A Parallel Topology for Inductive Power Transfer Power Supplies

High-power inductive power transfer (IPT) systems operate at power levels of 100 kW or more. However, existing high-power IPT power supplies are typically designed for one power level and are expensive to make, due to the use of high-power electronic components. This paper presents a parallel IPT power supply topology that can achieve high output power levels in a cost effective manner. The parallel topology can minimize uneven power sharing due to component tolerance, and does not require any additional reactive components for parallelization. In addition, it can continue to operate when a faulty parallel unit is electronically shut down, dramatically improving the availability and reliability of the systems. Furthermore, flexible output power levels may be achieved by connecting identical modules in parallel. A 6 kW parallel power supply has been constructed by connecting three 2 kW power supplies in parallel. The maximum efficiency of the power supply and track is measured to be 94%.