UUNIVERSITY OF ZIMBABWE

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING
DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING

PROJECT TITLE: DESIGN OF A 6V TO 10V CONVERTER

SUBMITTED BY: MUSIYIWA LEO SHINGAI R174726Z

PROJECT SUPERVISOR: MR NJENDA

This project was submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the BSc Hons Degree
in Electrical Engineering.
 DECLARATION

This project partially fulfils the requirements of the degree program BSc Hons in Electrical
Engineering at the University of Zimbabwe. I understand that plagiarism is an offence and declare that
this third level report is my original work. The facts and opinions discussed are to the best of my
knowledge accurate. Use of the information contained in this paper for financial gains is not allowed
without my written permission
.

Date of Submission: …………………………………………….

Student’s Signature: …………………………………………….

Supervisor’s Signature: ………………………………………….

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CONTENTS
DECLARATION................................................................................................................................................. 2
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. .................................................................................................................................. 7
ABSTRACT....................................................................................................................................................... 8
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................... 9
1.0 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY .......................................................................................................... 9
1.1 PROBLEM STATEMENT .......................................................................................................................... 9
1.2 JUSTIFICATION .................................................................................................................................... 10
1.3 PROJECT AIM ...................................................................................................................................... 10
1.4 PROJECT OBJECTIVES .......................................................................................................................... 10
1.5 PROJECT SCOPE................................................................................................................................... 10
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW .................................................................................................................. 11
2.1 DC-DC CONVERTERS ............................................................................................................................ 11
2.2 USES OF DC-DC CONVERTERS ......................................................................................................... 11
2.3 PURPOSES OF DC-DC CONVERTERS ..................................................................................................... 11
2.5 CATEGORIES OF DC-DC CONVERTERS .................................................................................................. 12
2.6 BACKGROUND ON DC-DC CONVERTERS .............................................................................................. 13
2.6.1 THE BUCK CONVERTER ..................................................................................................................... 13
2.6.2 THE BUCK-BOOST CONVERTER ......................................................................................................... 14
2.6.3 THE CUK CONVERTER ....................................................................................................................... 15
2.6.4 THE BOOST CONVERTER ................................................................................................................... 17
2.7 COMPONENT SELECTION .................................................................................................................... 23
2.7.1 THE BOOST CONVERTER’S CONFIGURATION .................................................................................... 23
2.7.2 PARAMETERS TO CONSIDER FOR THE POWER STAGE ....................................................................... 23
2.7.3 MAXIMUM SWITCH CURRENT .......................................................................................................... 23
2.7.4 INDUCTOR VALUE ............................................................................................................................ 24
2.7.5 SELECTING THE DIODE...................................................................................................................... 25
2.7.6 SETTING THE OUTPUT VOLTAGE ....................................................................................................... 25
2.7.8 CAPACITOR SELECTION..................................................................................................................... 26
2.8 COMPONENTS AND THEIR FUNCTIONS ............................................................................................... 27
2.9 THE TECHNIQUE OF PWM ................................................................................................................... 27
2.9.1 TYPES OF PWM SIGNALS .................................................................................................................. 27
2.9.2 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF PWM ................................................................................. 28
 CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY ......................................................................................................................... 29
3.1 INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................... 29
3.2 BLOCK DIAGRAM OF THE OOST CONVERTER ....................................................................................... 29
3.3DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS ...................................................................................................................... 29
3.4 DESIGN CALCULATIONS ....................................................................................................................... 30
3.4.1 LOAD CURRECT ................................................................................................................................ 30
3.4.2 DUTY CYCLE ..................................................................................................................................... 30
3.4.3 THE PEAK TO PEAK OUTPUT VOLTAGE RIPPLE, Δ𝐕O ......................................................................... 30
3.4.4 MINIMUM CAPACITOR VALUE .......................................................................................................... 31
3.4.45AVERAGE INDUCTOR CURRENT, IL ................................................................................................... 31
3.4.6 CHANGE IN INDUCTOR CURRENT ..................................................................................................... 31
3.4.7 MINIMUM INDUCTOR CURRENT ...................................................................................................... 31
3.4.8 MAXIMUM INDUCTOR CURRENT...................................................................................................... 31
3.4.9 MINIMUM INDUCTOR VALUE ........................................................................................................... 32
3.4.10 DIODE ............................................................................................................................................ 32
3.4.11 MOSFET ......................................................................................................................................... 32
3.5 IMPLEMENTATION AND TESTING ........................................................................................................ 33
3.5.1 PROTEUS SIMULATION ..................................................................................................................... 33
3.6 DESIGN OF A BOOST CONVERTER ........................................................................................................ 34
3.7 FLOW DIAGRAM FOR THE MICROCONTROLLER OPERATION ................................................................ 35
3.8 PROTOTYPE TESTING ........................................................................................................................... 36
3.9 PCB DESIGNING................................................................................................................................... 36
3.9.1 PCB PRINTING AND HOLE DRILLING .................................................................................................. 37
3.9.2 COMPONENT MOUNTING AND SOLDERING ..................................................................................... 37
CHAPTER 4 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION.......................................................................................................... 39
4.1 INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................... 39
4.2 CIRCUIT RESULTS................................................................................................................................. 39
4.4 CASING AND PACKAGING .................................................................................................................... 41
4.5 PROJECT MANAGEMENT ..................................................................................................................... 41
4.5.1 GANTT CHART .................................................................................................................................. 41
4.5.2 COST BUDGET .................................................................................................................................. 42
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATION ......................................................................................... 43

