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FEATURE CAD/SOFTWARE
HOW SOFTWARE ENABLES ENGINEERS TO DESIGN SUPERIOR POWER SYSTEMS
Phil Goff of Flex Power Modules explores how
advanced software is shaping the future of power systems design. These robust tools significantly enhance designs, ensuring that power systems are optimised for peak performance
addresses and voltage rails. Designers configure each voltage rail in detail, adjusting settings like voltage levels, ramp times, and fault conditions. For advanced systems, system-wide functions such as voltage sequencing, tracking and phase spreading, can also be configured – all within the software environment, without requiring physical hardware connections. Once configured, the setup can be saved as
a file ready for manufacturing. Most designers, however, prefer to validate the configuration with actual hardware. Using the communication bus, the setup is transmitted to the power modules and stored in non-volatile memory (NVM). Modern power design software goes beyond
configuration, offering extensive monitoring and evaluation capabilities during operation. Designers can track parameters such as voltage, current, temperature, and operating frequency in
“In power electronics, configuring individual modules is just
as important as establishing a
I
n today’s fast-paced engineering environment, the pressure to deliver projects quickly and efficiently is greater than ever. According to AspenCore’s Mind of the Engineer survey, over 70% of engineers reported facing increasing pressure to complete a higher number of projects in less time1
. This growing urgency
underscores the key role of simulation software in accelerating the design process and reducing time to market. Simulation software offers a powerful solution
to these challenges, enabling engineers not only to design more robust and reliable systems but also to drastically shorten development cycles. Indeed, industry case studies and white papers consistently report that using advanced simulation tools can cut product development times by up to 50%. In power electronics, configuring individual
modules is just as important as establishing a comprehensive view of the entire power system to address potential issues. Today, software meets this need by offering a wide range of features.
HOW POWER SYSTEMS DESIGN SOFTWARE WORKS Initially launched in 2012, Flex Power Designer was the first power designer software of its
kind. Uniquely, the software provides the ability to include generic products – not limited to those from Flex Power Modules, which created the software. This flexibility, combined with the fact that the software remains free to users, makes it a valuable resource for engineers looking to refine power systems to improve efficiency and stability, without being constrained by proprietary limitations. Typically, power system design software runs on a host PC and communicates with the system via a shared bus. Integration with adapters, such as Texas Instruments’ latest PMBus adapter (USB-TO-GPIO2), simplifies module configuration and communication, ensuring smoother setup and monitoring during the design phase. However, one unique feature of Flex Power Designer is that it can be run ‘offline’, and so designs can be created and simulated earlier in the development phase before hardware is even available. The design process usually begins by creating
a project within the software, and selecting components from an integrated library which, in the case of Flex Power Designer, includes the ability to add generic devices to help emulate other suppliers’ products. After outlining the system, the next step is to set fundamental parameters, including PMBus
26 DESIGN SOLUTIONS SEPTEMBER 2024
comprehensive view of the entire power system to address potential issues.
Today, software meets this need by offering a wide range of features”
real-time, with advanced software providing graphical tools to visualise how these changes over time to aid in precise system diagnostics. Fault detection features, integrated into many
power modules, identify issues such as over- voltage, over-current and over-temperature conditions. The software enables designers to monitor these signals closely, providing valuable insights into the system’s behaviour before a fault occurs, which is invaluable for troubleshooting. Many of the latest products from Flex Power Modules also incorporate an
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