CHAPTER THREE

WORKING PRINCIPLE OF SMPS POWER PLANT

SMPS
What is SMPS ?
SMPS means Switch Mode Power Supply. This is used for D.C to D.C conversion.
This works on the principle of switching regulation. The SMPS system is highly reliable,
efficient, noiseless and compact because the switching is done at very high rate in the order
of several KHz to MHz.
Necessity
The SMPS regulators are used in B.S.N.L at various locations like CDOT, E10B
Transmission systems etc.
Principle of Switching Regulator

A pulse train drives the base of ‘switching or pass transistor’. When the voltage to the
base is high, the transistor saturates, when the voltage is low, the transistor turns off. Here the
transistor functions as a switch. When the transistor is ON, load current is drawn through the
transistor and choke L. When the transistor is OFF the load current is maintained by the
energy stored in the choke L. The current flows through earth, Diode D, choke, load and
earth. Hence this diode is called ‘Retrieval Diode’.
Duty cycle of the Transistor = On Time =D
On Time + Off Time
(one cycle time)
The output voltage = Input voltage x D

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For example
If I/P voltage is 200 volts and D=0.25
O/P voltage = 200 x 0.25 = 50V.
Regulation is achieved by modifying the Duty cycle. Duty cycle depends on onetime
of transistor, which in turn depends on the width of the pulse applied to the base of the
transistor, which is controlled by ‘Pulse width modulation’ by regulator circuit.
Principle of Regulation

The relaxation oscillator produces a square wave. The square wave is integrated to get
a triangular wave, which drives the non-inverting input of a triangular to pulse converter. The
pulse train out of this circuit then drives the Pass Transistor. The output is sampled by a
voltage divider and fed to a comparator. The feed back voltage is compared with a reference
voltage. The output of the comparator then drives the input of the triangular to pulse
converter.
If the output voltage tries to increase the comparator produces a higher output voltage
which raises the reference voltage of the triangular- to pulse converter. This makes the pulse
that drives the base of the switching transistor narrower. That means duty cycle is reduced.
Since the duty cycle is lower the output becomes less which tries to cancel almost all the
original increase in output voltage.
Conversely, if the regulated output voltage tries to decrease, the output of the
comparator decreases the reference voltage of the triangular -to pulse converter. This makes

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the pulse wider and the transistor conducts for larger time and more voltage comes out of the
L.C.filter. This cancels out the original decrease in output voltage.

For maximum efficiency the duty cycle should be less than 0.5. As long as the
triangular voltage exceeds the reference voltage, the output is high. Since Vref is adjustable,
we can vary the width of the output pulse and hence the duty cycle.
Switching regulators are more efficient than conventional regulators as the power loss in the
switching element is reduced to minimum as it conducts only for a fraction of a cycle.
Now a days SMPS technology is extended to power plants also. Power plants upto 2000A
capacity have been developed using SMPS principle.
Specification of SMPS Power Plant
1) Input Voltage 320 V to 480 V
Frequency 45 Hz TO 65 Hz
2) Output Voltage
in Float Mode -54.0 ± 0.5 V. adj range -48 V to -56V
in charge mode : -55.2 V ± 0.5V
3) Input power factor >0.95 Lag with 25% to 100% load at nominal input.

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 ITI’s 50V – 2000A POWER PLANT (Multi Rack Type)
Suitable for VRLA Batteries with 100A SMPS Rectifier Modules

Introduction
The power system is intended primarily to provide uninterrupted DC power to
Telecom equipments and current for charging the batteries in the presence of AC Mains. The
system works from commercial AC mains which is rectified and regulated to –50V DC and is
fed to the equipment (exchange). The system has provision to connect three sets of VRLA
batteries and facility to charge them simultaneously to ensure that uninterrupted DC power
supply is always available to the exchange.

The power system –50V, 2000A has the following features :

(a) Multi-rack configuration.

(b) Facility to parallel a maximum of 21 nos. (or 22 nos.) of 100A (5600W)

Rectifier modules operation from three phase, 400V, 50Hz AC input.

(c) Termination for three sets of VRLA batteries and exchange.

