Half-Bridge Integrated ZVS Full-Bridge Converter With Reduced Conduction Loss for Electric Vehicle Battery Chargers

A half-bridge integrated zero-voltage-switching (ZVS) full-bridge converter with reduced conduction loss for battery on-board chargers in electric vehicles (EVs) or plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) is proposed in this paper. The proposed converter features a reduction in primary-conduction loss and a lower secondary-voltage stress. In addition, the proposed converter has the most favorable characteristics as battery chargers as follows: a full ZVS capability and a significantly reduced output filter size due to the improved output waveform. In this paper, the circuit configuration, operation principle, and relevant analysis results of the proposed converter are described, followed by the experimental results on a prototype converter realized with a scale-downed 2-kW battery charger for EVs or PHEVs. The experimental results validate the theoretical analysis and show the effectiveness of the proposed converter as battery on-board chargers for EVs or PHEVs.