Drive circuit for use with voltage-driven semiconductor device

Abstract: In a common drive output circuit for driving dissimilar switching semiconductor devices having different drive input characteristics by turning on and off dc power supplies to apply a voltage between the drive input terminals of either one of the switching semiconductor devices through two transistors connected in a Darlington pair, the collector circuit of one of the two transistors which is not at the output stage has a diode inserted in series which has such a polarity as to permit passage of the collector current.

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The invention refers to a drive circuit or use with a voltage-driven semiconductor device as set forth in the preamble of claim 1. A drive circuit of this kind is known from EP-A-0 119 925. In this reference a driving circuit for an insulated gate bipolar transistor is disclosed having a power source, a gate voltage input circuit which supplies the voltage to a gate terminal of the IGBT, a detecting circuit for detecting a collector to emitter voltage of the IGBT and an adjusting circuit for lowering the control signal. When an abnormality is detected by the detecting circuit, the adjusting circuit performs a dropping operation of the gate voltage of the IGBT immediately after the detection or after the passage of a predetermined time following the application of the "ON" signal to the gate. Power devices are usually driven with different circuits having configurations adapted for the drive input characteristics inherent to the individual devices. Next, a conventional drive circuit having a capability for protecting voltage-driven semiconductor devices from overcurrent that may flow when ground fault and other shorting accidents occur in power converting apparatus such as an inverter, will be described. While various overcurrent faults occur accidentally during the operation of power converting apparatus such as an inverter, short circuits of loads and ground fault can lead to the destruction of voltage-driven semi-conductor devices used in the apparatus. With IGBT taken as an example of voltage-driven semiconductor devices, Fig. 1 shows an equivalent circuit for a short circuit accident that occurs in a power converting apparatus and Fig. 2 shows the voltage and current waveforms generated from the voltage-driven semiconductor device used in that apparatus. During the short circuit period, a short-circuit current will flow with a substantially dc circuit voltage being applied to IGBT 2 (see Fig. 1). The other components of the circuit shown in Fig. 1 are a dc power source 1 and wiring inductance 3. The short-circuit current can be as large as 5 to 6 times (or even 10 times in high-voltage withstanding devices) the rated dc current. Thus, an extremely large instantaneous power will be applied to the device during the accident and it is necessary to cut off the overcurrent by turning off the gate within a prescribed time (about 10 ps) after the short-circuit has been sensed. A prior art drive circuit having a capability for protecting voltage-driven semiconductor devices from overcurrent is shown in Fig. 3. The circuit includes an IGBT 4 as a main switching element, a signal insulating photocoupler 5, an ON gate voltage supply source 6, and an OFF gate voltage supply source 7. The two voltage sources 6 and 7 are connected to a pair of transistors 9 and 10 that operate in a complementary manner with photocoupler 5 in response to a signal supplied therefrom via transistor 8. The emitters of these transistors 9 and 10 at the output stage are connected to the base of IGBT 4 via resistor 11, and the junction between voltage sources 6 and 7 is connected to the emitter of IGBT 4 to make a drive section. Transistor 14, zener diode 13, diode 15 and resistor 17 make up an overcurrent sensing section that monitors the voltage at the collector terminal of IGBT 4 and which produces a certain signal if said voltage exceeds a predetermined level. A delay circuit is formed of a capacitor 16 upstream of the overcurrent sensing section. The normal operation of the circuit shown in Fig. 3 will proceed as follows. When photocoupler 5 turns on, transistor 8 turns off, as a result of which transistor 9 turns on whereas transistor 10 turns off to apply ON gate voltage V 1 between the gate and emitter of IGBT 4 via resistor 11. Since transistor 8 is off, a base current will flow to transistor 14 via resistor 12 and zener diode 13 but timing of its activation is delayed by the presence of resistor 17. When an ON gate voltage is applied between the gate and emitter of IGBT 4, the latter turns on and its collector-emitter voltage will drop to the level of ON voltage [hereinafter abbreviated as V CE(ON) ]. Thus, by selecting parts that satisfy the