(d) System input : Three phase, 4-wire, 50 Hz supply.

The power system has a single DC bus called auto float/charge bus. Depending upon
the status of the batteries, the output DC voltage is maintained at 54.0 + 0.5 V under auto
float condition. During auto charge the maximum DC voltage reached across the bus is 55.2
volts. The exchange battery and rectifier modules are connected in parallel.

The system employ natural convection cooling and has AC input distribution, DC
output distribution, protection and alarm circuitry for rectifiers, battery and equipment.

Technical Specification

For Module

(1) Input Voltage :

(a) 320V to 480V r m s three phase (Nominal Voltage – 400V).
(b) Frequency : 45 Hz …. 65 Hz.

(2) Output Voltage :

Float mode :
Nominal voltage : -54.0 + 0.5V,
Adjustment range : -48.0 to –56.0 V

Charge mode Voltage : -55.2 + 0.5 V

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(3) Rated current : 100 Amps.

(4) Psophometric noise :

Less than 4 mV without battery floated.
Less than 2 mV with battery floated.

(5) Input power factor :

Greater than 0.95 lag with 25% to 100% load at nominal input.

(6) Efficiency :
Greater than 90% at full Load and nominal input.

(7) Protection :
(a) Short circuit protection.
(b) Input over/under voltage protection.
(c) Output over voltage protection.
(d) Constant current features settable from 80 Amps. to 110 Amps. In auto
float/charge mode.

(8) Alarms and indicating lamps :

(a) FR/BC on Auto Float/Charge : Green LED
(b) Rectifier module over voltage : Red LED
(c) DC output fail/Under voltage : Red LED
(d) FR/BC Over Load (Voltage Drop): Amber/Yellow LED
(e) Mains Available : Green LED

For System

(1) Input Voltage :

(a) 3 Phase, 4 Wire, 50 Hz (Range – 320V to 480V RMS)
(b) Frequency : 45 Hz …. 65 Hz.

(2) Output Voltage :

Float mode Voltage : -54.0 + 0.5V
Charge mode Voltage : -55.2 + 0.5V

(3) Rated Current :

Equipment : 1100 Amps.
Batteries : 300 Amps. Each

(4) Protection
(a) Short circuit/Over load protection.
(b) Input over/under voltage protection.
(c) Battery/Equipment over voltage protection.

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(5) Alarms and indicating lamps :
(a) Load Voltage High - Red LED
(b) Load Voltage Low - Red LED
(c) Fuse Fail - Red LED
(d) FR/BC Fail - Red LED
(FR/BC No Output MCB Trip)
(e) Mains available - Green LED
(f) Mains out of range - Red LED
(g) Mains Fail - Red LED
(h) System (Exchange) Overload - Red LED
(i) FR/BC Float/Charge Mode - Green LED
(j) Mains “ON”/Battery Discharge - Red LED

Functional description of power system

This Power System is of multi rack type and consists of the following :

(a) Eight racks – One main, one auxiliary and six extension racks.

(b) AC Distribution module in each rack.

(c) Rectifier modules (A maximum of three modules in extension rack and two
each in main rack and auxiliary rack).

(d) DC distribution module in each rack.

(e) Metering in each rack.

(f) Power system controller in main rack.

(a) Rack :
The rack is made of mild steel profiles with hinged front door. The door
accommodates display and alarm enunciator. The rack is convection cooled and has ventilator
slots in the front and sides. The rear panel is screw type and can be dismantled. The cabinet
accommodates 19” subsystems. Air baffles are provided for better heat transfer. Depending
upon the load requirement (Equipment and Batteries), additional modules can be added. The
bottom and top also have ventilator features. The DC power termination and distribution is
done at the top. The AC power termination and distribution is done at the bottom.

(b) AC Distribution Panel :

The AC input to the rack is terminated at the bottom of the rack on screw type
terminals. Individual AC circuit breakers are provided for each module. The line, neutral and
earth are terminated on moulded plug which is fixed to the respective sockets on the rectifier
module. To monitor AC input current, 3 nos. of single phase AC current transformers are
mounted on the panel of main rack. A small signal transformer is mounted on the PSC panel
to provide AC input to power system controller card.

