EEE3004 – Power Electronics and

Drives

Project Report

CASCADED BUCK CONVERTER

FOR LOW VOLTAGE AUXILLARY
DEVICES OF COMMERCIAL
ELECTRIC VEHICLES

Prepared By
16BEE1035 Harmeet Kapoor
16BEE1173 Uddesh Chakraborty
 CONTENTS Commented [V1]: Use this as template. Just key in the required
details. Finally, select the unwanted rows and delete them. The
Section No. Title Page No. section heading must be exactly similar to the ones used inside the
report.

List of Figures i
List of Tables ii
I Learning Objectives 1
II Expected Learning Outcomes 1
III Power Circuit Diagram 1
IV Equations 5
V Specification Table 8
VI Experimental Results 10
VII Conclusion 15
VIII References 16
 LIST OF FIGURES
Figure No. Figure Caption Page
No.
1 Power Circuit Diagram of a cascaded buck converter 2
2 Power Circuit Block Diagram in Simulink 3
3 Waveform of Output Voltage at each stage of Converter in 3
Simulink (Zoomed in)
4 Waveform of Output Voltage at each stage of Converter in 5
Simulink. (Zoomed out)
5 Waveform of Ripple Inductor Current at each stage of 5
Converter in Simulink
6 PCB layout of the Converter 10
7 Photo View of the PCB layout of Converter 11
8 1N5817(Schottky Diode) 12
9 1 mH Toroidal Inductor 12
10 IRF740BPBF MOSFET 13
11 LM55CM 555 timer 13
12 LM317T IC 14
13 IRF540NPBF 14
14 MUR460 Diode 15
15 47µF Capacitor 15

i|Page
 LIST OF TABLES Commented [V2]: Similar to List of Figures template. Use the
exact table caption as demonstrated.
Table No. Table Caption Page No.
1 Table 1. List of Components. 8
2 Table 2. Stage 1 Buck Converter 8
3 Table 3. Stage 2 Buck Converter 9
4 Table 4. 555 Timer 1 9
5 Table 5. 555 Timer 2. 9
6 Table 6. Voltage Regulator 9

ii | P a g e
 EEE3004 – Power Electronics and Drives
Project Report on Commented [M3]: Same as above

“CASCADED BUCK CONVERTER FOR LOW VOLTAGE

AUXILLARY DEVICES OF COMMERCIAL ELECTRIC VEHICLES”

I. Learning Objectives: Commented [M4]: Section Numbering and Heading. Follow as

given in this template. Use Line Spacing Options and provide 8 pt
Practical application of a classical buck converter in an electric spacing in “After” tab.

vehicle. It is used to power the low voltage systems and devices in the car from
the main high voltage supply itself.
Stepping down 400V to 24V, using cascade connection of multiple
buck converters. The discharging of the HV does not affect the output voltage
which remains constant at 24V by a closed loop control.

II. Expected Learning Outcomes: Commented [M5]: Similar to previous Section Numbering and
Heading. Follow this for all section headings.
Designing, simulating and fabricating a buck converter which has
been cascaded and hence is customized to aid auxiliary devices to draw low
voltage from a high voltage DC source.
Learning MATLAB Simulink, ORCAD Capture CIS and Proteus for
the designing and simulation of the schematic of the power circuit. Using Eagle,
ExpressPCB and EasyEDA to design the PCB layout for the same.
Hands-on experience of independent PCB fabrication.

III. Power Circuit Diagram:

Fig.1 shows the power circuit of two buck converters connected in

series. There are three auxiliary circuits involved together with the power circuit.
Two of them are pulse generators of two different frequencies. 50KHz and 1MHz
frequencies were required by the two MOSFETs according to the calculations.
The output obtained from the buck converter is then fed to a voltage regulator,
which is the third auxiliary circuit. A constant output voltage of 24V is then
obtained from here.

1
 Figure. 1. Power Circuit Diagram of a cascaded buck converter.

The input to the circuit is a battery pack with a maximum voltage of

400V DC. It is stepped down in two stages. The first buck converter steps down
to 175V and the second one to 49V. MOSFETs are used as a switch to control
the charging and discharging of the inductor. The MOSFETs are triggered by
pulse generating timer circuit. 555 timer is used in astable mode for this
purpose. Two separate 9V batteries are used to power them. The final output
from the converters, 49V is then fed to a voltage regulator LM317 to provide a
constant voltage of 24V irrespective of the discharging of the high voltage battery
pack.

2
 Figure. 2. Power Circuit Block Diagram in Simulink.

In Fig.2, a block diagram with scopes at every stage is used to verify

the proper output obtained after every step. We observe the output voltage and
the inductor ripple currents at the different stages of conversion.

