Patent Publication Number: US-2015085417-A1

Title: Electrical energy saving system

Description:
RELATED APPLICATION 
     The current patent application is a continuation patent application which claims priority benefit, with regard to all common subject matter, of earlier-filed U.S. patent application titled “ELECTRICAL ENERGY SAVING SYSTEM”, Ser. No. 12/579,030, filed Oct. 14, 2009. The identified earlier-filed application is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety into the present application. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     Embodiments of the present invention relate to methods and systems for supplying alternating current (AC) electric power to a load. More particularly, embodiments of the present invention relate to methods and systems that condition the power supplied to a load from an AC electric power supply in order to save electrical energy. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     AC electric power supplied from a utility company may include transient spikes or surges in the line voltage, wherein the voltage level is greater than it should be, as a result of lightning or electrical storm activity or various other phenomena. In addition, the line voltage may experience droops or sags, wherein the voltage level is less than it should be, as a result of increased loading of the power supply. These variations in the level of the voltage supplied to a load may lead to additional wear on devices connected to the power supply and increased electrical energy consumed in the form of additional heat produced in the electrical system wiring and additional start-up current load. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Embodiments of the present invention solve the above-mentioned problems and provide a distinct advance in the art of supplying alternating current (AC) electric power to a load. More particularly, embodiments of the invention provide methods and systems that condition the power supplied to a load from an AC electric power supply in order to save electrical energy. 
     One embodiment of the invention is a system for conditioning the three phase alternating current electric power, including a first phase, a second phase, a third phase, and a neutral line, supplied to a load. The system broadly comprises a plurality of first surge arresters, a plurality of second surge arresters, a plurality of third surge arresters, a three-phase surge suppressor, and a plurality of capacitors. The first surge arresters may be coupled to the first phase, the second phase, and the neutral line and may minimize the amount by which the voltage between two phases and the neutral line exceeds a rated value. The second surge arresters may be coupled to the second phase, the third phase, and the neutral line and may minimize the amount by which the voltage between two phases and the neutral line exceeds the rated value. The third surge arresters may be coupled to the first phase, the third phase, and the neutral line and may minimize the amount by which the voltage between two phases and the neutral line exceeds the rated value. The three phase surge suppressor may be coupled to the first phase, the second phase, the third phase, and the neutral line and may minimize the amount by which the voltage between the three phases and the neutral line exceeds the rated value. The capacitors may include a first capacitor coupled to the first phase and the second phase, a second capacitor coupled to the second phase and the third phase, and a third capacitor coupled to the first phase and the third phase, and may minimize the amount by which the voltage between two phases falls below the rated value. 
     Another embodiment of the invention is a system for conditioning a single phase alternating current electric power, including a first phase, a second phase, and a neutral line, supplied to a load. The system broadly comprises a plurality of first surge arresters, a single phase surge suppressor, and a capacitor. The first surge arresters may be coupled to the first phase, the second phase, and the neutral line and configured to minimize the amount by which the voltage between the first phase and the second phase exceeds a rated value by presenting a low impedance to the neutral line when the voltage between the first phase and the second phase exceeds the rated value. The single phase surge suppressor may be coupled to the first phase, the second phase, and the neutral line and configured to minimize the amount by which the voltage between the two phases and the neutral line exceeds a rated value by presenting the low impedance to the neutral line when either the first phase or the second phase exceeds the rated value. The capacitor may be coupled to the first phase and the second phase and configured to minimize the amount by which the voltage between the first phase and the second phase falls below the rated value. 
     This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the detailed description. This summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter. 
     Other aspects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of the embodiments and the accompanying drawing figures. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES 
       Embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the attached drawing figures, wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a system constructed in accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention for conditioning a three phase alternating current electric power supplied to a load; 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of a system constructed in accordance with another embodiment of the invention for conditioning a single phase alternating current electric power supplied to a load; and 
         FIG. 3  is a graph of four plots of measured parameters of the  FIG. 2  embodiment of the system implemented at a residence. 
