LAUSR

In this article, a bridgeless switched inductor Cuk (BSIC) converter based charger is presented to provide the low-cost and reduced-size charging solution for the light electric vehicles, i.e., LEVs, with enhanced performances at the supply side. Generally, the chargers of LEVs such as E-Rickshaws, E-Bike, and E-Cycle, are equipped with an additional converter to charge the batteries at low voltages (24–72 V). The switched inductor configuration improves the step-down dc voltage gain of the charger with only one stage and also improves the reliability at such low voltages. It is noteworthy that the cost associated with the sensors along with the size of the magnetic components is considerably reduced by operating the charger in discontinuous current mode condition. Moreover, the high-gain transformerless configuration further improves the cost, size, and efficiency of the charger. The effectiveness of the charger is tested on a laboratory prototype, for an 850 W rating with 220 V, 50 Hz nominal supply voltage conditions. The steady state and dynamic behaviors of the charger are analyzed under different operating conditions. Moreover, the behaviors of the charger during the initialization of charging process are analyzed for ensuring the soft starting of the charger. A basic comparison of the presented charger configuration with existing LEVs chargers is presented to highlight its advantages over the existing one.