An Inverter Topology With Reduced Switch Count for Multiple-Load Induction Hob Applications

Induction Heating is a method to heat electrically conductive materials. This technology opens up possibilities for domestic, industrial, and medical applications because of major advancements in power electronics. Current research interest in induction cooking (IC) applications is to design a power conversion circuit that fulfills specific characteristics, such as a) high power density b) multiple burners operation c) soft switching operation d) simple control e) High-efficiency, and f) cost-effectiveness. This paper proposes a novel resonant converter to address the abovementioned features for induction cooking applications. The proposed topology can power two induction loads using five switches resulting in a cost-effective solution. The asymmetric Voltage Cancellation (AVC) technique is used here to control multiple loads individually and simultaneously up to rated power. To validate the proposed design, it is simulated using PSPICE and verified experimentally through a hardware prototype rated for 1.6kW using an FPGA board. The maximum efficiency observed experimentally is 96.7%.