In today's world, electronic devices have become an essential part of our daily lives, and their usage continues to grow rapidly. These devices require a reliable power source to operate effectively. As the demand for electronics increases, there is a growing need for efficient, reliable, and sustainable power management solutions. Power management and conversion circuitry are critical in transforming electronics through power design. This technology enables electronic devices to operate efficiently and safely by converting, controlling, and distributing power.
In this edition of the fireside chat on the Matrix Forum, the Industrial SIG brings you an insightful conversation with Mr. Sanjeev Keskar, the CEO of Arvind Consultancy. He was the Managing Director of Arrow Electronics before starting his consulting firm in 2020.
This post will delve into the design and use case aspects of power management and conversion circuitry and their role in transforming electronics, as explained by Sanjeev. We will also explore the latest advancements and trends in this field and their impact on the industry.
This post is written by Bhavna Gehani
Transforming Electronics through Power Design: Understanding Power Management and Conversion Circuitry
Power conversion circuitry is critical in providing a stable power supply to sensitive electronic circuitry. With different power sources available such as utility power, batteries with varying chemistries, and voltages ranging from 12V to 400V DC, power converters fall into different categories, such as buck converters, boost converters, flyback converters, and transformer-coupled converters.
The importance of power supply design cannot be emphasized enough, as the power supply's quality directly impacts the electronic equipment's performance and reliability. Power supply design ensures electronic equipment's efficient and effective functioning. With the increasing demand for electronic equipment in various industries, power supply design has become even more critical, and proper design can significantly enhance the performance and reliability of electronic equipment.
Power Electronics: The Key to Efficient Energy Management
Power electronics has been an emerging field for several years and has become a critical aspect of our lives. From motor drives to renewable energy systems, power electronics is responsible for efficiently managing, regulating, and distributing electrical power across various applications.
A. Architecture and Key Components
Power electronics design involves the development of systems that control and convert electrical energy from one form to another. Key components of power electronics include power semiconductors such as diodes, transistors, and IGBTs, energy storage devices like batteries and capacitors, power converters, control and monitoring systems, power transmission and distribution systems, and human-machine interfaces (HMI).
B. Design Aspects
Power conversion is a critical aspect of power electronics design. The switching part of power conversion deals with selecting and designing power switches for controlling energy flow. Control and regulation ensure stable and efficient operation, while EMI/EMC aspects minimize electromagnetic interference, ensuring safe and reliable operation. Power density management is crucial in managing heat and ensuring long-term reliability.
C. Use Cases
Power electronics is widely used in various applications, including motor drives, renewable energy systems, uninterrupted power supplies (UPS), high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission, electric vehicle (EV) charging, power factor correction, inverters, voltage regulators, and motor controllers.
D. Emerging Trends
Battery management systems for EVs, microgrid controllers for autonomous power systems, and energy storage systems are some of the emerging trends in power electronics.
Power electronics is a critical aspect of modern-day energy management, with numerous applications. Power conversion, control and regulation, EMI/EMC aspects, and power density management are key design considerations. Power electronics is a subsystem that drives various activities, from renewable energy systems to EV charging. With emerging trends such as battery management systems and energy storage systems, power electronics will continue to be a critical aspect of energy management in the future.
The Importance of Power Electronics in Today's World
Power electronics has various applications in various fields, from consumer electronics to healthcare to aerospace and defense.
In the industrial automation sector, power electronics play a crucial role in driving the speed and motion of machines. Regulating the voltage, current, and frequency is essential to ensure high power quality. Startups can explore opportunities to design power charging systems for laptops, DC converters for smartphones and battery charging, power inverters, adapters, and lighting systems, among others.
Healthcare, too, has benefited from the advancements in power electronics. Power supply designs for MRI machines, surgical units, ventilators, and infusion pumps require specific power electronics control. Power electronics also play a significant role in monitoring sleep, virtual reality, rehabilitation, energy harvesting, and more.
The aerospace and defense industry also relies heavily on power electronics. Satellites, communication systems, and remote radio units use power electronics for effective communication. Wide-bandgap semiconductors, integration, temperature and thermal aspects, and miniaturization are emerging trends in power electronics.
Wireless power transfer, energy harvesting, and artificial intelligence are also making strides in the power electronics field. IoT-based smart grids, predictive maintenance, remote monitoring and control, and data analysis are other areas where power electronics play a vital role.
AI algorithms are used for control and optimization to improve performance and reduce energy consumption. Predictive maintenance helps detect faults in power electronic systems before they occur, thereby increasing system reliability and reducing downtime.
The field has vast opportunities for startups and emerging trends that will shape the future. Power electronics is an exciting and dynamic field that promises to continue making significant advancements and revolutionizing technology.
Optimizing Power Supply Design for Efficient Performance
Power supply is an essential component in various industries. However, designing a power supply can be a daunting task, especially if you do not take the necessary measures to optimize it. Here are some of the critical aspects of power supply design for an optimized design that meets technical requirements while remaining commercially competitive.
A. The Importance of Optimized Power Supply Design
Designing a power supply requires a significant investment, ranging from $50 million to $200 million for semiconductor components. To avoid overspending, optimizing the design to meet technical requirements without sacrificing commercial competitiveness is crucial. An optimized design ensures that you are not creating a white elephant and you're not spending more money than necessary. Equally important are the integration, miniaturization, temperature and thermal aspects, and fault detection and diagnosis.
B. Active Components in Power Supply Design
In power supply design, active components are critical in delivering the required power to the load. These components include MOSFETs, IGBTs, silicon, carbohydrate, gallium, nitrate, and more. Choosing the right component depends on the specific technical requirements and budget.
C. Passive Components in Power Supply Design
Passive components in power supply design include resistors, capacitors, inductors, transformers, bare PCB connectors, and more. Although these components do not require a significant investment, they are essential in delivering a stable and reliable power supply. The Indian government's SPECS program offers a 25% capex subsidy for passive component manufacturing, making investing in this aspect of power supply design easier.
The SPECS program refers to the Scheme for Promotion of Manufacturing of Electronic Components and Semiconductors" (SPECS), which was launched by the Government of India in 2017. This program aims to promote the domestic manufacturing of electronic components and semiconductors by providing financial incentives and subsidies. You can find more information about the SPECS program here.
D. Designing Power-Sensitive IoT Devices
Designing IoT devices requires careful consideration of power consumption. AI and ML are critical in optimizing power usage in devices such as cell phones, automatically turning off backlight to save battery life when not in use. Designers must consider the leakage current when choosing battery or semiconductor components for IoT devices. Leakage current is the unusable part of the battery power that powers the IoT device.
Optimizing power supply design is critical for efficient performance and cost savings. To avoid overspending, designers must balance technical requirements and commercial competitiveness in active and passive components. In designing power-sensitive IoT devices, designers must consider power consumption and leakage current to maximize battery life. These measures allow designers to create optimized power supply designs that deliver reliable, efficient, and cost-effective power to various industries.
Design for Manufacturing: A TiE Initiative to Support Startups in the Power Electronics Industry
In today's world, power electronics is an essential part of every industry and emerging trends such as artificial intelligence and IoT are creating tremendous opportunities. With the advent of silicon carbide and gallium nitrate, power electronics have huge market and competency opportunities. TiE has also started a new Design for Manufacturing initiative to support startups with technical expert mentors. The world of power electronics is full of potential and possibilities, and it is an exciting time to be a part of it.
We thank Sanjeev for his time and valuable insights about the power electronics industry. You can connect or follow him on LinkedIn and also check out Arvind Consultancy website for their offerings.