(c) Rectifier module :

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 The SMPS rectifier module – 50V, 5600 watts works on 400V AC input and provides
– 50V DC for system. The input is through 9 pin AC socket and the DC output is through
terminals. The module has front panel to indicate status and faults in the module. The control
signal is taken through 8 pin telephone jack and is terminated on to the power system
controller card.

The rectifier modules are convection cooled and can be jacked in and out of the
cabinet easily. The DC output from each module is terminated on the respective DC bus bar
mounted on the DC distribution panel.

(d) DC Distribution Panel :

This panel is mounted at the top of the cabinet. The panel incorporates the following :

(1) Input from individual rectifier modules terminated on cabinet.

(2) DC shunts to monitor current in various paths.

(3) Termination of battery 1, 2 and 3.

(4) Termination of equipment positive and negative.

(5) Fuses for battery 1, 2 and 3.

(e) Metering :
The front panel of main rack consists of two AC meters to monitor individual line to
line voltage and current. The selector switch selects the relevant phases. The DC meters
monitor both voltage and current of batteries and exchange.

(f) Power system controller :

The Power system controller card consists of an electronic circuit which monitors the
state of each rectifier module and display their status. It also controls the operation of the
module so as to make it work in auto float or auto charge mode. The current signals are
monitored continuously to ensure equal sharing of current. In case of faults, the same is
displayed and for faults like input voltage beyond limits, DC output over voltage, over load
etc. it shuts off the module. The various alarms as per following details are displayed on the
front panel with audible alarm.

(1) Mains out of range : Red

(2) Load voltage high (above 57V) : Red
(3) Load Voltage low (below 42V) : Red
(4) Mains fail : Red
(5) System overload : Red
(6) Mains available : Green
(7) System over load : Red
(8) Mains on battery discharge : Red
(9) FR/BC in Float-charge mode : Green
(10) FR/BC Fail : Red

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Functional Description of Rectifier
The SMPS 50V-5600W rectifier is a state-of-the-art switch-mode power conversion
equipment. The unit consists of two cascaded power converters performing power factor
correction and DC/DC conversion. The power stages are synchronized and working with
constant switching frequency of 100 kHz.

The rectified AC mains voltage is processed first in the power factor corrector circuit
which is based on a boost topology. The boost converter has the inherent advantage of
continuous input current waveform which relaxes the input filter requirements. The
performance of the basic boost cell is improved by a proprietary snubber circuit which
reduces the switching losses of the power semiconductors due to non-zero switching times.
Furthermore, the snubber circuit also decreases the electromagnetic interference (EMI)
generated primarily during the turn-off process of the boost diode. The output of the boost
converter is a stabilized 400V DC voltage.

Further conversion of the stabilized high voltage output of the power factor corrector
circuit is necessary to generate the isolated low voltage output and to provide the required
protection functions for telecommunication application. These tasks are achieved in the
DC/DC converter circuit which is based on full-bridge topology. The full-bridge circuit is
operated by phase-shift pulse width modulation with current mode control. This control
method provides zero voltage switching condition for all primary side power semiconductors
effectively reducing switching losses and electromagnetic interference, an advanced solution
reduces the stresses of the output rectifier diodes.

Proper operation of the power converters is managed by individual controller circuits

and supervised by the housekeeping electronics.

Remote commanding and monitoring of the modules are possible through a power
system controller housed in the system.

Functional Description of Power System Controller

Power system controller is designed to control the modes of operation of rectifiers,
acknowledge and displays the status of rectifiers and system and controls parameters of
rectifiers.

The controller accepts signal from individual rectifiers through 8 pin telephone jack
and controls the operation of each individual rectifiers.

The mode of operation of rectifier modules depends on the coded signal M1 and M2
from the controller. Depending on the state of batteries, the ATM circuit either gives a signal
for float or charge. These signals are encoded by an encoder to obtain suitable coded signals
M1 and M2.

Depending upon the mode of operation of Rectifier modules, they acknowledge coded
signals S1 and S2. These signals are decoded to display whether the modules are in auto
float/charge or fail condition.