     
    
    
     The drawing figures do not limit the present invention to the specific embodiments disclosed and described herein. The drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of the invention. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
     The following detailed description of the invention references the accompanying drawings that illustrate specific embodiments in which the invention can be practiced. The embodiments are intended to describe aspects of the invention in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention. Other embodiments can be utilized and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense. The scope of the present invention is defined only by the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. 
     A system  10  constructed in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention for conditioning the power supplied to a load  12  from an alternating current (AC) electric power supply  14  is shown in  FIG. 1 . The electric power supply  14 , in various embodiments, may be a three-phase electric power source and may represent the electric power supplied from a utility company, a generator, or similar source. The electric power supply  14  may present a first phase  16 , a second phase  18 , a third phase  20 , and a neutral line  22 , wherein the angular difference of the voltage between any two phases is 120 degrees, as known to those skilled in the art. The load  12  may be any commonly implemented load that draws electric power such as motors, compressors, turbines, lighting, heating, combinations thereof, or other industrial, commercial, or residential loads. The load  12  may be balanced between the first phase  16 , the second phase  18 , and the third phase  20 , or the load  12  may be unbalanced. 
     The system  10  may broadly comprise a first set of surge arresters  24 , a second set of surge arresters  26 , a third set of surge arresters  28 , a three-phase surge suppressor  30 , and a plurality of capacitors  32 . The system  10  is generally positioned between the electric power supply  14  and the load  12 , and may be utilized with existing electric power supply  14  structures in an industrial, commercial, or residential setting. Or, the system  10  may be integrated into a new residence or other building. In embodiments for usage with a new electric power supply  14  structure, the components of the system  10  may be incorporated in an electric power distribution control panel. In other embodiments for usage with an existing residence or building, the system  10  may be enclosed in a housing or insulated box, typically in close proximity to the electric power delivery point, such as a wiring panel, for a facility, building, or residence. The housing may be designed to output four wires that couple with each of the phases  16 ,  18 ,  20  and the neutral line  22  of the existing electric power wiring. 
     In one embodiment, the first set surge arresters  24  may include two surge arresters  24   a,    24   b,  as depicted in  FIG. 1 . The surge arresters  24   a,    24   b  may include surge suppressors or lightning arresters or other devices that operate on the general principle of presenting an open circuit or high impedance between two ports when the voltage between the two ports is less than or equal to a given value and presenting a short circuit or low impedance between the two ports when the voltage therebetween exceeds the given value. In various embodiments, one of the ports may be coupled to one of the phases  16 ,  18 ,  20  and the other port may be coupled to the neutral line. The surge arresters  24   a,    24   b  may be generally passive elements and may include such components as metal-oxide varistors or the like. 
     In various embodiments, the surge arrester  24   a  may present a single phase, two-pole, three-wire configuration, and may include a first port  36   a,  a second port  36   b,  and a ground port  36   c.  An example of the surge arrester  24   a  may include the AG2401C from Intermatic of Spring Grove, Ill. The two-pole surge arrester  24   a  may monitor the voltage between two set of ports independently—between the first port  36   a  and the ground port  36   c,  and between the second port  36   b  and the ground port  36   c . Thus, the surge arrester  24   a  may present a low impedance between the first port  36   a  and the ground port  36   c  if the voltage therebetween exceeds a rated value. Likewise, the surge arrester  24   a  may present a low impedance between the second port  36   b  and the ground port  36   c  if the voltage therebetween exceeds a rated value. The surge arrester  24   a  may have an additional mode of operation, wherein the surge arrester  24   a  presents a low impedance from either or both of the first port  36   a  and the second port  36   b  to the ground port  36   c  when the voltage between the first port  36   a  and the second port  36   b  exceeds a rated value. The surge arrester  24   b  may be substantially similar to the surge arrester  24   a  and may include a first port  36   d,  a second port  36   e,  and a ground port  36   f.    