conditions set forth below, transistor 14 can be kept off while IGBT 4 is on: V ZDI + V BE > V 2 + V CE(ON) + V F where V ZDI : the threshold value of zener diode 13; V BE : the base-emitter voltage of transistor 14; and V F : the forward voltage of diode 15. When photocoupler 5 turns off, transistor 8 turns on, as a result of which transistor 9 turns off and transistor 10 turns on to apply an OFF gate voltage between the gate and emitter of IGBT 4 via resistor 11, thereby turning IGBT 4 off. When transistor 8 turns on, capacitor 16 discharges so that IGBT 4 can be effectively turned on in a subsequent step. If a short circuit accident occurs when IGBT 4 is on its collector-emitter voltage increases until the following relationship is established: V ZDI + V BE > V 2 + V CE(ON) + V F As a result, transistor 14 conducts and an OFF gate voltage is applied between the gate and emitter of IGBT 4, thereby turning it off to cut off the flowing overcurrent. When the prior art drive circuit shown in Fig. 3 operates to protect the voltage-driven semiconductor device of interest from overcurrent, an OFF gate voltage is applied to the gate of IGBT 4 simultaneously with conduction of transistor 14 and hence, a great decrease in current (-di/dt) will occur when the overcurrent is cut off. This involves the potential hazard of an excessive voltage [i.e., the sum of the voltage induced in the wiring inductance (ℓs·di/dt) and the dc circuit voltage] of being exerted on IGBT 4. Further, the delay circuit composed of capacitor 16 causes time lag in the sensing of overcurrent and an unduly great amount of energy will be consumed by the device in the period from the occurrence of shorting to the interruption of the overcurrent. A further problem rises with IGBT 4 which has static capacitance between collector C, emitter E and gate G as shown in Fig. 5. As shown by equivalent circuit in Fig. 6, input capacitance Cies charges and discharges in the switching process. Further, the characteristics of the semiconductor device, when it is in an ON state, depends on the value of voltage with which the input capacitance is charged, so that charging with a predetermined value of voltage is necessary in order to maintain constant device characteristics. As described above, the load in the gate drive circuit is capacitive and this causes the possibility that the output voltage will not reach a predetermined value of gate voltage on account of the inherent characteristics of transistors 9 and 10 at the output stage. If the gate voltage is low, the ON voltage of IGBT 4 will increase and may potentially cause an increased power loss. Further, the pulse currents rated for transistors are not very large and are only about twice the dc current rating. Hence, the capacity class of IGBT that can be driven is limited by the ratings of transistors at the output stage. A transistor that is capable of driving all classes of IGBT is bulky and will inevitably increase the size of the drive circuit. If a short circuit accident occurs when IGBT 4 is conducting, the flowing current will increase and at the same time, the device voltage (V CE ) will also increase markedly, producing a very large change in voltage dV CE /dt as shown in Fig. 7. As Fig. 8 shows, IGBT 4 has a junction capacitance C CG between collector (C) and gate (G) and when dV CE /dt is applied to IGBT 4, C CG produces a displacement current i (= C CG ·dV CG /dt). This resulting displacement current will flow between the gate and emitter of IGBT 4 as shown in Fig. 8. In the operation of the prior art drive circuit intended to protect the semiconductor circuit of interest from overcurrent, the charge between the gate and emitter of IGBT 4 is removed via resistor 11 (gate resistance) and transistor 10. Since resistance 11 increases the impedance of the drive circuit seen from the IGBT 4, the displacement current i will not flow into transistor 10 from resistor 11 but rather flow directly into the space between the gate and emitter of IGBT 4. This charging operation will prevent the gate-emitter voltage of IGBT 4 from charging in synchronism with the voltage developing upstream of resistor 11 (i.e., the voltage on the drive circuit side). As a consequence, there will be no decrease in voltage and the short-circuit current will no longer decrease. If the displacement current disappears in this situation, the gate-emitter voltage of IGBT 4 will decrease markedly, causing an abrupt decrease in the short-circuit current and hence a corresponding increase in the rate of its change (di/dt). If this occurs, it becomes impossible to suppress the voltage (ℓs·di/dt) induced in the wiring inductance in the main circuit and an excessive voltage greater than what can be withstood by the device will develop and may potentially destroy the device. Further, the