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 5.1 CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................................................... 43
5.2 PROBLEMS FACED ............................................................................................................................... 43
5.3 FUTURE WORK AND RECOMENDATIONS ............................................................................................. 43
References ................................................................................................................................................... 44
 INDEX OF FIGURES
FIGURE 1:THE BUCK CONVERTER .................................................................................................................................... 13
FIGURE 2: TWO OPERATING STATES OF A BUCK CONVERTER ............................................................................................. 13
FIGURE 3:CCURRENT AND VOLTAGE WAVEFORMS OF AND IDEAL BUCK CONVERTER ......................................................... 14
FIGURE 4:THE BUCK-BOOST CONVERTER ......................................................................................................................... 14
FIGURE 5:TWO OPERATING STATES OF A BUCK-BOOST CONVERTER ................................................................................... 14
FIGURE 6:CURRENT AND VOLTAGE WAVEFORMS OF A BUCK-BOOST CONVERTER .............................................................. 15
FIGURE 7:THE CUK CONVERTER ...................................................................................................................................... 15
FIGURE 8:TWO OPERATING STATES OF A CUCK CONVERTER ............................................................................................. 16
FIGURE 9:PRINCIPAL OPERATION OF A NON-ISOLATED CUK CONVERTER ........................................................................... 16
FIGURE 10:THE BOOST CONVERTER ................................................................................................................................ 17
FIGURE 11:TWO OPERATING STATES OF A BOOST CONVERTER .......................................................................................... 18
FIGURE 12:CURRENT AND VOLTAGE WAVEFORMS OF A BOOST CONVERTER IN CCM ....................................................... 18
FIGURE 13:CURRENT AND VOLTAGE WAVEFORMS OF A BOOST CONVERTER OPERATING IN DCM ..................................... 20
FIGURE 14:POWER STAGE OF A BOOST CONVERTER ........................................................................................................ 23
FIGURE 15:POTRNTIAL DIVIDER CIRCUIT FOR SETTING THE OUTPUT VOLTAGE ....................................................................... 25
FIGURE 16:TYPES OF PWM SIGNALS .............................................................................................................................. 27
FIGURE 17:THE CIRCUIT BLOCK DIAGRAM ....................................................................................................................... 29
FIGURE 18:THE PROTEUS SIMULATION ............................................................................................................................. 33
FIGURE 19: THE DESIGN OF A BOOST CONVERTER ........................................................................................................... 34
FIGURE 20:THE FLOW DIAGRAM .................................................................................................................................... 35
FIGURE 21:THE PROTOTYPE TESTING AND RESULTS ............................................................................................................ 36
FIGURE 22: DIP TRACE CIRCUIT DESIGN .......................................................................................................................... 36
FIGURE 23: THE PRINTED PCB BOARD ............................................................................................................................ 37
FIGURE 24: COMPONENTS MOUNTED AND SOLDERED ON THE PCB BOARD ..................................................................... 38
FIGURE 25: CIRCUIT RESULTS .......................................................................................................................................... 39
FIGURE 26.THE PWM SIGNAL PRODUCED ...................................................................................................................... 39
FIGURE 27: FINAL PROJECT RESULTS ............................................................................................................................... 40
FIGURE 28:FINAL PROJECT CASING AND PACKAGING .................................................................................................... 41
FIGURE 29:THE GANTT CHART ....................................................................................................................................... 41
FIGURE 30:COST BUDGET .............................................................................................................................................. 42

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.

First and foremost, I would like to give thanks to the Lord Almighty for leading me in doing this
project. I also would like to express my earnest gratitude to my supervisor Mr T.C Njenda for entrusting
me to carry out this project and for his enthusiastic encouragement, patient supervision and very useful
ideas that made this project a success. Special thanks also goes to the electrical workshop stuff and the
electrical lab stuff. I also want to thank my family for helping me with moral and financial support.

Many thanks also goes to my colleagues and friends for offering a helping hand in times of difficulties.
 ABSTRACT

The use of power electronic converter in the renewable energy systems significantly increases their
efficiencies by keeping the operation of these systems at the ideal operating points. A lot of
technologies that are still developing and some that are already in existence are driven by DC voltages
of different levels being supplied by a singular source such as a battery cell. An electronic device that
is capable of changing the DC voltage level efficiently such that the voltage measured at the output
terminals is greater than that supplied to the system is what is known as a DC-DC boost converter.
Designing, simulating and implementation of the Boost switching converter are the primary objectives
of this project. There are various converter performances which include different capacitor currents,
voltage across the load, and the voltage ripples from the inductor, to mention a few. All of these are
derived and analysed under the continuous operation mode of the converter. The aim of the design is
to step up the source voltage from 6V to an output voltage of 10. The components necessary to achieve
this design include a MOSFET (IRFP260N), an Inductor, a Capacitor, Resistor and a Diode. The
inductor acts as the key component for driving the boost converter due to its tendency of resisting
current changes.

The microcontroller responsible for generating the Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) signal is the
Atmega 328P. The generated PWM is the one that is responsible for switching the MOSFET.
Simulation of the circuit diagram is done using Proteus Design Suit Software. IRFP260N is a high
speed MOSFET which is used in this design as a switch with a switching frequency of 35 000Hz.
Arduino IDE is the environment that is used for programming and developing the algorithm for
generation of the PWM signal from the microcontroller and as a programmer to program the device.

Simulations were done to simplify and understand the proposed design and several experiments were
carried out which led to the final product not only delivering an output voltage of 10 but allows the
user to choose any voltage value within the specified range of 8-213V by means of turning a
potentiometer. The test results show that the proposed design exhibits a good performance and meets
the demands of the design question.

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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
1.0 BRIEF BACKGROUND
Small, lightweight, high quality, efficient and reliable supplies are now the key aspect of consideration
in modern electronic systems. As a result, the demand of high gain DC-Dc converters has increased
rapidly in various applications such as the electrical vehicle applications and the renewable energy
sector. On the other hand, widespread use small devices that works on batteries such as cellphones and
television remote controls have increased the need for DC-DC conversion power supplies for example,
the Switched Mode Power Supplies (SMPS). Furthermore, the importance of some distributed sources
of energy like the Solar Photovoltaic System which is responsible for producing DC power also
contributed in creating a great demand for the DC-DC converters. Applications of DC-DC converters
include marine hoists, forklift trucks, traction motor control in electric automobiles and in mine haulers
(Rai, et al., 2016).
A DC-DC converter can be considered an equivalent of a transformer that has continuous variable-
turns ratio as they can also increase or decrease voltage like the transformer does. The two has the same
purposes which are to stepdown (buck converter in DC) and to step up (boost converter in DC) the
different supplied voltages. The switching process of the boost converter can be utilized as unregulated
and regulated. This is done to be able to convert the output DC voltage as regulated. Regulations are
usually attained via PWM at a steady frequency and the common switching devices are MOSFETS,
IGB and BJT (Rasheed, et al., 2016).
Unregulated DC input is regulated to the desired output voltage through a design of power electronics
known as a regulator or a DC-DC converter. The two basic modes of operation applied in boost
converter systems are open loop and closed loop in that order. The open loop system manually
modelled and much simpler whereas the closed loop system is an automated control system model.
The design is built of four major components namely; inductor, capacitor, diode and an electronic
switch. The storage ability and the length of the switching period determines the mode in which the
converter will operate between the Continuous Conduction Mode (CCM) and the Discontinuous
Conduction Mode (DCM). For a small energy storage capacity and a relatively long switching period,
the converter transfers all the stored energy to the load before the next cycle commences (Sa’ad, 2019).

