SolarMagic IC Products

 

SolarMagic™ Applications & Reference Designs

Building on its leadership in power management and energy-efficient analog products, National is expanding its SolarMagic IC product portfolio to include applications and reference designs solutions for module level power optimizers, microinverters, charge controllers, PV safety, communications, and security, along with smart balance of system (BOS) solutions.

The SolarMagic portfolio of reference designs and applications helps reduce time to market and risk while enabling faster market growth of distributed electronics solutions.


Power Optimizers

SolarMagic Power Optimizer Block Diagram

Get a complete IC solution along with reference designs for stand-alone and integrated DC/DC power optimizers. The SolarMagic SM3320 power optimizer chipset is the ideal solution for real-world problems (environmental and system mismatch) facing PV arrays. The SolarMagic chipset can help PV arrays recover lost energy up to 75% and additional energy harvest up to 25%.

For years, installers designed around these mismatches or accepted the suboptimal losses out of necessity. National Semiconductor's power management expertise mitigates these losses with the release of SolarMagic power optimizers. In June 2009, National released the industry's first certified stand-alone power optimizer with the SM1230 and followed it with the release of the SM3320 power optimizer chipset, designed to be integrated into solar PV panels via the junction box and creating "smart panels", in June 2010.

The SM3320 chipset establishes a new level of performance while maintaining ease of system design and installation. The SM3320 chipset has enhanced features such as 350W module power handling capability, industry-best efficiency (99.5% peak), wide operating temperature range (-40C to 90C), tri-mode buck-boost architecture for highest system efficiency, and patent pending panel mode. Panel mode operation continually monitors for the presence of mismatch. If no significant mismatch is found, the SM3320 chipset will pass through the power of the module instead of operating on it, ensuring maximum possible efficiency.

The SolarMagic SM3320 power optimizer chipset utilizes all National integrated circuits and ultra reliable passive components. This leverages National's history of designing and manufacturing products for harsh environments (e.g. space, automotive) and has enabled extensive reliability testing to allow National to offer a warranty that matches that of the panel (25 years).


Microinverters

SolarMagic Microinverter Reference Design Block Diagram

The new SolarMagic IC portfolio, which leverages National's power management expertise, now includes module-level Micro-inverters. The SolarMagic Microinverter IC portfolio supports standard and premium-grade Microinverter topologies with renewable energy grade parts, reference designs, and application notes to reduce time to market, lower component cost, increase conversion efficiency, and provide reliability.

Today's microinverter landscape is broken down into various architecture and offerings from the traditional topology using electrolytic capacitors with a rectified sinusoid and unfolding bridge to the advanced microinverter design offering with an intermediate high voltage, high efficiency DC bus using no electrolytic capacitors, and ripple cancellation. Both the traditional and advanced microinverter design may include communications options like PLC (Power Line Communications) and wireless RF communications.

The SolarMagic SM72295 Photovoltaic Full Bridge Driver is a great starting point for a microinverter design using interleaved flyback with active clamp circuitry for DC Vin of <100V. The SM72295 provides highly integrated functionality with four independent 3A gate drives, two current sensing amplifiers and buffers, built in protection features like overvoltage and under voltage control with power good indicator.

In addition to the SM72295, National's SolarMagic IC product line can assist with other IC components in a microinverter design including controllers for housekeeping power, LDO, comparators, operational amps, and temperature sensors.


Charge Controllers

SolarMagic Charge Controller Block Diagram

With increasing demand for Solar PV battery based systems, the need for battery charging equipment is growing. National's SolarMagic ICs for charge controller solutions enables maximum power transfer between solar panels (sources) and various loads while charging the battery at the optimum rate in mismatch conditions.

National MPPT digital controller and full bridge driver IC's are designed to control high efficient DC/DC converters commonly found in off-grid charge controller applications such as solar, automotive, marine, and street lighting applications. National's innovative charging controller products reduce system costs, improve reliability, and simplify design complexity to accelerate time to market.

  • RD- 189 - SolarMagic SM3320-BATT-EV Charge Controller Reference Design

The SolarMagic SM72242 enhanced MPPT controller and SM72295 Full Bridge Driver is a great starting point for various PV battery based charging design. The charge controller reference design provides highly integrated functionality with a wide input voltage range for compatibility with most commercially available solar panels, current driving capabilities up to 100A, multi-chemistry battery support (e.g. Lithium Ion, Lead Acid), advanced protection and battery management features, along with I2C programming.


PV Communication and Safety

SolarMagic Power Optimizer with RF Communication & Safety Functions

Wireless RF Communications & Remote Shutdown

Safety is critical requirement in PV installation and with the recent NEC 2011 electrical and International code changes being required for all PV systems, National is committed to providing IC and applications to help increase safety in the PV value chain. One such solution is the SolarMagic SM3320-RF-EV Reference Design with remote shutdown capability at the module level.

The SolarMagic SM3320-RF-EV reference design integrates a power optimizer and a low-cost 2.4 GHz radio to add a remote shutdown feature to a PV system. The remote shutdown feature can be used during installation, maintenance, or emergency situations to de-energize the PV system. Although its principal purpose is to communicate shutdown intent, this RF system is 2-way and can be used for a wide variety of communication applications, including monitoring, security and identification.

  • RD-190 - SolarMagic SM3320-RF-EV Charge Controller with Wireless RF Communications Reference Design
    • Integrates  low-cost 2.4 GHz radio for remote shutdown, monitoring, security, and& identification
    • Uses DC power lines as an RF antenna
    • Maintains communication even in junction box
    • Design documentation

One of the unique features of the SM3320-RF-EV is its use of the DC power lines as an RF antenna and transmission line. This enables the SM3320-RF-EV to maintain radio communication even when it is mounted in the junction box of the module, without the need for an external antenna. This antenna design can be used with other 2.4GHz radio chipsets besides the nRF24LE1 by straightforward modification of the provided designs files.

Arc Detection

The SolarMagic SM73201-ARC-EV reference design is a UL1699B-compliant photovoltaic arc detection system with a minimal footprint of less than 50 mm x 30 mm. The reference design utilizes National's advanced analog technology along with an innovative dynamic filtering technique to effectively detect the signature of arcing conductors in the presence of highly noisy real world environments. The PowerWise® analog path requires less than 50 mW of power to implement the active filtering. The operation range of the device covers the wide -40°C to +125°C industrial temperature range.

  • RD-195 - SolarMagic SM73201-ARC-EV DC Arc Detection Reference Design
    • UL1699B-compliant arc detection with simple LED arc detection flag
    • Small PCB footprint of less than 50 mm x 30 mm
    • 15A maximum DC string current
    • Low power and -40°C to +125°C temperature range
    • Design documentation





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