non-decreasing short-circuit current will cause the problem of increased energy consumption by the device. These problems become more pronounced as the capacitance (voltage and current ratings) of the device increases because C CG and hence the displacement current will increase. Another problem with IGBT 4 is that it takes less than a few microseconds for the device to the turned off from the state where a large current is flowing. This causes an extremely large change of current (di/dt) when the device turns off and in the presence of wiring inductance (L), a higher voltage than can be withstood by the device might be applied between the collector and emitter of IGBT 4 (or between the drain and source of MOS FET). SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention was made to overcome the above described disadvantages of prior art drive circuits. In accordance with the present invention, a drive circuit for use with a voltage-driven semiconductor device comprises a drive section having as constituent elements at least a signal insulating photocoupler and a pair of complementary output transistors and a protecting section for protecting the voltage-driven semiconductor device from overcurrent that develops when a short circuit accident occurs in the device being driven, the protecting section being composed of detection means that monitors the voltage at the input main terminal of the device in the presence of a drive signal and which produces a detection signal if the voltage exceeds a predetermined level, and a variable voltage source that gradually lowers the voltage with time while the detection means is operating, with a diode being connected between the variable voltage source and the base terminal of each of the output transistors in such a way that the anode is directed to said base terminal. In an embodiment of the present invention, the collector terminal of a transistor which conducts when the detection means senses that the voltage at the input main terminal of the voltage-driven semiconductor device has exceeded a predetermined level is connected to the collector terminal of the signal insulating photocoupler via a diode the forward direction of which is toward the transistor. In a further embodiment of the present invention, the pair of complementary output transistors in the drive section consists of an FET as a transistor for turning on the device and a bipolar transistor as a transistor for turning it off. In a third embodiment of the present invention, the positive electrode-terminal of a capacitor as a component of the variable voltage source in the protecting section is connected to the gate terminal of the voltage-driven semiconductor device via a diode. As shown in Fig. 4, the value of short-circuit current I CP flowing through the semiconductor device depends on the voltage V GE applied between the gate and emitter of the device, so that the short-circuit current also decreases in proportion as the gate-emitter voltage decreases. Accordingly, the rate of decrease of current (-di/dt) which occurs when the overcurrent is cut off can be suppressed to a small value. Further, the semiconductor device will conduct if the gate-emitter voltage is higher than its threshold level. Therefore, if the time required for the gate-emitter voltage to become equal to the threshold level after the transistor in the overcurrent sensing section has conducted is set to be longer than the time when the semiconductor device turns on, the delay circuit which has been necessary in the prior art drive circuit can be eliminated and the operation for protecting the device from overcurrent can be performed as soon as it occurs, thereby reducing the energy consumption by the device. According to the second embodiment of the present invention, the advantage described above is of course attained. In addition, as long as the overcurrent sensing section is operating, gate OFF operation is not effected even if an OFF signal is supplied to the signal insulating photocoupler and instead the operation of the variable voltage source is performed preferentially, thereby insuring that the operation for protecting the device from overcurrent will continue. According to the third embodiment of the present invention, a FET is used as a device for turning on the gate drive circuit. Since the output of FET has resistive characteristics, SW1 in Fig. 6 can be regarded as a resistor. As a result, the input capacitance of IGBT charges through the path consisting of power source V 1 , SW1, resistor (R G ) and input capacitance. When the charged voltage exceeds threshold level, IGBT turns on. Since SW1 can be regarded as a resistor, the input capacitance of IGBT is charged up to the predetermined gate voltage supplied by power source V 1 . Further, the FET, the pulse current rating