1.1 PROBLEM STATEMENT

As the current trend is to go green, the quantity of electricity made from the renewable energy source
like photovoltaic source, windmill etc. are usually small and the plant is often located far away from
the load centre, this has led to an increase in the demand of DC-DC boost converter to step up the
generated DC voltage and also to minimize the losses along the line.

On the other hand, to obtain a higher voltage for operation, most systems that uses DC as voltage
sources often stack cells in series. However, adequate stacking of cells is not conceivable in many high
voltage applications due to inadequate space. HVDC transmission, DC boosting is preferred in many
cases over the transformer as the transformer is limited by flux losses and also in transformers turns
ratio is limited. With this in mind, designing a system to provide a greater voltage from a low input
voltage becomes an important aspect to consider.
 1.2 JUSTIFICATION
In numerous technical uses and modern electronics, it is always essential to convert a set of DC voltage
source into a variable-voltage or regulated DC voltage output but the challenge is to achieve a greater
voltage from a smaller DC input using a minimum number of components.

1.3 PROJECT AIM

The key aim of this project is to design, simulate, analyse and construct a DC-DC boost converter by
means of Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) Scheme.

1.4 PROJECT OBJECTIVES

The objectives include:
 To study different topologies of DC-DC converters
 To examine converter performance such as output voltage and current, ripples of currents and
voltages.
 To design and implement a DC-DC converter (boost type).

1.5 PROJECT SCOPE

The scope of this project is to develop 6V-10V DC-DC boost converter in Continuous
Conduction Mode (CCM) using Pulse Width Modulation Schemes (PWM). The programming
environments used to develop the algorithm for creating the pulse-width modulation (PWM) signal is
the Arduino IDE, then Proteus Simulink software is used to design and simulate the circuit diagram
and the hardware is implemented on a general PCB board.

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CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

2.0 INTRODUCTION
This chapter will focus more on reviewing the already existing projects to get a general idea about
various topologies of DC-DC converters mainly on the boost converter by following conception,
requirement and any material that is associated to the project. In later of this chapter, Pulse Width
Modulation and some evaluation about the proposed design of boost converter to accomplish the
project will be reported.

2.1 DC-DC CONVERTERS

An electronic circuit that is employed to adjust DC circuits from a lower potential level to a higher
potential level is called a DC-DC converter. Similarly, for the conversion of an unregulated input
voltage to the desired voltage at the output. It is also termed a voltage regulator and uses an inductor,
switches and a capacitor to convert the power and is widely used constant switch mode DC power
supply applications. They can either increase or decrease the input voltage while maintaining very little
power losses during the process. The three basic reasons why such converters are used are;
 To make power systems simple
 To make the primary and secondary circuits isolated
 To match the power supply and the loads (Abdolkarem, 2014)

2.2 USES OF DC-DC CONVERTERS

1. They are used in reformative braking of dc motors to give energy back into the source and this
property results in energy being conserved for transportation system with numerous stops.
Examples include:
 In marine hoists
 In traction motor control for electrical automobiles
 In mine haulers
 In trolley cars
 In forklift trucks
2.DC converters are also useful in voltage regulators and are also used together with an inductor to
create a DC current source mainly for the current source inverter.

2.3 PURPOSES OF DC-DC CONVERTERS

Major functions include;
 To convert a given dc input into a desired dc output
 To normalize the output voltage against load and line variation
 To shield the supplied system and the source from electromagnetic interference (EMI)
 To isolate the input sources and the load when isolation is required
 To decrease the voltage ripple on the dc output voltage.
 2.4 MERITS AND DEMERITS OF DC-DC CONVERTERS

1. They are useful as they provide a technique that helps to increase the voltage from a smaller
cell and mitigates the space used in trying to stack cells to get a higher voltage output.
2. The ability to organize the output from an isolated converter to be either positive or negative.
3. Isolated DC-Dc converters tend to have more efficiency on condition of the barrier. The
barriers can sustain between the range of 100V and 1000V since it is an essential for medicinal
purposes.
4. DC converters are now more useful since most switches need minimal components to be
added.
5. They can be supplied as a total hybrid element and can be used inside an electronic assembly.
6. DC-DC converters are also important as they regulate the voltage fed in. However, there are
certain cases that will include more LED energy sources.
7. The greatest disadvantage of DC-DC converters is the unstable supply of voltage and current.
Nonetheless, this can be solved through mixed control schemes made possible by grouping the
converters together (Abdolkarem, 2014).

2.4 COMPONENTS THAT CAN BE USED AS SWITCHES

The electronic components that can be used are;
1. The Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor (MOSFET).
2. The Bipolar Junction Transistor (BJT).
3. The Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT).
4. The Gate Turn Off Thyristor (GTO).

In practical these switches will cause a voltage drop that ranges from 0.5V-2V but re considered to be
lossless for the sake of simplicity.

2.5 CATEGORIES OF DC-DC CONVERTERS

There are several types of DC-DC converters such as;
1. Boost converter
2. Buck converter
3. Cuk converter
4. Current fed converter
5. Multiple output converter
6. Fly back converter
7. Full bridge converter
8. Push pull converter
9. Half bridge converter
10. Forward converter

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2.6 BACKGROUND ON DC-DC CONVERTERS
As indicated above, we have a variety of DC-DC converters that can be conceivable. The buck, the
cuk, the boost and the buck boost converter are the only converters that can be fully described and they
have input-output terminals that are non-isolated.

2.6.1 THE BUCK CONVERTER

This type of a DC-DC converters is responsible for stepping down the input voltage to give a smaller
output voltage. The main components for making thus design include a diode, inductor, a switch and
a capacitor. A diode is oriented in such a way that it is forward biased when the switch is open and
reverse biased when the switch is closed. The buck converter operates in the continuous conduction
mode so to ensure this the inductance and capacitance are kept at values that are larger than their
respective critical values (Seong, 2015).
Below is the design of a buck converter.

