Cost-Effective Inverters Set to Bring About Next Generation Low Power Motor Drives

Improvements to the energy efficiency levels of inverter motor drives are making them increasingly attractive in applications where the power budget needs to be reined in - so that more stringent environmental guidelines can be adhered to. These applications include small HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) systems, light industrial drives and certain domestic appliances. The price tags normally associated with the inverter drives for these sort of tasks can be fairly high however, plus the overall size of the solution can be substantial. These characteristics are proving very restrictive in what can be highly competitive, low margin business areas, where board real estate is at a premium. The problems stem from the fact that conventional methodologies for addressing key functions like optical isolation, over-current protection and fault feedback all contribute to ramping up the costs involved.