# High Current Power Supplies with Fredrik Kensander

- Show: [The Amp Hour](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour)
- Published: 2020-12-21
- Length: 1h 10m
- Episode: 522
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2020-12-21-high-current-power-supplies-with-fredrik-kensander
- Listen: https://theamphour.com/522-high-power-supplies-with-fredrik-kensander/

## Summary

Frederick Kinsander of Kraft PowerCon explains the design and application of high-current rectifiers, ranging from 100 kW to 700 kW, used for electroplating PCBs and ballast water treatment. He details the power electronics architecture, including half-bridge topologies, IGBT switching, and the challenges of reverse recovery in secondary diodes. Kinsander also discusses the company's transition from legacy analog code to modern, modular firmware using Zephyr RTOS to manage 40+ firmware variants and improve maintainability.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2020-12-21-high-current-power-supplies-with-fredrik-kensander#t=0) Introduction and Company Overview
- [2:20](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2020-12-21-high-current-power-supplies-with-fredrik-kensander#t=140) High Power Applications: Electroplating and Ballast Water
- [13:54](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2020-12-21-high-current-power-supplies-with-fredrik-kensander#t=834) Power Electronics Architecture and Safety
- [20:46](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2020-12-21-high-current-power-supplies-with-fredrik-kensander#t=1246) Internal Circuit Design: IGBTs, Transformers, and Snubbers
- [39:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2020-12-21-high-current-power-supplies-with-fredrik-kensander#t=2340) Firmware Challenges and Legacy Code
- [44:15](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2020-12-21-high-current-power-supplies-with-fredrik-kensander#t=2655) Adopting Zephyr RTOS and Modular Software
- [51:36](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2020-12-21-high-current-power-supplies-with-fredrik-kensander#t=3096) Testing, Validation, and Stack Configuration

## Topics

- [Analog & power electronics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/analog-and-power-electronics)
- [Embedded firmware](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/embedded-firmware)
- [PCB design & layout](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pcb-design)
- [Test & measurement](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/test-and-measurement)
- [Microcontrollers & dev platforms](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/microcontrollers-and-platforms)

## Most relevant to

established companies

## Mentioned

- Kraft PowerCon (company)
- ABB (company)
- Zephyr (tool)
- Autosar (tool)
- STM32 (chip)
- IGBT (chip)
- Profibus (other)
- Keithley (company)
- Cobra (company)
- Tudor (product)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [High Power PCB Design: Pushing the Limits with Caleb Buck](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ontrack/2025-08-19-high-power-pcb-design-pushing-the-limits-with-caleb-buck) (OnTrack)
- [216: Bavarian Folk Metal](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2017-09-22-216-bavarian-folk-metal) (Embedded.fm)
- [379: Monstrous Cable Corporation](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2021-07-08-379-monstrous-cable-corporation) (Embedded.fm)
- [High Current PDN Design: Engineer of the Year Reveals Industry Secrets](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ontrack/2025-04-21-high-current-pdn-design-engineer-of-the-year-reveals-industry-secrets) (OnTrack)
- [Reducing Energy Consumed By Household Appliances](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ee-times-current/2023-05-02-reducing-energy-consumed-by-household-appliances) (EE Times Current)

## Citing this page

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