1. Power Electronics for Renewable Energy
July 2012
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2. Renewable Energy/High Efficiency Trends
• Solar/PV installations to reach 24 GW, up from 19
GW in 2010. (IMS Research)
• Wind power installations will increase from 236 GW
in 2011 to 563 GW in 2017. (Pike Research, 2011)
• 5 million cars manufactured in 2016 will be full HEV,
plug-in HEV or EV. (Yole Développement, 2011)
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3. Renewable Energy/High Efficiency Applications Have Increased
Cost and Performance Requirements For IGBTs
• Decreased $/Watt
• Higher current and voltage requirements
• Faster switching speeds
• Increased heat sensitivity
• Higher efficiencies
• Reducing switching
losses
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4. AgileSwitch Gate Drivers Were Developed to
Address These Requirements
AgileSwitch leverages high speed FET driver technology,
advanced magnetics, and digital logic expertise to
provide maximum switching performance and
reliability for IGBTs.
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5. AgileSwitch Drivers Are Perfectly Matched for
Industry Standard IGBTs
• Designed from the ground up to Plug and Play with industry
standard high power IGBT modules.
• Delivers more power than competitive gate drivers–only plug
and play solutions available for 450A and 600A Econodual.
• Component and software configurable.
• Industry standard components reduce lead times.
• Developed specifically for the following applications:
Solar/PV Inverters Wind Turbines
Motor Drives UPS/Storage
HEV/EV Induction
High Speed Trains
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6. Key Driver Benefits
• Higher peak drive current capability, higher wattage
ratings, higher voltage ratings, and superior dV/dT
immunity.
• Lower idle power with efficient gate charge delivery
to compliment the cleaner power switching of IGBTs.
• Advanced fault monitoring and control available:
– Digital Desaturation Detection—no more RC time constants
– Separate HI and LO Faults, All Faults
– UVLO
– Cross Latch/ Cross Over
– Temperature
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7. AgileSwitch Key Driver Features
Minimum On and Off periods Plug-and-play solution
Isolated DC/DC converter Interface for 3.3V, 5V or 15V logic levels
Regulated gate-emitter voltage +15V/-10V gate drive voltage
Separate gate current paths Suitable for IGBTs up to 1700V
(on/off)
Power supply under-voltage IGBT short-circuit protection
lockout (Opt.)
Reliable, long service life Easy mounting directly onto the IGBT
Up to 8 individual fault signals Fault lockout functionality (Opt.)
(Opt.)
IGBT and ambient thermal fault Monitor under voltage, overshoot,
detection (Opt.) desaturation (Opt.)
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8. Drivers can be Configured to Optimize the
Application
• Configurations based on component changes or
CPLD Programming – no need for custom PCBs
• Options may include:
• Desaturation time • Soft turn-off time
• Deadtime • Gate resistance
• Fault outputs • Connectors
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9. AgileSwitch Product Line
Series EconoDualTM PrimePACKTM HPM
Voltage 1200V 1200V 1200V
1700V 1700V 1700V
Currents 225A – 600A 600A – 1400A 800A – 3600A
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10. Master/Slave Options for Intelligent Paralleling
• Master/Slave technology allows the gate drive signal to be split at the
last possible location. This minimizes the propagation delay between
different drivers enabling better performance and reliability.
• Lower cost Slave drivers permit significant system cost savings.
• The inductance of the cable is negligible due to the low current being
pushed across it. (~0.5 A)
Slave Driver 2
(optional)
Master Driver
Slave Driver 1
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11. Why AgileSwitch?
• Drivers are complex and challenging to develop
– It’s what we do
• We tailor the driver for the application…
– Optimize for switching speed and efficiency
– Monitor and control fault conditions
– Match connectors to your application
• …improve IGBT system qualification and performance
– Standard Plug and Play for immediate use
– Designed from the ground up for easy optimization
– Shipped with customer specific gate resistors
– Short lead times
– Produced in the USA
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12. How to Get Started
The following key questions help us get started:
1. Model numbers of IGBTs in use or considered?
2. Operating frequency (kHz) – Maximum and nominal?
3. Post Header Connector requirement – Fiber or electrical,
and preference?
4. Interface I/O signal voltages?
5. Are the IGBT being driven in parallel? If so, how many? (2
or 3?)
6. DC-Link Inductance level?
7. Any industry specific requirements?
8. Estimated annual usage?
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13. Data Sheet, Spec Sheet and Intake are On-Line
• Data Sheet and Spec Sheets can be found on the
Products page:
http://www.agileswitch.com/products.page
• Intake Form can be found on the Contact US page
at: http://www.agileswitch.com/Contact-us.page
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14. How to Reach Us
info@AgileSwitch.com
484-483-3256
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