C2000Ware Digital Power SDK  5.03.00.00
TIDA-010231 - Arc Fault Detection in Photovoltaic Applications Reference Design

Table of Contents

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Target Applications

  • Solar arc protection
  • String inverter
  • Micro inverter
  • Smart combiner box
  • Central inverter

Features & Specification

  • Four independent channels for arc detection
  • DC voltages of 1000 V and DC currents up to 10 A
  • Evaluation of external and internal ADC
  • Industrial temperature range (–40°C to +85°C)
  • Flexible C2000 MCU selection, due to 120-pin HSEC standard connector for multiple C2000 controlCARDs, also compatible with 180-pin HSEC connector controlCARDs
  • Adjustable arc detection software for optimization in different systems and environments

Description

This reference design supports up to 4 independent channels of analog front-end for DC arc detection in photovoltaic systems. With DC voltages up to 1000 V and currents up to 10 A.

Arcing is detected by analyzing the AC noise present on the DC current between the solar panels and inverter through FFT-based algorithm. The signal is acquired by a current transformer, conditioned by an analog filter stage and sampled by either the internal or external 16-bit ADC ADC8363. Before the frequency analysis is done with a C2000™ TMS320F280039C or TMS320F280049C real-time MCU.

TIDA-010231 EVM Board
TIDA-010231 System Block Diagram

Relevant Links

Useful links regarding the reference design are provided below:

Note
To import and evaulate CCS project using the button above, please access the current page via Resource Explorer from Code Composer Studio (CCS), or CCS Cloud. (go to CCS->View->Resource Explorer)

Steps to Run the Example

  • It's strongly recommended to first read through the User Guide/Software Guide for any specific setup instructions and hazard warnings before proceeding.
  • To import CCS projects, either import via the button above or mannually select the file directory where this solutions resides.
  • Build the project within the CCS project menu, then launch a CCS debug session and run the executable.

Release Notes

Shown below lists all the software revision history for this reference design:

Software Version SDK Release Changelog
v1.00.00 4.03.00.00 First release, on F28004x control card in C2000Ware Digital Power SDK
v1.01.00 4.04.00.00 Changes & Enhancements:
  • Added targetconfig file for F280049x
v1.02.00 5.00.00.00 Changes & Enhancements:
  • Source code release on Arc Detect Algorithm, ArcDetect.c
  • Modified ArcDetect.h to incorporate internal defines originally exists in ArcDetect.c
  • Changed file naming scheme from "tida010231" to "arc"
v2.00.00 5.01.00.00 New device support & Enhancements:
  • Added F28003x as a supported device
  • Added Multi-channel arc detection support (F28003x only)
  • Modified ArcDetect.c and ArcDetect.h datas and functions to accommodate for Multi-channel support

Hardware design files

For EVM design files such as schematics, BOM, PCB layouts & assembly files, please visit TI design webpage from the link above.

Help and Support

For additional help and support, please visit TI E2E™ design support forums