Figure 1:The buck converter

The assumptions made when analysing buck converters are;

1. The current on the inductor is always positive
2. The components used are ideal
3. The state of operation is stable
4. The output voltage is steady and the capacitor is very large.
5. The switch is closed for a time DT and open for a time (1-D) T, where T is the switching period
and D is the duty cycle.

The diagrams below show the two operating states of a buck converter; a) ON State and b) OFF State

a) b)
Figure 2: Two operating states of a buck converter

The inductor’s voltage and current for both the closed and open switch are the ones that are analysed
for us to be able to define the output voltage Vo. For a steady state operation, the net change of current
in the inductor must be 0A after a single period of time. The two categories of operation in a buck
converter are;
1. Continuous Conduction Mode (CCM)
2. Discontinuous Conduction Mode (DCM)
 The diagrams below show the evolution of the currents and voltages in a buck converter; a) Continuous
Conduction Mode(CCM) and b) Discontinuous Conduction Mode (DCM

a) b)

Figure 3:Ccurrent and voltage waveforms of and ideal buck converter

2.6.2 THE BUCK-BOOST CONVERTER

This is one type of DC-DC converters that has and output which is either greater or smaller that the
input value. A buck-boost converter acts almost like a fly back converter that is working on one
inductor in its place of a transformer (Sa’ad, 2019). When the switch is closed, the inductor received
current direct from the input voltage source. The resistor will receive the current that is being supplied
by the capacitor. An inductor I responsible for supplying current to the load when the switch is off via
a diode.

BASIC OPERATION OF A BUCK-BOOST

The diagram below shows a general schematic of a buck-boost converter.

Figure 4:The buck-boost converter

The diagrams below show the two operating states of a buck-boost converter, the top one showing
the ON STATE and the bottom one illustrates the OFF STATE

Figure 5:Two operating states of a buck-boost converter

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According to Figure 5, if the circuit is ON, the inductor and the source are directly connected. During
this ON STATE the inductor will be storing energy and the load will be getting energy from the
capacitor. After turning the switch off, the inductor will the supply the energy which it stored before
via the capacitor to the load.

The diagrams below show the evolution of the currents and voltages in a buck-boost converter; a)
Continuous Conduction Mode(CCM) and b) Discontinuous Conduction Mode (DCM

a) b)

Figure 6:Current and voltage waveforms of a buck-boost converter

2.6.3 THE CUK CONVERTER

This is another type which is almost similar to the buck-boost converter as they both have an output
voltage that is either greater or less than the input voltage. It appears to be a boost converter that is put
in series with the buck converter and the capacitor is added at the end to couple the energy. Most
converters use the inductor as the main storage element but the cuk uses the capacitor as the main
storage element. The basic components that builds up a cuk converter are a pair of inductors, a pair of
capacitors and a single diode. The uses of these components are as follows;
1. inductor L1-Prevents harmonics by acting as a filter
2. capacitor C- mainly for transferring energy
3. capacitor Co- supplies the load
4. inductor L2- stores energy from C

The capacitor C is connected in turn to the output and input of the converter through the switch and
the diode. Since the cuk converter is an inverter, the output voltage is always a negative of the input
(Middlebrook & Cuk, 1976).
The diagram below shows a general schematic of a cuk converter.

Figure 7:The cuk converter

 The diagrams below show the two operating states of a cuk converter, the top one showing the OFF
STATE and the bottom one illustrates the ON STATE

Figure 8:Two operating states of a cuck converter

The diagram below illustrates how a non-isolated cuk converter operates;

Figure 9:Principal operation of a non-isolated cuk converter

The purpose of this diagram is to outline how the diode and the switch are replaced by a short circuit
when the switch is ON and also how they can be replaced by an open circuit when the switch is OFF.

In the OFF state, C is charged by L1 which would have been charged from the source. After turning
the switch ON, energy from C is then transferred to the output capacitor C via L2.
A cuk converter also acts as an inverter thus the output is always a negative of the input.

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2.6.4 THE BOOST CONVERTER
A boost converter can be referred to as a regulator since it has the capacity to regulate unregulated
voltage and give an amplified output voltage. It takes a lower input voltage and steps it up (boost) to
give a higher regulated output as per the user’s desire. The operation of a boost converter depends on
the alternating closing and opening of the switch. The name boost converter comes from the fact that
it takes a lower voltage input and gives a larger output (W.Hart, 2011).The boosting process is
dependent on the agility of an inductor to store and release energy in the form of magnetic field
according to the state of the switch. This is made possible through its charging and discharging for a
given period of time which is determined by the switching frequency. The inductor is charged directly
by the source when the switch is closed and when the switch is open it give the energy to the capacitor
and hence discharges (Seong, 2015).The boost converter operates in two basic configurations which
are the open loop or the closed in that order. Automatic system control modelling is used on closed-
loop mode while the open-loop mode is just manual modelling and is also easier to work with compared
to the closed loop (Sa’ad, 2019).

ANALYSIS OF THE BOOST CONVERTER

When working with boost converters, the following assumptions are made;
1. The inductor current is always positive
2. The components used are ideal
3. The state of operation is stable
4. The output voltage is steady and the capacitor is very large
5. The switch is closed for a time DT and open for a time (1-D) T, where T is the switching period
and D is the duty cycle.

PRINCIPAL OPERATION OF A BOOST CONVERTER

The boost converter depends on the inductor’s tendency to resist current changes. When the switch is
closed, the inductor is charged by the source and during this it will be acting like a load. The inductor
then acts like an energy source when the switch is turned off. During this period, it will be acting more
like a battery. What allows the different inputs and outputs in a boost converter is the fact that when
the inductor is acting as a source, the voltage that it supplies depends on the rate of change of current
and not the source voltage that charged it.
The diagram below shows a general representation of a boost converter;

Figure 10:The boost converter

 The diagrams below show the two operating states of a boost converter; a) ON State and b) OFF State

a) b)
Figure 11:Two operating states of a boost converter

When the switch is closed (in the ON state), the inductor current increases, and since the inductor
resists current changes it will the increase its potential in such a way as to avoid that current change.
When the switch is OFF, the inductor current will flow only through the diode to the load and capacitor.
That is how the energy is transferred from the inductor to the capacitor during the OFF state.
The boost converter has two modes of operation which are;
1. Continuous Conduction Mode(CCM)
2. Discontinuous Conduction Mode(DCM)

The two modes are explained in detail below;

1.CONTINUOUS CONDUCTION MODE (CCM)

The diagram below shows the current and voltage waveforms of a boost converter operation in
continuous conduction mode.

