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This paper introduces a new configuration of bidirectional multilevel converter in electric vehicle (EV) applications. It has multilevel dc-dc converter with a dc link capacitor voltage balance feature. The multilevel dc-dc converter operates in a bidirectional manner, which is a fundamental requirement in EVs. Compared to the conventional configurations, the proposed one only implements two extra power switches and a capacitor to balance the voltage of the T-type multilevel inverter (MLI) capacitor over a complete drive cycle or at fault conditions. Therefore, no extra isolated sensor, control loops, and/or special switching pattern are required. Moreover, the proposed configuration due to the high-frequency cycle-by-cycle voltage balance between CN and CP , the bulky electrolytic capacitors used in T-type MLI, are replaced with more reliable longer life film capacitors. This will result in a size and weight reduction of the converter by 20%. This allows more real estate for the EV battery in the chassis' space envelope to increase its capacity. The proposed configuration is tested and validated using a MATLAB/Simulink simulation model. A laboratory prototype of 1 kW is built to provide the proof of concept results as well.
Sheir et al. (Thu,) studied this question.