Patents by Inventor Richard S. Zhang

Richard S. Zhang has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20120092108
    Abstract: A magnetic component such as a transformer or inductor comprises one or more litz-wire windings and one or more metallic cooling tube windings. Each litz-wire winding is wound together with a corresponding single metallic cooling tube winding on a common bobbin to provide an indirectly-cooled magnetic component.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 18, 2011
    Publication date: April 19, 2012
    Inventors: Satish Prabhakaran, Konrad Roman Weeber, Richard S. Zhang, Charles Michael Stephens, Mark Edward Dame, Yang Cao
  • Publication number: 20110260547
    Abstract: A method of controlling electrical power systems coupled to an electrical connection point includes obtaining carrier signals and fundamental waveforms from electrical power systems coupled to at least two renewable energy sources, generating pulse width modulation (PWM) signals using the carrier signals and the fundamental waveforms while interleaving carrier signals, fundamental waveforms, or a combination of carrier signals and fundamental waveforms of the electrical power systems, and driving grid side converters of the electrical power systems with the PWM signals.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 8, 2011
    Publication date: October 27, 2011
    Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Changyong Wang, Zhuohui Tan, Robert William Delmerico, Allen Michael Ritter, Ralph Teichmann, Richard S. Zhang, Robert Allen Seymour, Xiaoming Yuan
  • Patent number: 8040642
    Abstract: A smart capacitor includes a main capacitor having at least one intelligence mechanism selected from a prognostics mechanism and a high speed protection mechanism integrated within the main capacitor. The at least one intelligence mechanism and the main capacitor are together configured to generate at least one type of output signal selected from long term induced failure mechanism signals and sudden capacitor failure condition signals in response to desired input signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2011
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Michael Andrew de Rooij, Karim Younsi, Daniel Qi Tan, Richard S. Zhang
  • Patent number: 7999418
    Abstract: A power generation system comprises at least two electrical systems connected at an electrical connection point. Each electrical system comprises a power conversion system comprising a converter including a plurality of switches for converting direct current power into alternating current power. The power generation system comprises a control system including at least two pulse width modulation (PWM) modulators, each PWM modulator for obtaining a fundamental waveform and a carrier signal, using the fundamental and carrier signals to generate a PWM pattern, and for providing the PWM pattern to a respective converter for driving the switches of the respective converter. The control system is configured to interleave carrier signals, fundamental waveforms, or a combination of carrier signals and fundamental waveforms of the at least two electrical systems to generate interleaved PWM patterns respectively for the at least two converters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 16, 2011
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Changyong Wang, Zhuohui Tan, Robert William Delmerico, Allen Michael Ritter, Ralph Teichmann, Richard S. Zhang, Robert Allen Seymour, Xiaoming Yuan
  • Patent number: 7851943
    Abstract: A direct current (DC) transmission and distribution system includes a system DC link configured for carrying power from a source to a plurality of loads {16} and DC to alternating current (AC) power converter modules coupled in series to the system DC link on a load side of the system DC link
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 2006
    Date of Patent: December 14, 2010
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Rajib Datta, Christof Martin Sihler, Richard S. Zhang
  • Patent number: 7852643
    Abstract: A system and method for controlling cross current in an interleaved power converter system having a plurality of converter threads coupled in parallel includes collecting a feedback current from each thread and obtaining a normal current and a differential mode current for each thread, based on its respective feedback current. The normal current of each thread is regulated to a commanded thread normal current value via a respective normal current control loop based on d-q rotating frame parameters. A differential mode cross current of each thread is regulated to zero via a respective differential mode cross current control loop based on d-q rotating frame parameters; while a differential mode cross current DC offset of each thread is regulated to zero via a respective differential mode cross current control loop based on stationary frame parameters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 2007
    Date of Patent: December 14, 2010
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Richard S. Zhang, Changyong Wang, Zhuohui Tan, Haiqing Weng
  • Publication number: 20100277836
    Abstract: A smart capacitor includes a main capacitor having at least one intelligence mechanism selected from a prognostics mechanism and a high speed protection mechanism integrated within the main capacitor. The at least one intelligence mechanism and the main capacitor are together configured to generate at least one type of output signal selected from long term induced failure mechanism signals and sudden capacitor failure condition signals in response to desired input signals.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 30, 2009
    Publication date: November 4, 2010
    Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Michael Andrew de Rooij, Karim Younsi, Daniel Qi Tan, Richard S. Zhang
  • Patent number: 7817422
