Patent ID: 8004808

Claim:
A control apparatus comprising: a converter converting output of an AC power source to a DC current; a current-limiting circuit having a relay and a current-limiting resistor, the relay and the current-limiting resistor being disposed in front of a rectification circuit inside the converter; voltage detection detector detecting voltage between terminals of an electrolytic capacitor disposed in a smoothing circuit inside the converter; and microcomputers being configured to control on-off switching of the relay on the basis of the voltage between the terminals of the electrolytic capacitor that is detected by the voltage detector, the microcomputers switching on the relay in a time period that lasts until a prescribed charging time elapses, and gradually charge the electrolytic capacitor ( 83 ) via the current-limiting resistor, and the microcomputers switching on the relay and thereafter performing a first voltage detection control to detect the voltage between the terminals of the electrolytic capacitor when a first time period, which is shorter than the charging time, has elapsed.