of which is 4 to 5 times as large as the dc current rating, is less subject to the limitation on the gate drive circuit by the capacity class of IGBT and hence a single FET suffices for operation with a broad class of IGBTs. In order to turn off the gate drive circuit, one only needs to remove the charge from the input capacitance, and this imposes only a small restriction on the device at the output stage, thus enabling the drive circuit to be turned off by means of a bipolar transistor. Fig. 1 is an equivalent circuit diagram for a shorting accident that occurs in a power converting apparatus using a voltage-driven semiconductor device; Fig. 2 is a timing chart showing the voltage and current waveforms generated from the semiconductor device; Fig. 3 is a circuit diagram showing a prior art drive circuits; Fig. 4 is a graph showing a short-circuit current vs the gate-emitter voltage of the semiconductor device; Fig. 5 is a capacitive equivalent circuit diagram of IGBT; Fig. 6 is an equivalent circuit diagram for the switching process; Fig. 7 a graph showing the voltage waveform generated when shorting occurs; Fig. 8 is a diagram showing the state of a shorted semiconductor device; Fig. 9 is a circuit diagram showing a first embodiment of the circuit of the present invention for driving a voltage-driven semiconductor device; Fig. 10 is a circuit diagram showing a second embodiment of the present invention; and Fig. 11 is a circuit diagram showing a third embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Fig. 9 is a circuit diagram showing a first embodiment of the circuit for driving a voltage-driven semiconductor device according to the present invention. In Fig. 9, the components which are the same as those shown in Fig. 3 (prior art) are identified by like numerals. As in the prior art, the section for driving IGBT 4 which serves as the main switching element is composed of signal insulating photocoupler 5, a pair of complementary transistors 9 and 10 which are connected to photocoupler 5 via transistor 8, ON gate voltage supply source 6 connected in series to transistor 9, OFF gate voltage supply source 7 connected in series to transistor 10, and resistor 11. In accordance with the present invention, the overcurrent sensing section in the prior art circuit which is composed of diode 15, zener diode 13, resistor 17 and transistor 14, which monitors the voltage at the collector terminal of IGBT 4, and which produces a detection signal if said voltage exceeds a predetermined level is connected to a voltage limiting circuit in the form of a variable power source connected to the bases of transistors 9 and 10 at the output stage of the drive section and which is composed of resistor 18 and a capacitor 20. Capacitor 20 is connected to the positive terminal of voltage source 6 via resistor 19 and the junction between capacitor 20 and resistor 19 is connected to the bases of transistors 9 and 10 at the output stage via a diode 21, the anode of which is directed toward transistors 9 and 10. The base of transistor 8 is connected to the base of transistor 23, the collector of which is connected both to the junction between zener diode 13 and diode 15 in the overcurrent sensing section and to the positive terminal of voltage source 6 via resistor 22, with the emitter of transistor 14 being connected to the negative terminal of voltage source 7, thereby forming a circuit that senses that IGBT 4 is in the ON period and which transmits this information to the overcurrent detecting section. The operation of the circuit shown in Fig. 9 will proceed as follows. Capacitor 20 is first charged from voltage sources 6 and 7 via resistor 19 until the voltage across capacitor 20 becomes equal to V 1 + V 2 . As shown, diode 21 is connected between the positive terminal of capacitor 20 and the bases of transistors 9 and 10 in such a way that the anode is directed toward the base terminals of the transistors, so that substantially no effects will be exerted on the normal operation of the drive circuit. As in the prior art, transistor 14 conducts when an overcurrent is sensed and as a result, the charge in capacitor 20 is removed via resistor 18. Then, the differential voltage between V 2 and the voltage across capacitor 20 is produced as an output via diode 21 and transistor 9. If resistors 12, 18 and 19 have respective resistances R 1 , R 2 and R 3 , V GE can be held at a sufficiently low level to turn IGBT 4 off by selecting these values of resistance in such a way as to satisfy the condition R 1 , R 3 > R 2 . Transistor 23 informs the overcurrent sensing section of the fact that IGBT 4 is in the ON period. It should be noted here that resistor 18 may be replaced by a constant current diode. In spite of the advantages described above, the drive circuit shown in Fig. 9 has the