Patent ID: 7819213

Claim:
A power output apparatus, comprising: first and second motor generators; first and second inverters connected to said first and second motor generators, respectively; a control device controlling operations of said first and second inverters to drive said first and second motor generators and to generate an AC voltage across neutral points of said first and second motor generators; an AC output cutoff circuit provided between an output line pair connected to the neutral points of said first and second motor generators and an output terminal for outputting said AC voltage to an AC load; and a leakage detecting device detecting presence/absence of leakage based on currents flowing through said output line pair in opposite directions from each other by a voltage difference generated between said neutral points when said AC load receives supply of said AC voltage from said neutral points via said output line pair, and generating a cutoff command upon detection of the leakage to cause said AC output cutoff circuit to cut off output of said AC voltage and to stop the operation of at least one of said first and second inverters, wherein: said leakage detecting device outputs said cutoff command to said AC output cutoff circuit and to said control device, said control device, upon receipt of said cutoff command from said leakage detecting device, stops one of said first and second inverters according to operational states of said first and second motor generators, said first motor generator is coupled to an internal combustion engine of a vehicle, said second motor generator is coupled to driving wheels of said vehicle, and said operational states include a first state where said second motor generator is driving said driving wheels, and a second state where said second motor generator is not driving said driving wheels and said first motor generator is in a regenerative operation.