     The surge arrester  24   a  may further include an electric current rating which corresponds to the rated amount of current that can be handled by the surge arrester  24   a.  Thus, the number of surge arresters  24   a,    24   b,  etc. included in the plurality of first surge arresters  24  is related to the total amount of current the load  12  is expected to draw divided by the current rating of each surge arrester  24   a,    24   b.  For example, if the total current drawn by the load  12  is 200 amperes (A) and each surge arrester  24   a,    24   b  is rated for 40 A, then there may be 200A/40A=5 surge arresters  24   a,    24   b,  etc. included in the plurality of first surge arresters  24 . In some embodiments, it may be possible to include surge arresters  24   a,    24   b  of different current ratings as long as the sum of the current ratings for all the surge arresters  24   a,    24   b,  etc. is equal to or greater than the total current drawn by the load  12 . 
     The surge arrester  24   a  may be oriented in the system  10  such that the first port  36   a  is coupled to the first phase  16 , the second port  36   b  is coupled to the second phase  18 , and the ground port  36   c  is coupled to the neutral line  22 . The surge arrester  24   b  may be oriented in the system  10  such that the first port  36   d  is coupled to the first phase  16 , the second port  36   e  is coupled to the second phase  18 , and the ground port  36   f  is coupled to the neutral line  22 . 
     The second set of surge arresters  26  may also include two surge arresters  26   a,    26   b,  which may function substantially the same way as the surge arresters  24   a ,  24   b  described above. The surge arrester  26   a  may include a first port  38   a,  a second port  38   b,  and a ground port  38   c.  The surge arrester  26   b  may include a first port  38   d,  a second port  38   e,  and a ground port  38   f.  The surge arrester  26   a  may be oriented in the system  10  such that the first port  38   a  is coupled to the second phase  18 , the second port  38   b  is coupled to the third phase  20 , and the ground port  38   c  is coupled to the neutral line  22 . The surge arrester  26   b  may be oriented in the system  10  such that the first port  38   d  is coupled to the second phase  18 , the second port  38   e  is coupled to the third phase  20 , and the ground port  38   f  is coupled to the neutral line  22 . 
     The third set of surge arresters  28  may also include two surge arresters  28   a,    28   b,  which may function substantially the same way as the surge arresters  24   a ,  24   b  described above. The surge arrester  28   a  may include a first port  40   a,  a second port  40   b,  and a ground port  40   c.  The surge arrester  28   b  may include a first port  40   d,  a second port  40   e,  and a ground port  40   f.  The surge arrester  28   a  may be oriented in the system  10  such that the first port  40   a  is coupled to the second phase  18 , the second port  40   b  is coupled to the third phase  20 , and the ground port  40   c  is coupled to the neutral line  22 . The surge arrester  28   b  may be oriented in the system  10  such that the first port  40   d  is coupled to the second phase  18 , the second port  40   e  is coupled to the third phase  20 , and the ground port  40   f  is coupled to the neutral line  22 . 
     The three-phase surge suppressor  30  may include surge suppressors, surge protectors, surge arresters, combinations thereof, and the like. The three-phase surge suppressor  30  may be a generally passive element and may include such components as metal-oxide varistors or the like. The three-phase surge suppressor  30  may include a first port  42 , a second port  44 , a third port  46 , and a ground port  48 . An example of the three-phase surge suppressor  30  includes the  120  Volt AC (VAC) transient voltage surge suppressor from Innovative Technology of Moon Township, Pa. In a similar fashion to the surge arrester  34  discussed above, the three-phase surge suppressor  30  may present a low impedance between the first port  42  and the ground port  48  if the voltage therebetween exceeds a rated value. Likewise, the three-phase surge suppressor  30  may present a low impedance between the second port  44  and the ground port  48  if the voltage therebetween exceeds a rated value, and may present a low impedance between the third port  46  and the ground port  48  if the voltage therebetween exceeds a rated value. The three-phase surge suppressor  30  may be oriented in the system  10  such that the first port  42  is coupled to the first phase  16 , the second port  44  is coupled to the second phase  18 , the third port  46  is coupled to the third phase  20 , and the ground port  48  is coupled to the neutral line  22 . 