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 The total battery current can be suitably programmed to limit the current supplied
from the modules through current programming pin in modules.

SMPS 48V – 5600W - Introduction

The SMPS 48V-5600W is a three-phase, unity power factor power supply with a wide
input voltage range of 3 X 185 Vac to 275 Vac (with neutral wire) and with a useful output
power of 5600W delivered to the load. This unit has been developed for cost effective but
highly intelligent modular telecommunication power systems. It fulfills the specification of

TELECOMMUNICATION ENGINEERING CENTRE (DOT) for the S.M.P.S. BASED

POWER PLANT GENERIC REQUIREMENTS (No. G7SMP/-01/01 JULY 04)
Primary application of the rectifiers SMPS 48V-5600W are in the supply of Telecom
equipment. The convection cooled unit may be operated up to 60oC ambient air temperature.

The rectifier operates from a nominal 3 X 230 Vac rms (with neutral wire) source. The
mains frequency may vary from 45 Hz to 65 Hz. Total harmonic distortion (THD) of the
input current wave form is below 5%.
The output of the rectifier conforms to the generic requirements of telecommunication
power supplies in terms of noise, voltage programmability, as well as over voltage, overload
and short-circuit protection. The rectifier SMPS 48V-5600W can be set in the 3 modes ‘auto
float’, ‘auto charge’ and ‘manual boost’ by the power system controller.

For detailed technical data, please refer to Chapter 2.

General description of operation

The SMPS 48V-5600W rectifier is a state-of-the-art switch-mode power supply. It is
composed of 3 identical single-phase sub-modules (R, S and T) as shown in the block
diagram :

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 The sub-modules are connected between neutral and one of the phases (R, S or T) on
the input, and in parallel on the output. All ‘-‘ wires are protected by circuit breakers, which
are mechanically coupled.

The interface card IFC 52 provides :

1. all reference voltages and protections to the sub-modules.

2. Signalization and manual interface (adjustment potentiometers and test jacks)

for the whole unit, and

3. Communication with power system controller ‘ITI’.

Each of the sub-modules consists of two cascaded power converters performing over
factor correction and dc/dc conversion. The power stages are synchronized and working with
constant switching frequency of ~100 kHz. The rectified ac mains voltage is processed first in
the power factor corrector circuit which is based on a boost topology. The boost converter has
the inherent advantage of continuous input current wave form which relaxes the input filter
requirements. The performance of the basic boost cell is improved by a proprietary snubber
circuit which reduces the switching losses of the power semiconductors due to non-zero
switching times. Furthermore, the snubber circuit also decreases the electromagnetic
interference generated primarily during the turn-off process of the boost diode. The output of
boost converter is a stabilized 400 Vdc voltage.

Further conversion of the stabilized high voltage output of the power factor corrector
circuit is necessary to generate the isolated low voltage output and to provide the required
protection functions for telecommunication application. These tasks are achieved in the dc/dc

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converter circuit which is based on a full-bridge topology. The full-bridge circuit is operated
by phase-shift pulse-width modulation with current-mode control. This control method
provides zero voltage switching conditions for all primary side power semiconductors
effectively reducing switching losses and electromagnetic interference. An advanced solution
reduces the stresses on the output rectifier diodes.

Proper operation of the power converters is managed by individual control circuits

and supervised by the housekeeping electronics.

Remote commanding and monitoring of the modules are possible through a power
system controller.

Block diagram of a single sub-module R, S or T

This chapter gives more detailed information about the technical merit of single sub-
module based on the functional blocks shown in the diagram below (R, S and T).

Input Section
Block 1 of the drawing presented above is the input EMI filter of the rectifier. The
fixed frequency, synchronized operation of the different circuits allowed to optimize the
filter’s performance. It has only one differential and one common mode filter stage.

Block 2 represents the Inrush Current Limiter circuit which consists of series
combination of surge rated power resistors and fuse. The circuit limits the input current of the
rectifier during the initial charging of the energy storage capacitors connected to the output of
the boost power factor corrector circuit. In normal operation the current limiting components
are by-passed through relay which is controlled by the housekeeping electronics.

