Simulation circuit apparatus and method for simulating electrical load for use in testing power control device

1. A simulation device for simulating a peripheral circuit arrangement connectable to a control device, wherein the simulation device is electrically connectable to the control device, the simulation device comprising:

a first control element controlling a first simulation current, the first simulation current passing from a first load terminal of the control device to a first control element output of the first control element, the first control element having a first multistage converter, the first multistage converter having a first converter output electrically connected to a terminal on a converter side of a first inductive component, the first control element having a first supply voltage terminal having a first supply voltage, a second supply voltage terminal having a second supply voltage, and a third supply voltage terminal having a third supply voltage, wherein a terminal of the first inductive component is implemented on the control device side the first control element output, wherein a direction of flow of the first simulation current is reversible by the first control element; and

a computing unit adapted to execute a model code,

wherein, via the model code that is stored and executable on the computing unit, a first switch control signal is provided for forwarding to a first semiconductor switch control,

wherein the first semiconductor switch control is adapted to convert the first switch control signal into at least a first modified switch control signal and to apply at least the first modified switch control signal to the first multistage converter,

wherein the first output voltage is adapted to be set between the third supply voltage and the first supply voltage by application of the first switch control signal to the first multistage converter of the first control element,

wherein the first multistage converter has a first semiconductor switch, a second semiconductor switch, a third semiconductor switch, and a fourth semiconductor switch, wherein the first semiconductor switch, the second semiconductor switch, the third semiconductor switch, and the fourth semiconductor switch each include a control terminal, and

wherein a cyclical execution of the model code controls the first semiconductor switch, the second semiconductor switch, the third semiconductor switch, and the fourth semiconductor switch, via the first switch control signal and the first semiconductor switch control, to set the first output voltage.

2. The simulation device according to claim 1 , wherein the first output voltage influenced by the model code is provided at the first control element output connected to the first multistage converter.

3. The simulation device according to claim 1 , wherein the simulation device also has a second control element and a third control element, and wherein the second control element is implemented as a second multistage converter and/or wherein the third control element is implemented as a third multistage converter.

4. The simulation device according to claim 3 , wherein the first multistage converter and/or the second multistage converter and/or the third multistage converter are three-stage converters.

5. The simulation device according to claim 3 , wherein the second control element is a second three-stage converter having a second group of at least four semiconductor switches and a second control element output, wherein the third control element is a third three-stage converter having a third group of at least four semiconductor switches and a third control element output, and wherein the first control element output and the second control element output and the third control element output are electrically connected to one another.

6. The simulation device according to claim 1 , wherein, during the cyclical execution of the model code on the computing unit, the model code at predefined time intervals is adapted to process a state message provided by the control device containing information that reflects an upcoming or completed state change of a first driver transistor of the control device or an upcoming or completed state change of a second driver transistor of the control device to influence at least the first control element.

7. The simulation device according to claim 6 , wherein a generation of the state message is provided at each measurement time of a measurement of the first output voltage and/or the state message is placed in a causal relationship with a measured value of the measurement of the first output voltage at the measurement time of the associated measurement of the first output voltage.

8. The simulation device according to claim 6 , wherein the state message is adapted to be provided at predefined time intervals by a control device microprocessor associated with the control device via control code executable on the control device microprocessor.

9. The simulation device according to claim 1 ,

wherein the third supply voltage is greater than the second supply voltage,

wherein the second supply voltage is greater than the first supply voltage, and

wherein the first output voltage is referenced to a first reference voltage.

10. The simulation device according to claim 9 , wherein, within the first control element, with reference to the first reference voltage, the third supply voltage has a positive voltage value, and the first supply voltage has a negative voltage value, and wherein the following quantity relations apply:

the second supply voltage is identical to the first reference voltage;

the second supply voltage has an identical voltage difference in terms of magnitude both to the third supply voltage and to the first supply voltage;

the second reference voltage is greater than the first supply voltage and less than the second supply voltage;

the fourth supply voltage is greater than the second supply voltage and less than the third supply voltage; and

a difference formed from the fourth supply voltage as minuend and the second supply voltage as subtrahend is identical to the difference formed from the second supply voltage as minuend and the second reference voltage as subtrahend.

11. The simulation device according to claim 1 , wherein an auxiliary signal connection is established from the computing unit of the simulation device to a control device microprocessor included in the control device to influence the first switch control signal and/or a second switch control signal and/or a third switch control signal as a function of information transmitted from the control device microprocessor to the computing unit via auxiliary signal connection.

12. The simulation device according to claim 1 , wherein the control device is provided with the simulation current over the first load terminal, and

wherein only the first load terminal connects the control device and the simulation device.

13. A method for simulating a peripheral circuit arrangement adapted to be connected to a control device, the method comprising:

providing a simulation device that is electrically connected to the control device, the simulation device having a first control element that controls a first simulation current that is passed from a first load terminal of the control device to a first control element output of the first control element;

providing the first control element with a first multistage converter, the first multistage converter having a first converter output, the first control element having a first supply voltage terminal having a first supply voltage, a second supply voltage terminal having a second supply voltage, and a third supply voltage terminal having a third supply voltage;

connecting to the first converter output a first inductive component, the first control element output being at a terminal on a control device side of the first inductive component;

reversing a direction of flow of the first simulation current via a voltage change at the first control element output;

executing a model code via a computing unit, wherein, via the model code executed on the computing unit, a first switch control signal is provided for forwarding to a first semiconductor switch control;

converting, via the first semiconductor switch control, a first switch control signal into at least a first modified switch control signal;

applying the at least the first modified switch control signal to the first multistage converter; and

controlling a first output voltage by the model code, the first output voltage being provided at the first control element output connected to the first multistage converter,

wherein the first output voltage is adapted to be set between the third supply voltage and the first supply voltage by application of the first switch control signal to the first multistage converter of the first control element,

wherein the first multistage converter has a first semiconductor switch, a second semiconductor switch, a third semiconductor switch, and a fourth semiconductor switch, wherein the first semiconductor switch, the second semiconductor switch, the third semiconductor switch, and the fourth semiconductor switch each include a control terminal, and

wherein a cyclical execution of the model code controls the first semiconductor switch, the second semiconductor switch, the third semiconductor switch, and the fourth semiconductor switch, via the first switch control signal and the first semiconductor switch control, to set the first output voltage.

14. The method according to claim 13 , wherein the method is executed on the simulation device.

15. The method according to claim 13 , wherein the model code is executed cyclically a number Nx times at fixed time intervals by the computing unit, and within each of the Nx fixed time intervals:

the first switch control signal for forwarding to the first semiconductor switch control is calculated; and/or

a second switch control signal for forwarding to a second semiconductor switch control is calculated; and/or

a third switch control signal for forwarding to a third semiconductor switch control is calculated.

16. The method according to claim 13 , wherein the first switch control signal is calculated by the model code as a function of a measured current value of the first simulation current and/or a measured voltage value of the first output voltage.

17. The method according to claim 13 , wherein, starting from an Nth computation cycle of the model code, a measured current value of the first simulation current and/or a measured voltage value of the first output voltage is measured in the Nth computation cycle, wherein, in an (N+1)th computation cycle, the measured current value and/or the measured voltage value is entered into the computation of the first switch control signal by the model code in order to reduce a deviation of the measured current value of the first simulation current and/or in order to reduce a deviation of the measured voltage value of the first output voltage from a corresponding ideal value conforming with the model code, and wherein the (N+1)th computation cycle is the computation cycle that directly follows the Nth computation cycle.