Digital power: The shadow falls

Ever since the evolution of electronics, power engineers have been in an unsung part of the industry. No more so. The issues dodging the power industry—efficiency, power density, thermal management, digitalization, etc.—are now at the forefront. And so are power engineers. Earlier, power problems were an afterthought for system designers. Now power problems are an integral part of system design right from the beginning. And so are power engineers.


Among the various issues dodging the power designer, digitalization is perhaps the most revolutionary. Some have gone to the extent of predicting that in the next five years the power market will be 100 percent digital. I, for one, don’t think so. But there is no disputing the fact that digital will become mainstream, and concepts like DCP, DPM and POS will rule the roost.

Power Supplement Articles Power systems communications support digital power growth by Dave Freeman, Texas Instruments HVIC technology for variable speed motor drive design by David Tam, International Rectifier Power systems communications support digital power growth by Dave Freeman, Texas Instruments

DCP (Digitally-Controlled Power) involves making power supply using digital techniques to control conversion. DPM (Digital Power Management) deals with using digital techniques to control power supply in relationship to the local system wherein it is operating. POS (Power Operating Systems) concerns using a power operating system to control conversion. Of the various ways to go digital, these three are said to be the most promising. Which of these three would rule the roost is unclear.

It is unclear also what digital technology can and cannot do. Analog design engineers are not as convinced as digital design engineers that digital techniques can profitably do all that analog can. For instance, they say that control loops can be done not only more efficiently but also more cheaply by using analog. Digital designers ask, what if digitalization enables a loopless topology? It is too early to come to definitive conclusions. The migration of power management to digital world is at a primitive stage. However, one thing is certain. With the inevitable rise of digital power, many current suppliers of power ICs selling proprietary analog solutions will find the going difficult. Not all will welcome the advent of digital power.
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