A general purpose full-wave Bridge Rectifier circuit forms Block 3. It is directly

mounted on the heat sink.

Power factor corrector

The power stage of the Power Factor Corrector is a boost converter represented by
Block 4. The circuit operates with 100 kHz constant frequency in continuous inductor current

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mode. Because of the relatively high switching frequency a loss-less snubber has been added
to the basic boost converter to reduce switching losses and semiconductor stresses.

When the boost transistor conducts the energy being stored in the boost inductor
increases. During the off-state of the transistor energy is transferred from the inductor to the
output capacitor through the boost diode. The inductor current is measured with a sense
resistor and it is forced to follow the input voltage wave form. The technical literature refers
to this technique as the resistor emulation mode which is the most preferred load by the
utility companies.

The output Capacitor of the boost converter is marked by number 5 in the block
diagram. This capacitor is used for low-frequency energy storage as well. Due to the nature of
ac sources the energy absorbed at the input of the unit varies according to the mains cycle. In
order to deliver constant power at the output energy must be stored inside the unit. Therefore,
high voltage 450V electrolytic capacitors are used at the output of the boost converter to
provide cost and volume effective energy storage.

Block 12 is the controller of the Power Factor Corrector. It uses the UC3854B
integrated circuit which had been developed to control boost converters in power factor
corrector applications. This integrated solution takes care about all sensing, controlling and
protection functions which are necessary to achieve proper input current wave form and to
stabilize the output voltage of the power factor corrector circuit. The control principle
implemented in the UC3854B is average current mode control.

DC/DC Converter
The heart of the module is the dc/dc Converter shown in Blocks 6-9. Block 6 shows
the primary arrangement of the full-bridge power converter employing a safety isolated high-
frequency transformer. Because of its important role in providing safety isolation between the
input and the output of the module, the transformer coupling is emphasized in Block 7. The
secondary side of the dc/dc stage provides rectification (Block 8) and filtering (Block 9)
functions which are realized using current-doubler topology. Particularity of the implemented
solution is integration of two inductors on a common ferrite core.

The full-bridge converter takes energy from its input when two diagonally located
switches are turned on at the same time. This energy is transferred to the output through the
transformer immediately. The energy will be stored in the output filter inductor showed in
Block 9 and transferred to the output capacitor of the dc/dc converter during the passive
interval when energy is not absorbed from the source. This sequence can be achieved by
different ways depending on the implemented control strategy.

The dc/dc Controller, shown in Block 13, is using the phase-shift pulse width
modulation technique which provides loss-less, zero voltage turn-on condition for the
primary side semiconductors. Further benefit is the greatly reduced electromagnetic
interference generated by the converter. The control principle is peak current mode control.

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 Like the power stage, the controller circuit of the dc/dc converter is also divided
between the primary and the secondary side of the rectifier. Communication between the
separated parts are realized using optical isolators marked by number 14.

Major part of the dc/dc controller is referred to as Secondary Controller in Block 15.
The secondary side controller is responsible for output voltage and current regulation
functions.

Output Section
Block 10 forms the physical Output Section of the sub-module. It is a shielded,
common-mode, low-pass filter stage to reduce conducted electromagnetic interferences to the
required level.

Housekeeping
The name Housekeeping refers to the auxiliary power supply and to all internal
primary side supervisory functions necessary for the operation of the unit. Besides the
auxiliary power converter (current-mode controlled fly-back converter), Block 11 also
includes the master clock, under- and over-voltage lock-out, and start-up sequence generator.

Output Characteristics
The power system controller can set the rectifier into the 3 modes of operation, i.e.
‘auto float’, ‘auto charge’ and ‘manual boost’.

The output characteristic is different for these 3 modes as shown below :

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 ‘auto float’ mode

Vout (V)
56

48

0 lout(A)
80 110
(
‘auto charge’ mode

Vout (V)
66

54

0 lout(A)
80 110
(
‘manual boost’ mode
Vout (V)
65

56

0 lout(A)
25 50
(

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 1800

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