Extend the life of electrical appliances

From the battery of the phone to the washing machine, the power converter is installed in a variety of ways. They are often the cause of failure of household appliances. A controller with a microprocessor can help to improve this problem.

The power converter converts the alternating current connected to the house into the direct current of the appliance. However, they are often prone to errors, which can adversely affect the life of the appliance. The Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) has now successfully developed a more durable power conversion that extends the life of appliances.

This power converter is based on a microprocessor. Installing electrolytic capacitors in a common power supply makes them light and compact, but it is also prone to failure. Although film capacitors are more durable, they require up to ten times more space, which increases component size.

At the Institute of Light Technology (LIT) at KIT there is now a digital control method developed that allows for the establishment of film capacitors that do not have significant variations in size.

Tip: The controller runs on the microprocessor and detects environmental effects such as voltage fluctuations and adjusts them. Therefore, a film capacitor having a lower capacitance value can be mounted, which reduces the element size. The use of less susceptible film capacitors extends the life of the appliance by a factor of about three, which reduces the company's maintenance effort. In addition, the new power unit offers the option of remote maintenance and integration into the Internet of Things.