Figure. 3. Waveform of Output Voltage at each stage of Converter in Simulink. (Zoomed in)

In Fig.3, the first window shows the DC voltage, 400V from the
battery pack which is given as the input to the converters. The second window
shows the output after the 1st stage of conversion, 174V which is then fed as the

3
input for the 2nd stage. The output of the second stage is 49V which is shown in
the third window.

Figure. 4. Waveform of Output Voltage at each stage of Converter in Simulink. (Zoomed out)

Fig. 4 shows the zoomed-out outputs for 1 second, and it can be observed
that the 1st output remains within the range of 174V to 174.7V and the 2nd

output remains within the range of 48.68V to 48.76V.

4
 Figure. 5. Waveform of Ripple Inductor Current at each stage of Converter in Simulink.

Fig.5 shows the inductor ripple currents of the inductors in the two stages
of the buck converter respectively. The ripple current is due to the charging and
discharging of the inductor. As the converter is in continuous conduction mode
(CCM), the inductor is never allowed to discharge completely. Thus the current
passing through it never reaches 0.

IV. Equations:
The standard mathematical expressions used in designing a buck
converter is given as following:

𝑣0
Duty Ratio, 𝐷 = (1)
𝑣𝑖𝑛

𝑣𝑖𝑛 𝐷(1−𝐷)
Inductance, 𝐿 = 𝑓𝛥𝑖𝑙
(2)

𝑣𝑖𝑛 𝐷(1−𝐷)
Capacitance, 𝐶 = 8𝐿𝛥𝑣0 𝑓2
(3)

The power conversion from 400V to 49V is done is two stages. The
calculations for the design elements, viz. inductor and capacitor are shown below
for each of the two stage. To proceed with calculating the various parameters, we
assume that the duty ratio for the first step is 0.4 while that for the second is
0.25 to give an output of 40V. Adjustments are made to all values according to
simulations to get suitable output.

We also need to design 2 555 timer circuits to control the 2 MOSFET gate
switches in the stages of the buck converter. Standard equations are as follows:

TON TON
Duty Ratio, D   ( TON - On time; TOFF - Off time; T - Time period)
T TON  TOFF
1
Time Period, T  ( f - frequency)
f
TON
Resistance, R1  ( C - Capacitance)
ln 2  C
T
Resistance, R2  OFF
ln 2  C

5
As the battery discharges, the input to the buck converter decreases and hence
the output from the converter also decreases. But the auxiliary devices will
require a constant voltage source. So, to obtain that constant output of 24V we
introduce a voltage regulator circuit, in this case, using the IC LM317T. Standard
equations are as follows:

𝑅2
Output Voltage, 𝑣0 = 1 ⋅ 25 (1 + )
𝑅1

(a) Stage 1 Buck Converter:

V 160
DutyRatio(D)  o   0.4 (1)
Vin 400
where D is the duty ratio of the switch.
We assume frequency to be 1 MHz, Inductor Ripple Current as 0.096 A
(approximately 5% of input current) and output voltage ripple as 0.8 V
(approximately 1% of output voltage). Therefore,
𝑣𝑖𝑛 𝐷(1−𝐷) 400  0.4  (1  0.4)
Inductance, 𝐿 =   1 mH (2)
𝑓𝛥𝑖𝑙 1106  0.096

400  0.4  (1  0.4)

=   15 pF
𝑣𝑖𝑛 𝐷(1−𝐷)
Capacitance, 𝐶 = (3)
8𝐿𝛥𝑣0 𝑓2 8 1103  0.8  (106 )2

(b) Stage 2 Buck Converter:

Vo 40
DutyRatio(D)    0.25 (1)
Vin 160
where D is the duty ratio of the switch.
We assume frequency to be 50 KHz, Inductor Ripple Current as 0.03 A
(approximately 5% of input current) and output voltage ripple as 1 V
(approximately 2.5% of output voltage). Therefore,
𝑣𝑖𝑛 𝐷(1−𝐷) 160  0.25  (1  0.25)
Inductance, 𝐿 =   1 mH (2)
𝑓𝛥𝑖𝑙 50 103  0.03

160  0.25  (1  0.25)

Capacitance, 𝐶 =
𝑣𝑖𝑛 𝐷(1−𝐷)
  1.5 µF (3)
8𝐿𝛥𝑣0 𝑓2 8 1103 1 (50 103 )2

6
(c) 555 timer 1:

f = 1 MHz
D = 0.4
C = 0.01 µF
1
T 
1
 1 µs
f 1 106
Therefore,
TON  0.4 s
TOFF  0.6 s
7
4 10
Resistance, R1 
TON   57.7
ln 2  C ln 2  0.01106
7
TOFF  6 10
Resistance, R2   86.6
ln 2  C ln 2  0.01106