following problem in actual applications. When the overcurrent sensing section detects an overcurrent, transistor 14 conducts and the gate-emitter voltage of IGBT 4 decreases. However, if an OFF signal is received on this occasion, the circuit will perform the normal OFF operation. As a result, the short-circuit current will be cut off before it is adequately reduced, and the rate of decrease of current (-di/dt) will increase during the interruption of the overcurrent. This may produce an excessive voltage that is exerted on the device. The second embodiment shown in Fig. 10 is designed to have a capability of coping with the problem described above. To this end, the collector terminal of signal insulating photocoupler 5 is connected to transistor 14 via a diode 24. The circuit shown in Fig. 10 is similar to the circuit shown in Fig. 9 in that transistor 14 conducts when the overcurrent detecting section senses an overcurrent fault. When an OFF signal is received on this occasion, photocoupler 5 turns off. Therefore, if parts are selected in such a way that the base-emitter voltage V BE of transistor 8 or 23, the collector-emitter voltage V CE of transistor 14 and the forward voltage V F of diode 24 satisfy the relationship V B V CE +V F , the current supplied from the voltage sources 6 and 7 via resistor 25 will not flow to the bases of transistors 8 and 23 but flow into transistor 14 via diode 24. As a result, transistors 8 and 23 will not turn off and the circuit will perform the intended operation for protecting the semiconductor device from overcurrent. During normal OFF operation, transistor 14 will not conduct and there will be not adverse effects resulting from the flowing of current to the bases of transistors 8 and 23. Figs. 11 shows the third embodiment of the present invention. In the first and second embodiments described above, the pair of complementary transistors 9 and 10 at the output stage of the drive section consist of bipolar transistors. In the third embodiment shown in Fig. 11, transistor 9 for turning on the semiconductor device is replaced by FET 26. As in the first and second embodiments, transistor 10 for turning off the semiconductor device is a bipolar transistor, but in order to turn FET 26 on and off, two additional transistors 27 and 28 are inserted into the circuit shown in Fig. 11, together with diode 29, and resistors 30, 31, 32 and 33. Resistor 30 is inserted at the drain of FET 26 and resistor 31 is inserted at the collector of transistor 10. The base of transistor 28 is connected to photocoupler 5 and the base of transistor 27 is connected to the collector of transistor 14 via diode 29. Resistor 32 is inserted at the collector of transistor 28 and resistor 33 is inserted at the collector of transistor 27. The drive circuit shown in Fig. 11 is turned on and off in the following manner. When a current flows to the primary side of photocoupler 5, it turns on and transistor 28 turns off. When transistor 28 turns off, transistor 27 turns on and the gate-source of FET 26 is forward biased to turn it on. When FET 26 turns on, forward bias supply source 6 applies a forward bias between the gate and emitter of IGBT 4 via resistor 11, thereby turning IGBT 4 on. As in the prior art, transistor 10 turns off when photocoupler 5 turns on. IGBT 4 is turned off by reversing the operation described above for turning it on. When the current flowing to the primary side of photocoupler 5 is cut off, it turns off. When photocoupler 5 turns off, transistor 28 turns on. When transistor 28 turns on, transistor 27 turns off, whereupon FET 26 turns off. As in the fourth embodiment, transistor 10 turns on when photocoupler 5 turns off, and reverse bias supply source 7 applied a reverse bias to IGBT 4 via resistor 11, thereby turning IGBT 4 off. The circuit shown in Fig. 11 will operate in the following way to protect the semiconductor device from overcurrent. When an overcurrent fault is sensed by the same method as described in connection with the first embodiment, transistor 14 will turn on. If parts are selected in such a way as to satisfy the condition: (where V BE is the base-emitter voltage of transistor 27; V CE is the collector-emitter voltage of transistor 14; V F is the forward voltage applied to diode 29), the base current of transistor 27 supplied from the power source via resistor 32 will not flow into transistor 27 but flow into transistor 14 via diode 29. As a result, transistor 27 turns off and so does FET 26. Subsequently, transistor 10 turns on and the circuit performs the intended protecting operation. In the third embodiment, resistors 30 and 31 are included in order to suppress the short-circuit current which will flow on account of the difference between the time when FET 26 turns on and the time when transistor 10 turns off.

