Minimally Invasive Sentry Platform for Next Generation Power Conversion (ARD/281)

Power converter is the heart of electric equipment, providing electrical power supplies at a variety of voltage and current levels. According to research from Markets and Markets in 2019, global market for DC-DC converter is estimated to expand at a CAGR over 15% and exceed US$19.8 billion by 2025. Market for AC-DC converter is no smaller than the DC-DC converter. About 30% of breakdowns in electronic equipment are caused by the power converters. To avoid the occurrence of catastrophic failure and stimulate the sustainable electronics in Smart City, a minimally invasive sentry platform for health monitoring and predictive maintenance of electrolytic capacitors is essential and critical. This project aims to develop a pioneering minimally invasive sentry platform for electrolytic capacitors in next generation power converters with the following key features: (1) offering the real-time diagnosis (RTD) for health monitoring and artificial intelligence based predictive maintenance (AI-PM) for capacitors; (2) compatible with major power conversion topologies. By implementing a predictive maintenance strategy in the power converter industry, the proposed project will not only enhance the reliability and dependability of infrastructure in Smart City but also accelerate the digital transformation of Hong Kong towards Industry 4.0.