Patent ID: 6999326

Claim:
A drive controller for a self-commutated converter having two half-bridges with converter valves, said drive controller comprising: two control circuits having each an input and an output, wherein the output of one control circuit is operatively connected to one of the half-bridges with its converter valves, and the output of the other control circuit is operatively connected to the other half-bridge with its converter valves; first switches connected between a voltage supply and the inputs of the control circuits for switchably connecting the inputs of the control circuits to an external voltage; second switches connected electrically in parallel with the first switches in one-to-one correspondence, said connected first and second switches being decoupled from each other by decoupling diodes and forming a set of decoupled switches; and control units providing control signals to the connected first and second switches so as to alternatingly switch the connected first and second switches on and off.