    Abstract: A heat sink for directly cooling at least one electronic device package is provided. The electronic device package has an upper contact surface and a lower contact surface. The heat sink comprises a cooling piece formed of at least one thermally conductive material. The cooling piece defines multiple inlet manifolds configured to receive a coolant and multiple outlet manifolds configured to exhaust the coolant. The inlet and outlet manifolds are interleaved. The cooling piece further defines multiple millichannels configured to receive the coolant from the inlet manifolds and to deliver the coolant to the outlet manifolds. The millichannels and inlet and outlet manifolds are further configured to directly cool one of the upper and lower contact surface of the electronic device package by direct contact with the coolant, such that the heat sink comprises an integral heat sink.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2010
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Satish Sivarama Gunturi, Mahadevan Balasubramaniam, Ramakrishna Venkata Mallina, Richard Alfred Beaupre, Le Yan, Richard S. Zhang, Ljubisa Dragoljub Stevanovic, Adam Gregory Pautsch, Stephen Adam Solovitz
  • Patent number: 7787270
    Abstract: A galvanic isolated DC-DC and DC-AC power conversion system is coupled to a plurality of DC sources which are derived from a combination of a plurality of single-phase and three-phase AC-DC converters. The DC-DC and DC-AC power conversion system in one embodiment is configured to provide mixed type outputs (mixed frequency, e.g. DC with 50 or 60 Hz, with 400 Hz; mixed voltage levels).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2007
    Date of Patent: August 31, 2010
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Ravisekhar NadimpalliRaju, Richard S. Zhang, Rajib Datta, Allen Michael Ritter, Ljubisa Dragoljub Stevanovic
  • Publication number: 20100156192
    Abstract: A power generation system comprises at least two electrical systems connected at an electrical connection point. Each electrical system comprises a power conversion system comprising a converter including a plurality of switches for converting direct current power into alternating current power. The power generation system comprises a control system including at least two pulse width modulation (PWM) modulators, each PWM modulator for obtaining a fundamental waveform and a carrier signal, using the fundamental and carrier signals to generate a PWM pattern, and for providing the PWM pattern to a respective converter for driving the switches of the respective converter. The control system is configured to interleave carrier signals, fundamental waveforms, or a combination of carrier signals and fundamental waveforms of the at least two electrical systems to generate interleaved PWM patterns respectively for the at least two converters.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 22, 2008
    Publication date: June 24, 2010
    Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Changyong Wang, Zhuohui Tan, Robert William Delmerico, Allen Michael Ritter, Ralph Teichmann, Richard S. Zhang, Robert Allen Seymour, Xiaoming Yuan
  • Publication number: 20100133901
    Abstract: A sub-sea power delivery system includes a plurality of modular power converter building blocks on each of the power source side and the sub-sea load side that are stacked and interconnected to meet site expansion requirements and electrical load topologies. The power delivery system comprises a system DC transmission link/bus, wherein the system DC link is configured to carry HVDC or MVDC power from an onshore utility or topside power source to multiple sub-sea load modules. The stacked modular power converter topology on the sub-sea side of the sub-sea power delivery system is symmetrical with the stacked modular power converter topology on the on-shore/top-side of the sub-sea power delivery system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 22, 2008
    Publication date: June 3, 2010
    Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Richard S. Zhang, Rajib Datta, Christof Martin Sihler, Joseph Song Manguelle
  • Patent number: 7679941
    Abstract: A power conversion system has a three-phase AC input, where each AC input phase is linked to a string of cascaded single-phase AC-DC converters placed in series with a three-phase AC-DC converter. Each single-phase AC-DC converter in one embodiment includes a silicon carbide (SiC) pulse width modulated MOSFET H-bridge that placed in series with the three-phase AC-DC converter that includes a silicon (Si) SCR bridge. The single-phase AC-DC converters and the three-phase AC-DC converter together in one embodiment include a mixed silicon-carbide (SiC) and silicon (Si) device topology.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 16, 2010
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Ravisekhar Nadimpal Raju, Richard S. Zhang, Rajib Datta, Allen Michael Ritter, Ljubisa Dragoljub Stevanovic
  • Publication number: 20100038058
    Abstract: A heat sink for directly cooling at least one electronic device package is provided. The electronic device package has an upper contact surface and a lower contact surface. The heat sink comprises a cooling piece formed of at least one thermally conductive material. The cooling piece defines multiple inlet manifolds configured to receive a coolant and multiple outlet manifolds configured to exhaust the coolant. The inlet and outlet manifolds are interleaved. The cooling piece further defines multiple millichannels configured to receive the coolant from the inlet manifolds and to deliver the coolant to the outlet manifolds. The millichannels and inlet and outlet manifolds are further configured to directly cool one of the upper and lower contact surface of the electronic device package by direct contact with the coolant, such that the heat sink comprises an integral heat sink.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 18, 2008
    Publication date: February 18, 2010
    Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Satish Sivarama Gunturi, Mahadevan Balasubramaniam, Ramakrishna Venkata Mallina, Richard Alfred Beaupre, Le Yan, Richard S. Zhang, Ljubisa Dragoljub Stevanovic, Adam Gregory Pautsch, Stephen Adam Solovitz
  • Publication number: 20100038774