Figure 12:Current and voltage waveforms of a boost converter in CCM

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For a boost converter operating in continuous conduction mode, the current through the inductor never
fall to 0A. Analysis shows that the buck converter also exhibits the same current and voltage
waveforms if it is made to operate in this very same mode (Tushar, 2008). The output voltage is
determined from calculations made under the assumption that all the components used are ideal. It is
also essential to make sure that the operation is under stable conditions. If the switch is closed, the
supply voltage (Vi) will appear on the inductor (IL) thus causing a current change. This happens for a
period T that is determined by the switching frequency and during this time the inductor will be
charging. The change in current caused on the inductor is given as;

The final value of the inductor current before getting into the OFF state is given by;

The amount of time for which the switch is ON is known as the duty cycle which is represented by D.
Since the switch is either ON or OFF for a given period of time it implies that D ranges between 0 and
1. During the OFF state, the inductor now acts as the voltage source and will supply energy to the
capacitor and the load via the diode (assuming 0V drop in the diode) since it is the only path left after
opening the switch. The capacitor is expected to be very large so that its voltage will remain steady.
Thus the origin of the inductor current;

This means that, when the switch is OFF the inductor current varies according to the equation;

Given that all components are ideal and the converter is operating in steady state condition, it is
expected that no energy should be lost at any given point whatsoever (W.Hart, 2011). This is meant to
say that energy stored in each component at the beginning of the cycle should be exactly the same as
the energy stored at the end of the cycle. For an ideal inductor, the stored energy is calculated using
the formula;

So since the inductor resists current changes and the inductor for this purpose is assumed to be ideal,
the overall change of its current at the end of the cycle should be zero. This is represented by the
formula;
 Replacing with in the following equations gives;

Simplifying the above equations yields;

Therefore, the formula to find the duty cycle, D is given as;

According to the equation shown above, the output voltage of a boost converter should always be
greater than the input voltage. This is so because output voltage increases as the duty cycle increase
and it can actually go to infinity as D approaches 1. So this forms the basis of the name step-up(boost)
type of DC-DC converters (Tushar, 2008).

2.DISCONTINUOUS CONDUCTION MODE (DCM)

The diagram below shows the current and voltage waveforms of a boost converter operation in
discontinuous conduction mode.

Figure 13:Current and voltage waveforms of a boost converter operating in DCM

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Some loads function on very small amounts of energy which can be transferred in a time frame that is
very small compared to the overall communication time frame T. For a boost converter operating in
DCM, the current through the inductor becomes 0A at some point. What makes this mode of operation
different is the fact that the inductor is fully discharged at the end of the cycle as show in the buck
converter’s waveforms. This effect alone has a greater impact on the voltage that is supplied to the
load.

The Inductor current’s greatest value is given as (DT), and is 0A at the beginning of the
cycle. This relationship is best described as;

If the switch is OFF, the inductor current gradually decreases until it reaches zero in time δT or just
δ;

Substituting into the second equation yields;

In DCM, the current that passes through the diode I D is the same as that which flows through the load
Io. Since the current that flows through the inductor is the same as that which flows through the diode,
the current that goes to the load can be simply obtained from

Substituting for and δ yields,

Now the overall output voltage can be calculated from;

 This expression of finding the output voltage in DCM is more complex and hard to use compared to
the one of in CCM. The output voltage in CCM depend only on the change in inductor current but that
of DCM depends on;
1. Inductor value
2. Input voltage
3. Output current
4. switching frequency

Hence it is more difficult to deal with compared to CCM.

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 2.7 COMPONENT SELECTION
2.7.1 THE BOOST CONVERTER’S CONFIGURATION
O
U
T

Figure 14:Power stage of a boost converter

Shown above is the basic configuration of a boost converter where a switch and the IC are integrated
together. Usually low power converters use a second switch instead of a diode (Hauke, 2014), but for
this scenario all equations are applicable in a basic boost converter.

2.7.2 PARAMETERS TO CONSIDER FOR THE POWER STAGE

The following parameters form the basis for calculating the power stage;
1. The range of input voltage
2. The output voltage expected
3. Maximum current to the output
4. The microcontroller to be used.
With all this information at hand, all other calculation parameters can be safely obtained from the
datasheet.
2.7.3 MAXIMUM SWITCH CURRENT
The first parameter to be obtained before calculating the maximum switch current is the duty cycle, D.
The duty cycle should be calculated from the least input voltage possible because the least input voltage
is the one that leads to greatest switch current. This relationship is shown by;

VIN (min)  
D  1
VOUT (1)

 D = duty cycle
 Vout = output voltage
 VIN(min)=minimum voltage input
 η= efficiency
Efficiency has been added to this formula so that the converter will deliver also the dissipated energy.
The duty cycle that is obtained from this calculation is more accurate compared to the one obtained
when efficiency is not included in the equation (Hauke, 2014).
 Another crucial step in determining the peak switch current is to calculate the ripple current of the
inductor. Usually which inductor to use for given IC will be specified in the data sheet but for cases of
none, the following formula can be applied to calculate the inductor current;

VIN (min)  D
IL 
fs  L (2)

 D= duty cycle
 VIN(min)=least voltage input
 fs=switching frequency
 L= inductor value
The maximum output current that can be delivered;

IL
IOUT (max)  ( ILIM (min)  )  (1  D) (3)
2
 ΔILIM(min)=minimum current value
 ΔIL=ripple current of inductor
 D= duty cycle
The maximum output current depends on the switch current of the IC that is being used. This means
that if the output current is below the system’s expectation, then a different IC should be used which
has a greater switching current. If the selected IC produces an output current that is slightly below the
expected, it is possible to use that IC together with a bigger inductor which is within the range of
tolerance. A bigger inductor reduces the ripple current hence boosts the overall current at the output.
The maximum switch current is needed if the calculated value is above that needed by the system and
is given as;

IL IOUT (max)

ISW (max)  
2 1 D (4)

 IOUT(max) = maximum output current

 ISW(max) = maximum switch current

2.7.4 INDUCTOR VALUE

Mostly, the recommended inductor values will be given in data sheets. Choice of an inductor value is
very important since the size of the inductor is what determines the output current through eliminating
the ripple current. The output voltage depends on the inductor and its ability to store the energy. Since
the current is inversely proportional to the inductance, the inductor must always have a bigger current
rating (Hauke, 2014).