Claims: A drive circuit for use with a voltage-driven semiconductor device (4) comprising a drive section having as constituent elements at least a signal-insulating photocoupler (5) and a pair of complementary output transistors (9, 10); and a protecting section (13,14,15,17) for protecting said voltage-driven semiconductor device (4) from overcurrent that develops when a short circuit accident occurs in said semiconductor device (4) being driven; wherein said protecting section is composed of detection means (13,14,15,17) that monitors a voltage at the input side main terminal of said voltage-driven semiconductor device (4) in the presence of a drive signal and which produces a detection signal if said voltage exceeds a predetermined level, and a variable voltage source (18,20) that gradually lowers the voltage with time while said detection means (13,14,15,17) is operating, with a first diode (21) being connected between said variable voltage source (18,20) and the base terminal of each of said complementary output transistors (9,10) and having its anode directed to said base terminals, the complementary ouptut transistors (9,10) of said drive section being disposed between said protecting section (13-15,17) and said semiconductor device (4) characterized by a circuit that senses the "ON" condition of the semiconductor device (4), comprising a first transistor (23), the base of which is connected to the output of said photocoupler (5) and the collector of which is connected to an input of said protecting section (13,14,15,17) and to the positive terminal of a fixed voltage source (6), and a second transistor (14), the emitter of which is connected to the negative terminal of a fixed voltage source (7) and which conducts when said detection means (13,14,15,17) senses that the voltage at the input side main terminal of said semiconductor device (4) has exceeded a predetermined level in the presence of a drive signal and the collector terminal of which is connected to the collector terminal of said photocoupler (5) via a second diode (24) the forward direction of which is toward said second transistor (14), wherein the positive terminal of a capacitor (20) as a component of said variable voltage source (18,20) in said protecting section is connected to the base terminals of said complementary output transistors (9,10) via said first diode (21). A drive circuit for use with a voltage-driven semiconductor device (4) comprising a drive section having as constituent elements at least a signal-insulating photocoupler (5) and a pair of output transistors (26,10); and a protecting section (13,14,15,17) for protecting said voltage-driven semiconductor device (4) from overcurrent that develops when a short circuit accident occurs in said semi-conductor device (4) being driven; wherein said protecting section is composed of detection means (13,14,15,17) that monitors a voltage at the input side main terminal of said voltage-driven semiconductor device (4) in the presence of a drive signal and which produces a detection signal if said voltage exceeds a predetermined level, and a variable voltage source (18,20) that gradually lowers the voltage with time while said detection means (13,14,15,17) is operating, with a diode (21) being connected between said variable voltage source (18,20) and the base terminal of one (10) of said output transistors (26,10) and having its anode directed to said base terminal, the output transistors (26,10) of said drive section being disposed between said semi-conductor device (4) and said protecting section (13-15,17) characterized by a circuit that senses the "ON" condition of the semiconductor device (4), comprising a first transistor (23), the base of which is connected to the output of said photocoupler (5) and the collector of which is connected to an input of said protecting section (13,14,15,17) and to the positive terminal of a fixed voltage source (6), and a second transistor (14), the emitter of which is connected to the negative terminal of a fixed voltage source (7) and which conducts when said detection means (13,14,15,17) senses that the voltage at the input side main terminal of said semiconductor device (4) has exceeded a predetermined level in the presence of a drive signal and the collector terminal of which is connected to the collector terminal of a third transistor (28) via a second diode (29) the forward direction of which is toward said second transistor (14), the base of said third transistor (28) being connected to the collector terminal of said photocoupler (5) and the collector of said third transistor (28) being also connected to the base of a fourth transistor (27), the emitter terminals of said third and fourth transistors (28,27) being connected to the negative terminal of a fixed voltage source (7), wherein the output transistors (26,10) in said drive section consist of a FET (26) as a transistor for turning on said semiconductor device (4) and a bipolar transistor (10) as a transistor for turning it off, the base terminal of the latter being connected via said first diode (21) to a positive terminal of a capacitor (20) as a component of said variable voltage source (18,20) in said protecting section, and the gate terminal of said FET (26) being connected to the collector terminal of said fourth transistor (27).

Inventors: MIKI HIROSHI, MIYASAKA TADASHI, NINOMIYA HIDEKI, SASAGWA KIYOAKI, MIKI, HIROSHI, MIYASAKA, TADASHI, NINOMIYA, HIDEKI, SASAGWA, KIYOAKI, MIKI, HIROSHI C/O FUJI ELECTRIC CO., LTD., MIYASAKA, TADASHI C/O FUJI ELECTRIC CO., LTD., NINOMIYA, HIDEKI C/O FUJI ELECTRIC CO., LTD., SASAGWA, KIYOAKI C/O FUJI ELECTRIC CO., LTD.
Applicants: FUJI ELECTRIC CO LTD, FUJI ELECTRIC CO., LTD.
Application year: 1989
Main classification: H03K17
IPC codes: H03K17