    Abstract: A heat sink for cooling at least one electronic device package is provided. The electronic device package has an upper contact surface and a lower contact surface. The heat sink comprises at least one thermally conductive material and defines multiple inlet manifolds configured to receive a coolant, multiple outlet manifolds configured to exhaust the coolant, and multiple millichannels configured to receive the coolant from the inlet manifolds and to deliver the coolant to the outlet manifolds. The manifolds and millichannels are disposed proximate to the respective one of the upper and lower contact surface of the electronic device package for cooling the respective surface with the coolant.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 18, 2008
    Publication date: February 18, 2010
    Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Richard S. Zhang, Richard Alfred Beaupre, Ramakrishna Venkata Mallina, Arun Virupaksha Gowda, Le Yan, Ljubisa Dragoljub Stevanovic, Peter Morley, Stephen Adam Solovitz
  • Publication number: 20100014325
    Abstract: An AC-AC Converter for an AC source which in one embodiment has a first rectifier section rectifying the AC source into a first pulsed DC link voltage signal and a high frequency modulating section coupled to the first pulsed DC link voltage signal and producing a high frequency AC voltage signal. A high frequency transformer is coupled to the high frequency AC voltage signal producing a transformed high frequency AC signal. There is a second rectifier section coupled to the transformed high frequency AC signal and producing a second pulsed DC voltage signal and an unfolder section coupled to the second pulsed DC voltage signal and producing an output AC signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 15, 2008
    Publication date: January 21, 2010
    Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Ravisekhar Nadimpalli Raju, Richard S. Zhang, Ljubisa Dragolijub Stevanovic, Jeffrey Neal Slotnick, Robert Louis Steigerwald, Luis Jose Garces
  • Patent number: 7633770
    Abstract: A collection and transmission system includes: a system direct current (DC) link configured for carrying power from a source to a grid; and alternating current (AC) to DC power converter modules coupled in series to the system DC link on a source side of the system DC link, each power converter module configured for being coupled to one or more sources on the source side, wherein each power converter module is configured to short circuit the DC terminals of the power converter module upon receipt of a respective command signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 2006
    Date of Patent: December 15, 2009
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Rajib Datta, Christof Martin Sihler, Richard S. Zhang
  • Patent number: 7532490
    Abstract: A power converter for coupling an electrical machine to an electrical grid includes a machine side converter and a grid side converter, each, side having a plurality of corresponding stages for converting a three-phase electrical signal of the electrical machine to a three-phase electrical signal of the electrical grid. The machine side converter includes a plurality of single-phase bridges coupled in series. The grid side converter includes a plurality of three-phase bridges. Each three-phase bridge corresponds to one of the single-phase bridges of the machine side converter. Each three-phase bridge is coupled to the primary windings of a corresponding transformer. The secondary windings of each corresponding transformer is phase-shifted from its primary windings and is coupled to secondary windings of another respective transformer, thus providing for coupling of the three-phase bridges in a series.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 14, 2006
    Date of Patent: May 12, 2009
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Rajib Datta, Haiqing Weng, Richard S. Zhang, Ravisekhar Raju, Allen M. Ritter
  • Publication number: 20090003020
    Abstract: A system and method for controlling cross current in an interleaved power converter system having a plurality of converter threads coupled in parallel includes collecting a feedback current from each thread and obtaining a normal current and a differential mode current for each thread, based on its respective feedback current. The normal current of each thread is regulated to a commanded thread normal current value via a respective normal current control loop based on d-q rotating frame parameters. A differential mode cross current of each thread is regulated to zero via a respective differential mode cross current control loop based on d-q rotating frame parameters; while a differential mode cross current DC offset of each thread is regulated to zero via a respective differential mode cross current control loop based on stationary frame parameters.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 27, 2007
    Publication date: January 1, 2009
    Inventors: Richard S. Zhang, Changyong Wang, Zhuohui Tan, Haiqing Weng
  • Publication number: 20080304300
    Abstract: A power conversion system has a three-phase AC input, where each AC input phase is linked to a string of cascaded single-phase AC-DC converters placed in series with a three-phase AC-DC converter. Each single-phase AC-DC converter in one embodiment includes a silicon carbide (SiC) pulse width modulated MOSFET H-bridge that placed in series with the three-phase AC-DC converter that includes a silicon (Si) SCR bridge. The single-phase AC-DC converters and the three-phase AC-DC converter together in one embodiment include a mixed silicon-carbide (SiC) and silicon (Si) device topology.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 6, 2007
    Publication date: December 11, 2008
    Inventors: Ravisekhar Nadimpalli Raju, Richard S. Zhang, Rajib Datta, Allen Michael Ritter, Ljubisa Dragoljub Stevanovic
  • Publication number: 20080304296
    Abstract: A galvanic isolated DC-DC and DC-AC power conversion system is coupled to a plurality of DC sources which are derived from a combination of a plurality of single-phase and three-phase AC-DC converters. The DC-DC and DC-AC power conversion system in one embodiment is configured to provide mixed type outputs (mixed frequency, e.g. DC with 50 or 60 Hz, with 400 Hz; mixed voltage levels).
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 6, 2007
    Publication date: December 11, 2008
    Inventors: Ravisekhar NadimpalliRaju, Richard S. Zhang, Rajib Datta, Allen Michael Ritter, Ljubisa Dragoljub Stevanovic