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 For cases without the inductor rating, the equation below can be used to do the estimation of the good
inductor to use;

VIN  (VOUT  VIN )

L
IL  fs  VOUT (5)

Equation 2 cannot be used to calculate the inductor ripple current if the value of the inductor is
unknown. For an unknown inductor value the equation below can be applied;

VOUT
IL  (0.2  0.4)  IOUT (max) 
VIN (6)

2.7.5 SELECTING THE DIODE

The diode is the key element for reduction of losses. The diode’s forward current rating IF should be
equated to the peak output current (IOUT(max)).

IF  IOUT (max) (7)

Ideal diodes have a much greater peak current rating compared to the mean rating. This implies that a
higher peak current will not cause any harm to the system. Another important constraint to reflect on
is the power dissipation PD, which is given by;

PD  IF VF (8)

2.7.6 SETTING THE OUTPUT VOLTAGE

A resistive divider network is important to all converters for setting the output voltage. From the given
feedback voltage VFB and current IFB, the voltage divider can be easily obtained.

Figure 15:Potrntial divider circuit for setting the output voltage

 The relationship of the currents is;

IR 1 2 100 IFB (9)

 IR1/2=the current through the resistive divider
 IFB=current fed back

Using a smaller resistor for the divider, causes very high power losses in the divider but on the other
hand increasing the accuracy of the system. With that in mind, the values of the resistors are obtained
as;

VFB
R2 
IR 1 2 (10)

VOUT
R1  R 2  (  1)
VFB (11)

 R1 and R2 = resistors of the divider

 VFB = feedback voltage
 VOUT = output voltage desired

2.7.8 CAPACITOR SELECTION

An ESR capacitor is usually used at the output to mitigate or totally remove the ripple on the output
voltage. An alternative is using the ceramic type only if the dielectric material used is X5R or
something better. Any capacitor with a capacitance above the minimum stated on the data sheet can
also be used for converters with external compensation (Hauke, 2014).
There might be need for adjusting the output capacitor values to get the desired voltage ripple in
external compensation and this is done through the equation;

IOUT (max)  D
COUT (min) 
fs  VOUT (12)

 COUT(min)= minimum output capacitance

 ΔVOUT=desired output voltage ripple
The ESR of the capacitor causes more voltage ripple given by;

IOUT (max) IL

VOUT ( ESR )  ESR  
1 D 2 (13)

 VOUT(ESR)=output voltage ripple due to ESR

 ESR=equivalent series resistance
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2.8 COMPONENTS AND THEIR FUNCTIONS
The component that plays a pivotal role in a boost converter is the inductor. Its purpose is for storing
the energy in its core and it also acts as a magnetic field storage element. Pulse width modulation is
there to switch control between the two states (ON/OFF) and the MOSFET is added to act as the switch
element. A capacitor and a diode works together to for two main purposes namely, rectification and
for filtering.
2.9 THE TECHNIQUE OF PWM
Almost all modern power electronics systems use Pulse Width Modulation for control nowadays. One
advantage of PWM is its ability to repetitively generate digital signals in the exact manner that they
would have been scheduled. How the devices will be driven is best described by the different rise and
fall times of the signal. The rise and fall times are set to be fast so that the time taken in the switching
transition and the relative switching losses are reduced. The signal of reference independent of the
method of modulation but on the application. DC-DC converters operation in steady state have a
constant PWM reference. This only shows variation if the converter goes through a change of state
(Sun, 2012). The PWM signal is useful in reduction of voltage and current harmonics. It also plays an
important role in controlling of the voltage output and controlling the switching pattern between the
two states (Rao, et al., 2014).
Pulse Width Modulation signals constitutes of a fixed frequency and a fixed magnitude. What varies
in PWM signals is the pulse width only. PWM signals control the ON and OFF intervals of the
transistor to change between the periods according to the fixed modulating signal. The frequency of
the modulating signal must be much lower than that of the PWM signal. This is done to ensure that the
overall energy at the output is more dependent on the modulating signal than on the PWM signal
(Singh, et al., 2014).

2.9.1 TYPES OF PWM SIGNALS

The two main types of PWM signals are Asymmetric and Symmetric. What differentiates the two is
the orientation of their respective pulses. Symmetric PWM signal has a pulse that is symmetric to the
centre of each PWM at all times whereas Asymmetric PWM signal have only one side that is aligned
with one end of each PWM period at all the times. Analysis shows that the symmetric PWM signal
produces less harmonics at the output compared to the Asymmetric PWM signal (Singh, et al., 2014).
The diagram below shows the two types of PWM signal;

Figure 16:Types of PWM signals

 2.9.2 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF PWM
ADVANTAGES
1. Easy to implement and control
2. Low power dissipation
3. Harmonics can be easily eliminated

DISADVANTAGES
1. SCRs are costly because they exhibit low turn-on and turn-off times (Singh, et al., 2014).
2. They are very expensive
3. They have greater switching losses due to higher switching frequency

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CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY

3.1 INTRODUCTION
This chapter describes the procedure and steps involved in the design of 6V – 10V microcontroller
based DC-DC boost converter. The programming environment that was used is the Arduino IDE. This
developed an algorithm that generates the PWM signal from embedded devices. Proteus Design Suite
software is used to design, simulate the circuit diagram and generate the Printed Circuit Board while
the hardware is implemented on a general PCB board. 6V is supplied from the voltage source with an
uncertainty of ±10 % to the boost converter which in turn produces an output of 10V with the same
tolerance as that of the supply.

3.2 BLOCK DIAGRAM OF THE BOOST CONVERTER

Figure 17:The circuit block diagram

In the ON state the inductor (magnetic field storage element) and the switch control receives voltage
directly from the source The block which encloses switch control guides the action of the switching
element, while the output chunk delivers a tolerable DC voltage to the output. To obtain a circuit that
can behave in this manner, approximate calculations are done to come up with the best suited
components and this is further explained in the later of this chapter.

