DC power conversion circuit
The inventive technology, in certain embodiments, may be generally described as a solar power generation system with a converter, which may potentially include two or more sub-converters, established intermediately of one or more strings of solar panels. Particular embodiments may involve sweet spot operation in order to achieve improvements in efficiency, and bucking of open circuit voltages by the converter in order that more panels may be placed on an individual string or substring, reducing the number of strings required for a given design, and achieving overall system and array manufacture savings.
1. A DC-DC power converter comprising:
an inductor established along a first conductor, between a first and a second node, said first node defined by an intersection of said first conductor, a second conductor, and a third conductor, and said second node defined by an intersection of said first conductor, a fourth conductor, and a fifth conductor;
a first switch established along said second conductor between said first node and a third node, said third node defined by an intersection of said second conductor, a sixth conductor, and a first power generator connector;
a first diode established along said third conductor between said first node and a fifth node defined by an intersection of said third conductor, said sixth conductor, and a higher voltage conductor, said first diode allowing flow towards said fifth node;
a first capacitor established along said sixth conductor between said third node and said fifth node;
a second switch established along said fourth conductor between said second node and a fourth node, said fourth node defined by an intersection of said fourth conductor, a seventh conductor, and a second power generator connector;
a second diode established along said fifth conductor between a sixth node and said second node, said sixth node defined by an intersection of said fifth conductor, said seventh conductor, and a lower voltage conductor, said second diode allowing flow towards said second node; and
a second capacitor established along said seventh conductor between said fourth node and said sixth node.
2. The DC-DC power converter as described in claim 1 further comprising a first power generator connected to said first power generator connector.
3. The DC-DC power converter as described in claim 2 wherein current flows from said first power generator away from said DC-DC converter.
4. The DC-DC power converter as described in claim 1 further comprising a second power generator connected to said second power generator connector.
5. The DC-DC power converter as described in claim 4 wherein current flows from said second power generator towards said DC-DC converter.
6. The DC-DC power converter as described in claim 1 further comprising at least one additional parallely connected converter and at least two additional power generators connected with each of said at least one additional parallely connected converter.
7. The DC-DC power converter as described in claim 1 wherein said DC-DC converter is part of a unipolar power generation system.
8. The DC-DC power converter as described in claim 1 wherein said DC-DC converter is part of a bipolar power generation system.
9. The DC-DC power converter as described in claim 1 wherein said higher voltage conductor connects to a positive rail.
10. The DC-DC power converter as described in claim 9 wherein said first power generator is connected with said positive rail.
11. The DC-DC power converter as described in claim 1 wherein said lower voltage conductor connects to a negative rail.
12. The DC-DC power converter as described in claim 11 wherein said second power generator is connected with said negative rail.
13. The DC-DC power converter as described in claim 1 wherein said DC-DC converter comprises a photovoltaic DC-DC power converter.
14. The DC-DC power converter as described in claim 2 wherein said first power generator comprises a first solar power generator.
15. The DC-DC power converter as described in claim 14 wherein said first solar power generator comprises a first solar panel substring.
16. The DC-DC power converter as described in claim 4 wherein said second power generator comprises a second solar power generator.
17. The DC-DC power converter as described in claim 16 wherein said second solar power generator comprises a second solar panel substring.