(d) 555 timer 2:

f = 50kHz
D = 0.25
C = 0.01 µF
1
T 
1
 20 µs
f 50 103
Therefore,
TON  5 s
TOFF  15 s
6
5 10
Resistance, R1 
TON   721.35
ln 2  C ln 2  0.01106
6
TOFF  15 10
Resistance, R2   2164.04
ln 2  C ln 2  0.01106

(e) LM317T:

𝑣0 = 24𝑉

7
 𝑅2
𝑣0 = 1 ⋅ 25 (1 + )
𝑅1
𝑅2
24 = 1 ⋅ 25 (1 + )
𝑅1
𝑅2
= 18.2
𝑅1

𝑅1 = 240Ω
𝑅2 = 4368Ω
These are the values that have been obtained upon exact calculations. Upon
simulation and taking into account the errors in the practical implementation,
the values of the resistors and capacitors in the circuit have been adjusted to
reduce the ripples in the final output DC voltage and thus, obtain more stable
output. (The ripples in the voltage may damage the auxiliary devices. Hence, it
is essential to reduce them). The final component list has been given in Table 1.
V. Tables:

Use Tables to provide the specifications of the converter or the

experimental setup. Table 1 serves as a sample Table. Place the Table similar to
Figures – preferably at the end of the page and just after the Table is introduced
in Text. Please do not use “Grid” or “All Borders”. Follow whatever is given below.

Table 1. List of Components.

Sl.No. Specification Value No's.

1. Battery Pack 400V 1
2. MOSFET IRF740BPBF 1
IRF540NPBF 1
3. Diode MUR460 2
1N5817(Schottky) 2
4. Inductor 1mH 2
5. Capacitor 47µF 2
6. 555 timers LM555CM 2
7. Battery 9V 2
8. Resistors Various -

Table 2. Stage 1 Buck Converter.

Sl.No. Specification Value

1. Input Voltage Vin 400V

8
 2. Output Voltage Vo 175V
3. Duty Ratio D 0.438
4. Switching Frequency f 1MHz
5. Input Ripple Current iL 0.7A

Table 3. Stage 2 Buck Converter.

Sl.No. Specification Value

1. Input Voltage Vin 175V
2. Output Voltage Vo 49V
3. Duty Ratio D 0.287
4. Switching Frequency f 50kHz
5. Input Ripple Current iL 0.8A

Table 4. 555 Timer 1.

Sl.No. Specification Value

1. Switching Frequency f 1MHz
2. Duty Ratio D 0.4
3. Time Period T 106
4. On-Time Ton 0.4  s
5. Off-Time Toff 0.6  s

Table 5. 555 Timer 2.

Sl.No. Specification Value

1. Switching Frequency f 24V
2. Duty Ratio D 48V
3. Time Period T 96W
4. On-Time Ton 5 s
5. Off-Time Toff 15 s

Table 6. Voltage Regulator.

Sl.No. Specification Value

1. Input Voltage Vin (29-49) V
2. Output Voltage Vo 24V

9
VI. Experimental Results:

Given below are the PCB layout and the components required by the
circuit.

10
 Figure. 6. PCB layout of the Converter

Figure. 7. Photo View of the PCB layout of Converter.

11
 Figure. 8. 1N5817(Schottky Diode).
It is used in 555 timer to make the Duty cycle lower than 0.5

Figure. 9. 1 mH Toroidal Inductor

Used in the two stages of buck converter circuit

12
 Figure. 10. IRF740BPBF MOSFET.
Used as the gate switch in the first stage of the buck converter circuit

Figure. 11. LM55CM 555 timer

Used to give pulses which the control the MOSFET gate swtiches

13
 Figure. 12. LM317T IC
Used to regulate the output voltage

Figure. 13. IRF540NPBF

Used as Gate Switch the second stage of buck converter circuit

14
 Figure. 14. MUR460 Diode

Used in the two stages of the buck converter circuit

Figure. 15. 47µF Capacitor.

Used to reduce the rippled and overshoots in the output of both stages of the
buck converter circuit

15
VII. Conclusion:

Thus, we get a steady 24 V supply as output from the power circuit

to power the auxiliary devices and circuits.
By undergoing the procedure we learnt the concepts of designing a
buck converter using 555 timer circuit to give pulses and also to use a voltage
regulator to get steady stable output.

VIII. References: Commented [V6]: References are must. Quote references as

shown below. Use square brackets for reference nos.

[1]. Muhammad H. Rashid, “Power Electronics – Circuits, Devices and Applications”, 3rd ed.,
Pearson Education, 2004. Commented [V7]: Format to quote Books: Author name(s),
[2]. http://www.ti.com/lit/an/slva477b/slva477b.pdf “Book Title”, edition, Publication, year.
[3]. https://docs.easyeda.com/
[3]. Websites: www.google.co.in Commented [V8]: Quote the link italics, use the exact website
or weblink.

16