Single ADC Digital PFC Controller Using Precalculated Duty Cycles

Traditional digital power factor correction (PFC) uses three sensors to measure the input and output voltages and the input current. Each sensor, especially the input current one, increases the cost of the system and generates power losses in case of resistive sensors. This paper presents a controller for boost PFC converters. It uses precalculated duty cycles generated offline, and applies them to the switch. In order to control the converter with nonnominal conditions, just one analog-to-digital converter (ADC) is used, which measures the output voltage. Measuring the average and the ripple of the output voltage with this ADC, the controller takes compensation action for changes in the input voltage but also in the load of the converter. The average value is used to control the input voltage changes, while the ripple value is used to control load changes. These two loops present low frequency bandwidth, so the ADC and the whole system can be low cost. Finally, a comparator is used to detect the zero-crossing of the input voltage, so the precalculated values are synchronized with the ac mains. In this way, the converter only uses one ADC and one comparator, both with low bandwidth. Results show that high power factor and normative compliance are reached, even under nonnominal conditions.