Converters

Claim 1

IN COMBINATION WITH A POWER FACTOR A.C. LOAD, A POWER SUPPLY DEVICE FOR CONVERTING DIRECT CURRENT TO ALTERNATING CURRENT COMPRISING A DIRECT CURRENT SOURCE HAVING FIRST AND SECOND TERMINALS, A TRANSFORMER HAVING A PRIMARY WINDING AND A SECONDARY WINDING, SAID PRIMARY WINDING HAVING TWO END TERMINALS AND AN INTERMEDIATE TERMINAL TAPPED OFF BETWEEN SUCH END TERMINALS WHEREBY TO ESTABLISH A PRIMARY CIRCUIT HAVING TWO BRANCHES, SAID INTERMEDIATE TERMINAL BEING CONNECTED TO THE FIRST TERMINAL OF THE DIRECT CURRENT SOURCE, SAID SECONDARY WINDING HAVING OUTPUT TERMINALS TO WHICH THE A.C. LOAD IS CONNECTED SO THAT A COMPONENT OF CURRENT FROM THE LOAD WHICH IS NOT IN PHASE WITH THE LOAD VOLTAGE WILL FLOW ALTERNATELY IN THE TWO BRANCHES OF THE PRIMARY CIRCUIT, FIRST AND SECOND TRANSISTORS HAVING THYRATRON-LIKE CHARACTERISTICS, EACH OF SAID TRANSISTORS INCLUDING A GATE, A CATHODE AND AN ANODE, TWO SIGNAL GENERATING MEANS EACH HAVING TWO TERNINALS, ONE TERMINAL OF ONE SIGNAL GERERATING MEANS BEING CONNECTED TO ONE TERMINAL OF THE OTHER SIGNAL GENERATING MEANS BY A COMMON LEAD WHICH IS ALSO CONNECTED TO THE SECOND TERMINAL OF THE DIRECT CURRENT SOURCE, THE OTHER TERMINALS OF THE TWO SIGNAL GENERATING MEANS BEING RESPECTIVELY CONNECTED TO THE GATES OF THE TWO TRANSISTORS WHEREBY TO ALTERNATELY BIAS SAID TRANSISTORS OFF AND ON SO THAT DURING ONE-TIME-INTERVAL THE FIRST TRANSISTOR IS CONDUCTING WHILE THE SECOND TRANSISTOR IS NONCONDUCTING AND DURING A NEXT SUCCEEDING TIME-INTERVAL THE SECOND TRANSISTOR IS CONDUCTING WHILE THE FIRST TRANSISTOR IS NON-CONDUCTING, THE CATHODES OF THE TWO TRANSISTORS BEING RESPECTIVELY CONNECTED TO THE END TERMINALS OF SAID PRIMARY WINDING, THE ANODES OF THE TWO TRANSISTORS BOTH BEING CONNECTED TO THE COMMON LEAD BETWEEN THE TWO SIGNAL GENERATING MEANS, A FIRST DIODE SHUNTED ACROSS THE CATHODE AND ANODE OF THE FIRST TRANSISTOR THEREBY BEING CONNECTED BETWEEN ONE END TERMINAL OF THE PRIMARY WINDING AND THE SECOND TERMINAL OF THE DIRECT CUR-