Patent ID: 7960861

Claim:
A circuit arrangement for a redundant current supply of a load connected downstream, the circuit arrangement comprising: at least one first current path comprising a first switching element at which a first voltage is present on an input side; at least one second current path comprising a second switching element at which a second voltage is present on an input side; at least one first control device, which is connected to the first current path and serves for controlling the first switching element; at least one second control device, which is connected to the second current path and serves for controlling the second switching element; and a common output terminal of the first and second current paths, at which a load supply voltage is output; wherein: in a normal operating state, the first control device holds the first switching element in a conducting state and the second control device holds the second switching element in a conducting state; and in an abnormal operating state, depending on electrical properties of the first current path or of the second current path, a respective control device which is situated in the current path having poorer electrical properties switches its respective switching element in said current path into a blocking state; wherein the first and the second control devices, in each case: (a) are constructed from identical and identically interconnected elements; (b) are arranged in parallel with the respective one of the first and the second switching elements; (c) have a first input connected to a control unit for putting and holding the respective one of the first and second switching elements into/in an on state by way of a switching signal from the control unit; (d) have a second input connected to a current terminal of the respective one of the first and the second switching elements, said current terminal being different from the respective first and second current paths comprising the respective first and second switching elements and supplying current from an internal current source of the switching element to the control device, for detecting a current generated by the respective one of the first and second switching elements; (e) have a first output for controlling the switching state of the respective one of the first and second switching elements, depending on the current detected at the second input; and (f) have a second output for the feedback of the switching state of the respective one of the first and second switching elements to the control unit and detection of the switching state by way of the control unit.