     The plurality of capacitors  32  generally maintains the voltage level of any of the first phase  16 , the second phase  18 , or the third phase  20  with respect to one another whenever the load  12  changes, such as whenever a load is added as may occur during the starting of an electric motor. The plurality of capacitors  32  may also serve to correct the power factor by reducing the reactive power consumed by highly inductive loads such as electric motors. The plurality of capacitors  32  may include many types of capacitors such as electrolytic or polypropylene dielectric capacitors. 
     The plurality of capacitors  32  may include at least a first capacitor  50 , a second capacitor  52 , and a third capacitor  54 . In various embodiments, the three capacitors may be substantially similar. Further, the first capacitor  50 , the second capacitor  52 , and the third capacitor  54  may include one or more physical capacitors coupled in parallel. Examples of the first capacitor  50 , the second capacitor  52 , and the third capacitor  54  may include the HID 4446-P 280 VAC, 28 microfarad capacitor from Aerovox Corporation of New Bedford, Mass. 
     First capacitor  50  may include a first terminal  56   a  coupled to the first phase  16  and a second terminal  56   b  coupled to the second phase  18 . Second capacitor  52  may include a first terminal  58   a  coupled to the second phase  18  and a second terminal  58   b  coupled to the third phase  20 . Third capacitor  54  may include a first terminal  60   a  coupled to the third phase  20  and a second terminal  60   b  coupled to the first phase  16 . 
     A second embodiment of the system  100  that may be utilized with a single phase electric power supply  102  is shown in  FIG. 2 . The electric power supply  102  may be similar to that which is delivered to a residence or small business wherein  120  VAC is supplied to the load  104 . The electric power supply may include a first phase  106 , a second phase  108 , and a neutral line  110 . Typical loads  104  may include common household or business items such as small appliances, lighting, entertainment devices, computing devices, combinations thereof, and the like. Similar to system  10  described above, system  100  may be enclosed in a housing or insulated box, typically in close proximity to the electric power delivery point for the house or business. Alternatively, the components of the system  100  may be incorporated in an electric power distribution control panel. The system  100  may broadly comprise a first set of surge arresters  112 , a single-phase surge suppressor  114 , and a plurality of capacitors  116 . 
     The first set of surge arresters  112  may perform a substantially similar function as the first surge arresters  24  described above, wherein the voltage between the first phase  106  and the second phase  108  is monitored, or the voltage between either phase  106 ,  108  and the neutral line  110  is monitored. The first set of surge arresters  112  may include two surge arresters  112   a,    112   b.  The surge arresters  112   a ,  112   b  may provide a low impedance path to the neutral line  110  if the voltage between the first phase  106  and the second phase  108  exceeds a rated value, or if the voltage between either phase  106 ,  108  and the neutral line  110  exceeds a rated value. 
     Like the surge arresters  24   a,    24   b  discussed above, the surge arresters  112   a,    112   b  may have an electric current rating which may be used to determine the number of surge arresters  112   a,    112   b,  etc. included in the first set of surge arresters  112 . For example, if the surge arresters  112   a,    112   b  has a current rating of 10 A and the total amount of current drawn by the load  104  is 50 A, then the first set of surge arresters  112  may include five surge arresters  112   a,    112   b,  etc. 
     The surge arrester  112   a  includes a first port  134   a  coupled to the first phase  106 , a second port  134   b  coupled to the second phase  108 , and a ground port  134   c  coupled to the neutral line  110 . The surge arrester  112   b  includes a first port  134   d  coupled to the first phase  106 , a second port  134   e  coupled to the second phase  108 , and a ground port  134   f  coupled to the neutral line  110 . 
     In various embodiments, the system  100  may further include a second set of surge arresters  118 , including surge arresters  118   a,    118   b,  that are substantially similar to the surge arresters  112 . The surge arrester  116   a  includes a first port  136   a  coupled to the second phase  108 , a second port  136   b  coupled to the first phase  106 , and a ground port  136   c  coupled to the neutral line  110 . The surge arrester  118   b  includes a first port  136   d  coupled to the second phase  108 , a second port  136   e  coupled to the first phase  106 , and a ground port  136   f  coupled to the neutral line  110 . 
