A high voltage DC/AC unipolar converter to drive a piezoelectric actuator with controlled response times

Abstract:
Dielectric actuators have shown recently huge advantages in many applications that require high performance and/or small size and weight. However, that type of actuator operates at high-voltage, and a power converter is needed for driving applications, while also considering the capacitive behavior of the dielectric actuator. In this paper, a DC-AC converter topology is proposed to drive a single 1000V high-speed piezoelectric actuator with controlled response times, with the capability to recover energy stored within the actuator. Simulation results are presented in this paper as well as experimental results to validate the operation of the proposed DC-AC converter.