3.3DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS
The specifications for the design is 6 Volt DC voltage as the input voltage with ±10 % tolerance and
10 Volts output voltage with ±10 % tolerance will be delivered to the load. The largest current supplied
to the load will be 0.10 A. The value of the components of the boost converter is calculated in order to
meet the design specification. The supply and output voltages, the load resistance, the switching
frequency, the peak-peak output ripple voltage and variation in inductor current are well-defined by
the design specifications working in the CCM as shown in table below;
 PARAMETERS VALUES

Input voltage 6Volts

Output voltage 10Volts

Load resistance 100Ω

Switching frequency 35kHz

Peak-peak o/p ripple voltage 1%

Variation in inductor current 40%

3.4 DESIGN CALCULATIONS

The design calculation based on the design specification as stated in Table above is as follows.
3.4.1 LOAD CURRECT
Vo 10
Io  
RL 100
Io  0.1A

3.4.2 DUTY CYCLE

Vs 6
D  1  1
VO 10
D  0 .4
3.4.3 THE PEAK TO PEAK OUTPUT VOLTAGE RIPPLE, Δ𝐕O

Assuming the peak to peak output voltage ripple is not more than 1%;
ΔVo  1%  Vo
ΔVo  0.0110
ΔVo  0.10V

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3.4.4 MINIMUM CAPACITOR VALUE
V oD 10  0.4
C min  
RLVofs 100  0.10  35000
C min  0.000011428F
C min  11F

3.4.45AVERAGE INDUCTOR CURRENT, IL

Vs VoIo (Vo )(Vo)
IL   
(1  D ) RL Vs VsRL
100
IL   0.17 A
6 100

3.4.6 CHANGE IN INDUCTOR CURRENT

IL  40%  IL
IL  40%  0.17 A
IL  0.068A

3.4.7 MINIMUM INDUCTOR CURRENT

IL
I . min  IL 
2
0.068
I . min  0.17 
2
I . min  0.136A
3.4.8 MAXIMUM INDUCTOR CURRENT
IL
I . max  IL 
2
0.068
I . max  0.17 
2
I . max  0 .2 A
 3.4.9 MINIMUM INDUCTOR VALUE

VsD 6  0.4
L min  
fsIL 35000 0.17
L min  403.4H
3.4.10 DIODE
The diode should be of the following specifications;
Number – 6A10
Max Current - 6A
Max Voltage – 1000V
VFOWARD breakdown – 0.9V

3.4.11 MOSFET
The MOSFET should be of the following specifications;
Number – IRFP260N
VOUT – 100
ILOAD – 33A
RDS – 0.0044Ω
Frequency – 35kHz
N-channel

PERIOD, T

1 1
T 
fs 35000
T  29 sec
SWTCH ON TIME

ton  DT  0.4  29 sec

ton  12 sec
SWITCH OFF TIME

toff  (1  D)T  (1  0.4)29 sec

toff  17 sec

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3.5 IMPLEMENTATION AND TESTING
At first proteus is used to test the circuit to see if it produces the required results (high voltage at output
of about 10V) before the buying of the components. The first part of the circuit is to be connected at
the bread board for testing of components before prototype made in compliance with IEE standards. A
digital multimeter is used to measure the output voltage as well as the input voltage. The parameters
of component values for hardware design can be obtained through some calculation from the
theoretical formulae and analysis on MATLAB Simulink software. All the simulation results will be
verified by the hardware design. The process involved are simulating the boost converter circuit,
designing the circuit layout, making the printed circuit board (PCB), testing the PCB board, analysing
the data on hardware and drawing conclusion.

3.5.1 PROTEUS SIMULATION

Figure 18:The proteus simulation

The approximated values for the different components of the boost converter are assembled and
tested through a process called simulation. The simulation software used for this particular project is
proteus and the components were connected as shown by the diagram above.
 3.6 DESIGN OF A BOOST CONVERTER

Figure 19: The design of a boost converter

Figure 19 displays the designed circuit diagram for the boost converter. The PWM generated from the
microcontroller has LOW and HIGH state respectively. During High state of the PWM, the MOSFET
switch (IRFP260N) is closed, the left-hand side of the circuit is shorted, the 450uH inductor stores
some energy due to the flow of current in a clockwise direction by producing a magnetic field,
therefore, input current through the diode is zero.
Immediately the output of microcontroller goes LOW, the MOSFET switch is opened, the magnetic
field that has been created by the inductor will be shattered to keep the current towards the load hence,
an inductor is expanded and it will create a voltage L v which will pass through the diode along with
the source voltage 6 V. At the end, we shall have two suppliers in series causing a higher voltage to
charge the capacitor via the diode and the rest will appear at the load end (Sa’ad, 2019).

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3.7 FLOW DIAGRAM FOR THE MICROCONTROLLER OPERATION

Figure 20:The flow diagram

The microcontroller used is the ATMEGA 328P.The flow diagram above shows how the
microcontroller will be operating for us to obtain the specified output voltage for any given input value
and also for any size of load. For any applied load, the circuit will first send a feedback to the
microcontroller which then checks if there is need to reduce or increase the duty cycle in such a way
as to maintain the output voltage at the set value. A bigger load will result in a larger voltage drop
which will affect the overall output voltage so to mitigate this, a feedback is sent to the microcontroller
which first compares the new output value to the set value and then decides whether to increases or
decrease the duty cycle until the output voltage is equal to the set voltage value.
 3.8 PROTOTYPE TESTING
The interfaced components were tested on the breadboard. Below is a picture of the interfaced
components displaying the set voltage and the output voltage on an LCD at that instant:

Figure 21:The prototype testing and results

3.9 PCB DESIGNING

PCB designing was done using Dip Trace software. The schematic below shows the final design in
Dip trace before printing;

Figure 22: Dip trace circuit design

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3.9.1 PCB PRINTING AND HOLE DRILLING
The PCB production process begins with the drilling of holes. The board is rinsed first then nice holes
should be drilled using a bit and following the holes as shown by the diagram below;