     The single-phase surge suppressor  114  may include surge suppressors, surge protectors, surge arresters, combinations thereof, and the like. The single-phase surge suppressor  114  may be a generally passive element and may include such components as metal-oxide varistors or the like. The single-phase surge suppressor  114  may include a first port  120 , a second port  122 , and a ground port  124 . The single-phase surge suppressor  114  may provide a low impedance to the ground port  124  if the voltage between the first port  120  and the second port  122  exceeds a rated value, or if the voltage between either port  120 ,  122  and the ground port  124  exceeds a rated value. The single-phase surge suppressor  114  may be oriented in the system  100  such that the first port  120  is coupled to the first phase  106 , the second port  122  is coupled to the second phase  108 , and the ground port  124  is coupled to the neutral line  110 . 
     The plurality of capacitors  116  generally provides a substantially similar function to the plurality of capacitors  32  above, wherein the capacitors  126 ,  132  maintain the voltage level between the first phase  106  and the second phase  108  and may provide power factor correction of the electric power supply  102 . The plurality of capacitors  116  may include at least a first capacitor  126 , which, like the first capacitor  50 , includes a first terminal  128   a  and a second terminal  128   b.  The first terminal  128   a  may be coupled to the first phase  106 , and the second terminal  128   b  may be coupled to the second phase  108 . In various embodiments, the plurality of capacitors  116  may also include a second capacitor  132 , with a first terminal  130   a  coupled to the second phase  108  and a second terminal  130   b  coupled to the first phase  106 . 
     The applicant believes that the systems  10 ,  100 : elevate and stabilize voltage from the electric power supply  14 ,  102 ; reduce electric power supply  14 ,  102  line voltage drops when the demand from the load  12 ,  104  increases; balance the voltage between the phases  16 ,  18 ,  20 ,  106 ,  108 ; reduce reactive energy loss; reduce demand loads and spikes on an electric power grid to which the systems  10 ,  100  may be connected; reduce the total demand on the electric power grid to which the systems  10 ,  100  may be connected; balance line harmonics between the phases  16 ,  18 ,  20 ,  106 ,  108 ; reduce low voltage problems; reduce vibration, heating, and noise of components included in the load  12 ,  104 ; allow a greater number of users for a single trunk line; and reduce voltage spikes up to 50,000 Volts. 
     To illustrate the performance of the system  100 , applicant implemented the system  100  at a residence and measured various power parameters both with the system  100  operating and with the system  100  not operating. The results of the measurement are shown in  FIG. 3 . With the system  100  implemented between the electric power supply  102  and the load  104 , the real power, the apparent power, the reactive power, and the power factor were measured in the vicinity of the system  100  at regular intervals on a particular day. A first plot  300  shows the real power measured in kiloWatts (kW) vs. the time of day (in military time). A second plot  302  shows the apparent power measured in kiloVoltAmps (kVA) vs. time of day. A third plot  304  shows the reactive power measured in kiloVoltAmps Reactive (kVAR) vs. time of day. A fourth plot  306  shows the power factor (in a range from approximately zero to approximately one) vs. time of day. 
     As seen in  FIG. 3 , from the time of approximately 13:00 until approximately 14:30, the system  100  was in operation. The magnitudes of the real power and the apparent power reflected the activity of various loads  104 . The reactive power averaged approximately 0 kVAR and the power factor averaged approximately 1. At around 14:30, the system  100  was decoupled from the electric power supply  102  and the load  104 . The magnitudes of the real power and the apparent power increased. The magnitude of the reactive power increased in the negative direction, and the power factor averaged at a value less than 1. Thus, with the system  100  not implemented between the electric power supply  102  and the load  104 , the load  104  consumed greater real power, apparent power, and reactive power. Furthermore, the power factor reduced to less than 1. 
     Although the invention has been described with reference to the embodiments illustrated in the attached drawing figures, it is noted that equivalents may be employed and substitutions made herein without departing from the scope of the invention as recited in the claims.