Patent attributes
Inverters that interface dc and ac power sources and loads are provided. An example application is solar power systems, in which a dc source of power is an array of solar panels; the inverter converts the dc power supplied by these panels to ac power that is fed into the utility grid. Another example is battery energy storage; the inverter changes the dc power of the batteries into ac power that is fed into the grid, and also can convert (rectify) ac power from the grid for charging the batteries. In one embodiment, for example, an inverter comprises slow switches that generate a three-level ac voltage, followed by a plurality of fast-switching half-bridges that introduce high-frequency pulse-width modulation into a plurality of ac output voltages.
