Page 41 - PEN eBook October 2025
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DESIGN                                                                                                   DESIGN

 considerations:                                               The luminous intensity of LEDs will degrade over
                    R , R 2                  1 MΩ             time. According to service life predictions by major
                     1
 ▶  ADC input voltage consideration: The voltage              optocoupler suppliers, after 1,000 hours of operation,
 across R  must always remain below the   R , R 4  6 MΩ       the threshold current will increase by 10%; after
                     3
 5
 maximum input voltage of the ADC, ideally close              11 years, the threshold current may rise by a factor
 to its full-scale range to ensure high output   R 5  12 kΩ   of over 5. If the design strictly follows the threshold
 accuracy of the ADC. Therefore,                              current specified in the datasheet, insufficient optical
 R  ÷ (R  + R ) × V BUS  should be near the ADC’s   Table 2: Recommended resistor values for 800-V systems  energy received by the photodiode will lead to
 4
 5
 5
 maximum input voltage, determining the ratio                 bit-error failures. The only solution is to increase the
 between R  and R .  Relay selection                          input current to compensate for LED aging. However,
 4
 5
           When the insulation resistance degrades below      this introduces another challenge: Higher current
 ▶  ADC internal impedance consideration: Because   500 × V BUS , the system must detect this condition and   means elevated temperatures, which degrade both
 R  serves as the ADC sampling input, its   trigger an alarm. Taking a system with   the LED’s electro-optical conversion efficiency and
 5
 resistance should be significantly lower than the   V BUS  = 800 V as an example, the insulation resistance   the photodiode’s optical-to-electrical conversion
 internal impedance of the ADC   must be greater than 400 kΩ per industry standards. If   performance. Additionally, due to thermal stress and
 Figure 1: Recommended insulation monitoring circuit  (e.g., R  < R ADC  ÷ 10) to ensure negligible effects   the leakage current through K  and K  is less than 1 μA,   aging, PhotoMOS devices are typically limited to a
                                          2
                                    1
 5
 from the ADC’s internal impedance.  their equivalent impedance exceeds 800 MΩ, far higher   maximum operating temperature of 85°C. These factors
 When K  is open and K  is open, the voltage across R    than the insulation resistances R  and R , introducing   pose significant reliability challenges for optocoupler
 2
                                             n
 1
 5
                                       p
 is V , then V  = V  × (R  + R ) ÷ R , V  = V BUS  − V , and   ▶  Impact on insulation resistance: During switching   a measurement error of less than 0.05%. If the leakage   products.
 p0
 5
 n0
 5
 4
 0
 0
 n0
 Equation (1) is derived:  of K  and K , R  and R  are respectively connected   current increases to 10 μA, the equivalent impedance
 1
 1
 2
 2
 in parallel with R  and R . If R  and R  are too   drops to 400 MΩ, causing a measurement error of   Replacing PhotoMOS relays (similar to optocouplers)
 2
 1
 n
 p
 small, the measured insulation resistance values   approximately 0.5%.  with SSRs that adopt capacitive or magnetic isolation
 (R  // R  and R  // R ) may drop significantly.              mechanism can significantly improve system reliability.
 1
 2
 n
 p
           Therefore, higher leakage currents introduce larger   The NSI7258 from Novosense is a high-reliability
 ▶  Detection accuracy consideration: As can be   measurement errors. Using Novosense SSR products   isolation device that meets the electromagnetic
 When K  is closed and K  is open, the voltage across   concluded from Equation (4), when R  // R    with small leakage current (<1 μA) to enable turn-on   interference (EMI) CISPR25 Class 5 standard.
 2
 3
 1
 p
 R  is V , then V  = V  × (R  + R ) ÷ R , V  = V BUS  − V , and   degrades below the critical threshold   and turn-off functions of K  and K  will help enhance   Combining robust technological innovation with
 1
 1
 4
                                 1
 n1
 5
 p1
 5
 n1
 5
                                       2
 Equation (2) is derived:  500 × V BUS , the MCU should detect this   measurement accuracy and avoid false alarms.  automotive quality management systems, the NSI7258
 degradation and trigger an alarm if                          offers a high-performance, high-reliability solution for
  × R  < 500 × V BUS . To compensate for   Impact of relay reliability on system safety  insulation monitoring systems.
 2
 ADC measurement accuracy errors, R  should   Traditional mechanical relays suffer from limited
 2
 be relatively smaller to allow sufficient voltage   switching cycles. Once the maximum number of
 differences between V  and V .  switching cycles is reached, the insulation monitoring
 n2
 p2
 From Equations (1) and (2), we derive Equation (3):  function fails, posing significant personal safety risks.
 ▶  Settle time consideration: In real-world   As a result, mechanical relays have largely been made
 applications, some customers connect a   obsolete in this application.
 Y-capacitor between chassis ground and battery
 ground (parallel to R ), introducing RC charge/  Currently, traditional PhotoMOS relays are widely
 n
 When K  is open and K  is closed, the voltage across   discharge behaviors. Smaller R  and R  reduce the   used. In a PhotoMOS relay, when current flows through
 2
 2
 1
 1
 R  is V , then V  = V  × (R  + R ) ÷ R  and V  = V BUS  − V ,   settle time. However, excessively small values can   the LED on the control side, the photodiode receives
 n2
 2
 4
 n2
 p2
 2
 5
 5
 5
 and Equation (4) is derived:  cause too small equivalent parallel impedances   the emitted light and generates current via the
 −R  // R  // R  and R  // (R  + R ) // R , potentially   photoelectric effect, thereby controlling the conduction
 3
 p
 2
 n
 1
 4
 5
 compromising personnel safety.  of the high-side MOSFET.
 Based on the analysis above, Tables 1 and 2 show the
 From Equations (1) and (4), we derive Equation (5):  recommendations for insulation monitoring circuits.
 R , R 2  500 kΩ
 1
 Equations (3) and (5) are the results for insulation
 resistance calculation.  R , R  3 MΩ
 3  4
 COMPONENT SELECTION  R  12 kΩ
 In a typical circuit design, it is common to set   5
 R  = R  < R  = R , with the following design   Table 1: Recommended resistor values for 400-V systems  Figure 2: PhotoMOS operating principle  Figure 3: NSI7258 EMI test results
 4
 3
 1
 2
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