Figure 23: The printed PCB board

3.9.2 COMPONENT MOUNTING AND SOLDERING

MOUNTING STEPS AND PRECAUTIONS
1. The PCB board should be checked for cracks, beaks and any additional defects in the
conduction bands.
2. Fully insert the components into the board making sure that any material written on the
components is completely visible.
3. Bend the end of the inserted component flat on the PCB board so that firm contact is made with
surface on which it is to be soldered.
4. For all semiconductor devices, the length of the leads should be about 1cm from the PCB board.
 SOLDERING STEPS AND PRECAUTIONS
One should also take not of the following before grabbing a soldering gun;
1. Use a light duty soldering iron rated, 25-30W to prevent great heat which might damage the
circuitry.
2. Avoid using excess solder so as that solder flouring to adjacent conduction bands is minimized.
3. Flux the surface of the traces before soldering.
4. Maintain sufficient space between components
5. Components that dissipates heat must be mounted far from semiconductors and electrolytic
capacitors.
6. Components must make proper contact with the copper side of the PCB board.
7. A PCB board avoids all the disadvantages of a breadboard and they also increase efficiency.
The diagram below shows a PCB board with some of the components mounted and soldered;

Figure 24: Components mounted and soldered on the PCB board

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CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
4.1 INTRODUCTION
In this chapter, the discussion will be based on the hardware and software development.

4.2 CIRCUIT RESULTS

The diagram below shows the LCD displaying the set voltage and the output voltage;

Figure 25: Circuit results

The LCD above is used as the graphics user interface which is responsible of showing the set voltage
as per the user’s request and the overall output voltage produced by the circuit. The set voltage on top
is set using the potentiometer by the user and the microcontroller will constantly compare the voltage
at the output with the one set and adjust the duty cycle until the two voltages are equal.

The diagram below shows the PWM signal and the duty cycle at no load conditions;

Figure 26.The PWM signal produced

 On the oscilloscope is a representation of the PWM signal produced showing the on time and the off
time of the switch. The switch used in this case is the MOSFET IRFP260N. The signal shows the duty
cycle which is less than 50% for this instance but can be changed to any percentage depending on the
applied load in such a way as to maintain the output voltage equal to the set voltage.

The diagram below shows the complete project with the oscilloscope connected to show the duty cycle

Figure 27: Final project results

Shown above is the complete project with all components on the PCB. A dc source is used to power
up the circuit with an input DC voltage of 7V. The set voltage is set to 11.00V and the output voltage
is shown to be 10.9V and is displayed by the LCD on the lower part. A digital multimeter is used to
measure the voltage at the output to ensure that the LCD is showing the correct value and it is shown
everything is up to standard. With this we have managed to meet the design objectives and marks the
end of the design concept.

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4.4 CASING AND PACKAGING

Figure 28:Final project casing and packaging

4.5 PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Good project management is important if one wishes to meet all project objectives with effective
planning, organizing and sourcing resources within a specific time span. Project schedule has been
tabulated on Gantt chart which shows a guideline time for the project.

4.5.1 GANTT CHART

Actual Oct 2019 Nov 2019 Dec 2019 Jan 2020 Feb 2020 Mar 2020 Apr 2020 May 2020
ID Task Name Start Finish Duration
Finish 24/5

PROJECT
1 7/10/2019 31/10/2019 15/10/2019 19d
PROPOSAL

LITERATURE
2 7/10/2019 22/5/2020 22/5/2020 165d
REVIEW

ANALYSIS,OPTIMIZ
3 25/10/2019 2/12/2019 2/12/2019 27d
ATION AND DESIGN

DETAILED DESIGN
4 7/11/2019 20/12/2019 20/12/2019 32d
ANALYSIS

SIMULATION AND
5 20/12/2019 24/2/2020 24/2/2020 47d
PROTOTYPE

6 TESTING 24/2/2020 2/3/2020 2/3/2020 6d

PROGRESS
7 10/4/2020 17/4/2020 17/4/2020 6d
ASESSMENT

PROJECT
8 15/5/2020 22/5/2020 22/5/2020 6d
PRESENTATION

FINAL REPORT
9 7/10/2019 22/5/2020 22/5/2020 165d
COMPILATION

Figure 29:The Gantt chart

 4.5.2 COST BUDGET

The project has components that I needed to build the boost converter. Estimated with USD $38
budget.

TOTAL
ITEM UNIT PRICE
NO. ITEM QUANTITY PRCE($USD) ($USD)

1 ARDUINO UNO 1 $15.00 $15.00

2 LCD 16×2 1 $5.00 $5.00

3 MOSFETS 3 $1.00 $3.00

4 POTENTIOMETER 1 $3.00 $3.00

5 CAPACITORS 3 $1.00 $3.00

6 RESISTORS 5 $0.65 $3.25

7 INDUCTORS 2 $0.65 $1.30

8 LED 2 $0.12 $0.24

9 5V REGULATOR 1 $1.00 $1.00

10 DIODE 1 $1.00 $1.00

11 HEAT SINK 1 $3.00 $3.00

TOTAL $38.79
Figure 30:Cost budget

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CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATION

5.1 CONCLUSION
According to the design proposed, the boost converter has the ability to generate a constant output
voltage of 10 V from an input voltage of 6 as required by the design question. Furthermore, the design
has been improved so that it does not deliver only 10V at the output but the user can choose any voltage
output between the range of 8V and 200V by turning the set switch. The output of the boost converter
is based on the changing of the duty cycle which is made possible by the use of the microcontroller. A
feedback circuit has been added to the design so that it maintains a constant output voltage regardless
of the different loads applied. Components have been chosen carefully basing on the considerations
made. ATMEGA328P microcontroller is able to perform the voltage feedback control technique by
constantly comparing the voltage from the feedback circuit and the voltage set by the user. The PWM
circuit was made so that the switching frequency is able to drive the switch gate. It is also responsible
for ensuring that the duty cycle is adequate to keep the set voltage and the actual output voltage
balanced.

5.2 CHALLENGES FACED

The following were the major challenges faced in making the design;
1. The lab could not provide me with the required inductor so making one from scratch was not
an easy task.
2. The other challenge was in setting the appropriate switching frequency to control the PWM.

5.3 FUTURE WORK AND RECOMENDATIONS

For the sake of further developing this design in future one has to note the following;
1. Only a small amount of power is released at the output by this boost converter. The
recommendation is that, to be able to deliver more output power the use of a current fed full
bridge isolated DC-DC converter should be considered.
2. A filter should be implemented in the design so as to minimize the harmonics and hence
increase efficiency.
3. The trade-off between cost losses made throughout the switching process should also be
brought into consideration.
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