Analog Devices demos industry’s first digital power factor correction controller with power metering

APEC 2011, FORT WORTH, USA: Analog Devices Inc. (ADI) demonstrated the industry’s first digital PFC (power factor correction) controller with highly accurate AC power meter capability and inrush control functionality at the APEC 2011 conference in Fort Worth, Texas, this week (Booth #621).

ADI’s new ADP1047 digital PFC controller is effective for AC/DC power-factor correction and precision power metering applications that require high reliability and redundant power supplies, such as communications infrastructure and motor control.

ADI’s new ADP1047 digital PFC controller uses conventional, continuous-conduction mode PFC techniques; all signals are converted to the digital domain, allowing all parameters to be adjusted and reported over a PMBus compliant interface--including accurate RMS measurement of input voltage, current and power. This allows designers to optimize system harmonic performance, maximize efficiency across the load range and reduce time-to-market. The ADP1047 is programmed using an intuitive, easy-to-use GUI (graphical-user interface).

“The ADP1047 digital PFC controller is extremely versatile and easy to use, which enables designers to optimize their systems without the complex code programming required by alternative DSP (digital signal processor)-based devices,” said Laurence McGarry, marketing manager, Power Management Products Group, Analog Devices. “The ADP1047’s combination of a flexible, digitally controlled PFC engine and accurate input power metering, simplifies and accelerates the adoption of intelligent power management systems.”

Samples and evaluation boards will be available this April and full production is scheduled for July 2011.

The ADP1047 digital PFC controller provides typical power metering accuracy of ±3 percent at full load current with further improvements to ±1 percent with customer calibration. The new digital PFC controller also offers enhanced transient response through non-linear control algorithms, programmable inrush control to reduce start-up over-stress, real-time programming to maximize efficiency and extensive fault detection and reporting for improved reliability.

The ADP1047 digital PFC controller can be frequency synchronized to eliminate ‘beat’ frequency noise or alternatively the switching frequency spread spectrum feature can be enabled to further improve EMI.