A system, a switch assembly and an associated method. The system includes a number of switch assemblies, each including a switch module, isolation circuits, a detection unit, and a drive unit. The switch module includes power switch devices connected in parallel. The switch modules are connected in series. The isolation circuits each are connected in series to a gate terminal of at least one corresponding power switch device of the power switch devices. Each isolation circuit includes a capacitor or a controllable switch. The detection unit detects faults in at least one of the power switch devices. The drive unit is coupled to the switch module via the isolation circuits for driving the power switch devices of the corresponding switch module, and when the fault is detected, the drive unit is for turning on the power switch devices parallel connected to the at least one of faulty power switch devices.

When a temperature is less than a first threshold, a protection circuit unit executes a normal operation by a pulse width modulation. When the temperature is greater than or equal to the first threshold and is less than a second threshold, the protection circuit unit executes a first heat dissipation suppressing operation that suppresses a self-heating of a switching element. When the temperature is greater than or equal to the second threshold, the protection circuit unit executes a full off operation that terminates the switching element. When the temperature is decreased to be less than the first threshold and to be greater than or equal to a third threshold after the temperature becomes greater than or equal to the second threshold, the protection circuit unit executes a second heat dissipation suppressing operation that suppresses a heat dissipated due to an energization of the switching element.

In order both to accommodate instantaneous current as well as overcurrent protection in accordance with the load, an overcurrent protection circuit has: a threshold value generation unit that, in accordance with a threshold value control signal, switches between setting an overcurrent detection threshold value to a first set value (∝ Iref) and a second set value (∝ Iset) lower than the first set value; an overcurrent detection unit that compares a sense signal in accordance with the current being monitored and the overcurrent detection value and generates an overcurrent protection signal; a reference value generation unit that generates a reference value (∝ Iset) in accordance with the seconds set value; a comparison unit that compares the sense signal and the reference value, and generates a comparison signal; and a threshold value control unit that monitors the comparison signal, and generates a threshold value control signal.

A solar panel array includes solar panels and a converter wherein panel bridges may be associated with solar panels and/or a signal bridge may be associated with a converter for communicating with the panel bridges.

A semiconductor device, including a control circuit that has a gate control circuit driving a power semiconductor element. The control circuit further includes a plurality of alarm detection circuits respectively detecting a plurality of abnormalities, a protection circuit stopping the gate control circuit responsive to the detection of any abnormality, an alarm signal generation circuit generating an alarm signal responsive to the detected abnormality, a warning detection circuit detecting a warning before any of the abnormalities is detected, and a pulse generation circuit generating a warning signal while the warning is being detected. The alarm signal is a one-shot pulse having a pulse width thereof corresponding to the detected abnormality, such that alarm signals generated responsive to different abnormalities have different pulse widths. The warning signal includes a plurality of successive pulses, each of which has a pulse width smaller than any of the pulse widths of the alarm signals.

A process tests an operability of a circuit breaker device (18, 20, 34) to establish/sever a connection of two circuit areas (36, 38, 40, 42). The circuit breaker device includes a MOSFET (44) with a source terminal (46) connected with a circuit area, a drain terminal (48) connected with a circuit area, and a gate terminal (50) with a gate voltage applied by an associated gate driver device (52) to switch into a connection switching state connecting the two circuit areas during a connection phase. The gate voltage is monitored during the connection phase, a base voltage being applied to the source terminal or/and to the drain terminal during the connection phase is monitored. If a difference between the gate voltage and the base voltage falls below a predefined reference difference during the connection phase, it is determined that a circuit defect is present in the MOSFET.

A method for a power system having a string of a plurality of power sources connected across a power device includes connecting a plurality of safe voltage units having safety switches connected respectively across each of the power sources. The method includes sensing a plurality of parameters of the power sources, and monitoring for a signal transmitted from the power device. Each of the safety switches is activated to be OFF responsive to detecting the signal within a predetermined time period. Upon not detecting the signal from the power device within the predetermined time period, a safe mode of operation of the power system is entered in which the voltages of each of the power sources is reduced to a voltage level less than a predetermined voltage level by turning the safety switches ON.

The present invention are a system and a method for controlling solar photovoltaic power generation on the basis of machine learning, the system comprising: solar photovoltaic modules; node control units for switching off a connected solar photovoltaic module when measured current, voltage and power data do not satisfy control data; a gateway unit for storing measured data; a real-time control module for classifying, comparing and analyzing data and storing same, and transmitting a control command to the gateway unit; and machine learning for monitoring a device and data, learning on the basis of machine learning, and extracting functional data required for controlling solar photovoltaic power generation so as to provide control service data according to the result of performed modeling.

In order both to accommodate instantaneous current as well as overcurrent protection in accordance with the load, an overcurrent protection circuit has: a threshold value generation unit that, in accordance with a threshold value control signal, switches between setting an overcurrent detection threshold value to a first set value (∝Iref) and a second set value (∝Iset) lower than the first set value; an overcurrent detection unit that compares a sense signal in accordance with the current being monitored and the overcurrent detection value and generates an overcurrent protection signal; a reference value generation unit that generates a reference value (∝Iset) in accordance with the seconds set value; a comparison unit that compares the sense signal and the reference value, and generates a comparison signal; and a threshold value control unit that monitors the comparison signal, and generates a threshold value control signal.

An object of the present invention is to stop the driving of a semiconductor element swiftly at a time of abnormality while sharing an output terminal between temperature information and an error signal in an IPM. In the intelligent power module of the present invention, each drive circuit includes an output control circuit configured to select the error signal while the error signal generation circuit outputs the error signal, to select the temperature signal while the error signal generation circuit does not output the error signal, and to output a selected signal as an alarm signal. The temperature signal generation circuit is configured to change the voltage value of the temperature signal in accordance with the element temperature of the specific semiconductor element within a voltage range different from the voltage value of the error signal.