versatility
If the communication architecture is fixed with dedicated lines for each functional circuit, then communication speed and adaptability are improved, but device complexity and manufacturing difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements local quality by providing different data line configurations for different functional circuits based on their specific communication requirements. Each functional circuit can be connected with the appropriate number and type of data lines matching its protocol needs, allowing high-speed circuits to use dedicated lines while legacy circuits use fewer lines, optimizing both performance and manufacturing
Solution Approach 2:
The communication architecture is designed to be dynamic and configurable, allowing the system to adapt communication parameters such as data rate and protocol type for each functional circuit. This dynamic capability enables the system to optimize communication for each device while maintaining a standardized physical interface that simplifies manufacturing and assembly
3Reliability
If existing legacy circuits are supported with current communication architecture, then compatibility is maintained, but communication performance and data exchange rates are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables parameter changes by allowing different data exchange rates and communication protocols on different data lines. Legacy functional circuits can operate at lower data rates using their designated lines, while new high-performance circuits can utilize faster data rates on their own dedicated lines, allowing the system to support both legacy and modern requirements simultaneously without compromise
Data Source
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AI summary
Control circuitry of a motor drive provides commands for operation of power circuitry based at least in part on signals exchanged with functional circuits, such as for system data and control data, such as feedback of motor or system parameters. The functional circuits may operate at different data rates, with different interrupt intervals, depending upon their capabilities. The control circuitry accommodates all of these flexibly. A physical backplane printed circuit board comprising independent data lines for each functional circuit allows for independent configuration of the data rates, interrupt intervals and communications between the control circuitry and the functional circuits.