International Journal of Emerging Technology and Advanced Engineering Website: www.ijetae.com (ISSN 2250-2459, ISO 9001:2008 Certified Journal, Volume 4, Issue 2, February 2014) Asymmetric Cascaded Multilevel Inverter Using Submultilevel Cells P. Alagu Sundari1, S. Dhinakaraj2 1 PG Student, 2Asst professor, Department of Electrical Engineering, Sri Lakshmi Ammal Engineering College, Anna Unniversity, Chennai, India. Abstract—Multilevel inverters produce a staircase output voltage from DC voltage sources. Requiring great number of semiconductor switches is main disadvantage of multilevel inverters. The multilevel inverters can be divided in two groups: symmetric and asymmetric converters. Application of multilevel inverters for higher power purposes is quite increasing in industries Because of high-quality output waveform of multilevel inverters incomparison with two-level inverters, they are becoming more popular. In this paper, initially a submultilevel cell is proposed and then series connection of the submultilevel cells are proposed. The proposed multilevel inverter uses reduced number of switching devices. The proposed method is developed to obtain optimal structures regarding different criteria such as number of switches, standing voltage on the switches, number of dc voltage sources, etc. Comparative study of symmetric and asymmetric condition of sub multi level cells was performed. By using FFT analysis harmonic spectrum was analyzed. The proposed multilevel inverter has been analyzed in both symmetric and asymmetric conditions. The NPC multilevel inverter, also called diodeclamped, can be considered the first generation of multilevel inverter introduced by Nabae et al. [7] which was a three-level inverter. The three-level case of the NPC multilevel inverters has been widely applied in different industries. Unlike the NPC type, the FC multilevel inverter offers some redundant switching states that can be used to regulate the capacitors voltage. However, the control scheme becomes complicated. Moreover, the number of capacitors increases by increasing the number of voltage levels. The CHB multilevel inverters use series-connected Hbridge cells with an isolated dc voltage sources connected to each cell. The CHB multilevel inverters can be divided into two groups from the viewpoint of values of the dc voltage sources: the symmetric and the asymmetric topology. In the symmetric topology, the values of all of the dc voltage sources are equal. This characteristic gives the topology good modularity. However, the number of the switching devices rapidly increases by increasing the number of output voltage level. In order to increase the number of output voltage level, the values of the dc voltage sources are selected to be different, these topologies are called asymmetric [8], [9]. The CHB multilevel inverters have been industrially employed in several applications fields such as pump, fans, compressors, etc. In addition, they have recently been proposed for other applications like photovoltaic power-conversion system and wind power conversion [10]. The topologies discussed previously are the conventional topologies. Many other multilevel inverter topologies have been introduced in recent years. One of the topologies is the modular multi-level inverter [11]. This topology is simpler than the cascaded four-switch H-bridge-based inverter and has several advantages, such as modular extension to any number of levels and redundancy [12]. However, the topology does not consider reduction in the number of components used. Other multilevel inverter topologies have been introduced in [13]–[15]. The multilevel inverter based on symmetric topology and uses series/parallel connection of the dc voltage sources uses lower number of switches in comparison with the symmetric CHB multilevel inverter. The topologies presented in [13] and [14] consider reduction in the components. Index Terms—Generalized topology, multilevel inverter, Optimal structure, submultilevel inverter. I. INTRODUCTION Multilevel inverters include an array of power semiconductors and dc voltage sources, the output of which generate voltages with stepped waveforms [2]. In comparison with a two-level voltage-source inverter (VSI), the multilevel VSI enables to synthesize output voltages with reduced harmonic distortion and lower electromagnetic interference [3].By increasing the number of levels in the multilevel inverters, the output voltages have more steps in generating a staircase waveform, which has a reduced harmonic distortion. However,a larger number of levels increase the number of devices that must be controlled and the control complexity [4]. Multilevel inverters produce a stepped output phase voltage with a refined harmonic profile when compared to a two-level inverter. The concept of multilevel inverters, introduced about 30 years ago, entails performing power conversion in multiple voltage steps to obtain improved power quality, lower switching losses, better electromagnetic compatibility, and higher voltage capability. Nowadays, there exist three commercial topologies of multilevel voltage source inverters:There are three well-known types of multilevel inverters [5],[6]: the neutral point clamped (NPC) multilevel inverter, the flying capacitor (FC) multilevel inverter, and the cascaded H-bridge (CHB) multilevel inverter. 166 International Journal of Emerging Technology and Advanced Engineering Website: www.ijetae.com (ISSN 2250-2459, ISO 9001:2008 Certified Journal, Volume 4, Issue 2, February 2014) These topologies are basically based on asymmetric topologies; hence, the used dc voltage sources have different values. However, the number of switching devices still remains high in these topologies. A ninelevel active NPC inverter has been presented in which is the modification of the standard active NPC converter. Nami et al. This paper proposes a new multilevel inverter topology using series connected submultilevel inverters. The proposed multi- level inverter uses reduced number of switches. Initially, the proposed submulti level inverter is described and then the series connection of them to form a multilevel inverter is discussed. The optimal structures of the proposed multilevel inverter regarding several factors (e.g., number of switches, number of dc voltage sources, standing voltage on the switches, etc.) are also obtained. The unidirectional switches consist of an insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) with an antiparallel diode. The switches S1, S1, S(n +2)/2 , and S(n +2)/2 are unidirectional and the other switches are bidirectional; hence, they have to withstand both positive and negative voltages. For instance, when S(n +2)/2 is turned ON, the voltage Vdc is on the switch Sn /2 , and if the switch S(n −2)/2 is turned ON, the voltage equal to −Vdc is on the switch Sn /2 . The same conditions are valid for the other switches. Therefore, the switches have to withstand both positive and negative voltages. In addition, the switches have to conduct backward current that is as a result of inductive characteristic of the load. It can be concluded that the switches must be bidirectional. There are several circuit configurations for bidirectional switches. In this study, the common emitter topology is used as it needs one gate driver for a switch. Considering the types of the switches, 2n IGBTs are required in the proposed submultilevel inverter. It is worth mentioning that the number of the antiparallel diodes is equal to the number of IGBTs. The proposed submultilevel inverter can only generate zero and positive voltage levels. The zero output voltage is obtained when the switches S1 and S1 are turned ON simultaneously. The other voltage levels are generated by proper switching between the switches. Table I shows the states of the switches for each output voltage value[1]. In this table, 1 means that the corresponding switch is turned ON and 0 indicates the OFF state. Table I Output Voltages For States Of Switches Fig.1. Proposed generalized submultilevel inverter. The reliability of a multilevel inverter is proportional to the number of its components. Clamping diodes and balancing capacitors are not needed in the Cascaded SubMultilevel Cells. Another advantage of the Cascaded Sub-Multilevel Cells is circuit layout flexibility and modularized circuit layout and packaging is possible in it same as H-bridge cascaded topology. The number of output voltage levels can be easily adjusted by changing the number of sub-multilevel inverters. II. PROPOSED GENERALISED MULTI LEVEL INVERTER Considering Fig. 1, for each value of the output voltage of sub-multilevel inverter, two switches must be turned ON, one from the upper switches and the other from the lower switches[1]. For example, to get output voltage of Vdc , the switches S1 and S2 are turned ON. In order to obtain the output voltage of (n − 1)Vdc , the switches Sn /2 and S(n +2)/2 should be turned ON. Considering Fig. 1, the following equations can be written: A. Proposed Submultilevel Inverter Fig. 1 shows the proposed submultilevel inverter[1]. As depicted in Fig. 1, the topology consists of n dc voltage sources. In general, the dc voltage sources can have different values. However, in order to have equal voltage steps, they are considered to be the same and equal to Vdc . Each submultilevel inverter consists of n + 2 switches. Some of the switches are unidirectional and the others are bidirectional. 167 International Journal of Emerging Technology and Advanced Engineering Website: www.ijetae.com (ISSN 2250-2459, ISO 9001:2008 Certified Journal, Volume 4, Issue 2, February 2014) For this purpose, an H-bridge inverter is added to the output of the series connected submultilevel inverters. It is important to note that the switches of the H-bridge must withstand higher voltage. This should be considered in the design of the inverter. However, these switches are turned ON and OFF once during a fundamental cycle. So, these switches would be high-voltage low-frequency switches. Considering that the multilevel inverter shown in Fig. 2 includes m submultilevel inverter (using (1)–(4) and considering the H-bridge part), . If n dc voltage sources are used as shown in Fig. 1, then the number of output voltage levels (S) and switches (Nsw) are given by the followingequations, respectively, Where, Nswitch,sub , Ndriver,sub , NIGBT,sub , and Nsource,sub are the number of switches, number of switches drivers in one sub-multilevel inverter, number of IGBTs in one submultilevel inverter, and number of dc sources in one submultilevel inverter,respectively. B. Types of Submultilevel inverter 1) Proposed Symmetric Multilevel Inverter: For the symmetric multilevel inverter, all of the dc voltage sources are considered to be equal. Therefore, the following equations can be written for the symmetric topology: The suggested topology operates in symmetric state and some switches (H-bridge) of suggested topology have high peak inverse voltage. Vdc,1 = Vdc,2 = ・ ・ ・ = Vdc,m 2) Proposed Asymmetric Multilevel Inverter: For the asymmetric topology, the value of the dc voltage sources is different from a sub multilevel inverter to another. In other words, if the dc sources of the first sub multilevel inverter is Vdc,1 , the dc sources of the second sub multilevel inverter is Vdc,2. To get maximum number of level for the output voltage, there must be no redundancy. III. SYMMETRIC SUB MULTILEVEL INVERTER Symmetric sub multilevel inverter circuit diagram is shown in Fig 3. The circuit diagram consists of thirteen switches, three symmetric voltage source and a load. a) Operation for 13 level symmetric inverter The required thirteen levels of output voltage were generated as follows: Mode 1(0Vdc): All the switches will be turned OFF and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So no current flows. The voltage applied to the load terminal is zero (0). Mode 2(100Vdc): The switch S1, S2, S5, S6, S13 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S5, S1, LOAD, S2, S13, S6 ,V1(100V),S5. The voltage applied to the load terminal is 100V. Mode 3(200Vdc): The switch S1,S2,S5, S7and S13 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S5, S1, LOAD, S2, S13, S7, V2, V1, S5. The voltage applied to the load terminal is 200V. Mode 4(300Vdc): The switch S1, S2, S5, S8, and S13 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S5, S1, LOAD, S2, S13, S8, V3, V2, V1, S5 . The voltage applied to the load terminal is 300V. C. Proposed Generalized Multilevel Inverter The proposed submultilevel inverters can be connected in series to achieve the desired voltage and number of voltage levels. Fig. 2. Proposed general multilevel inverter using series connection of m proposed submultilevel inverters, each one has n dc voltage sources. Fig. 2 shows m submultilevel inverters in series. Each submultilevel inverter has n dc voltage source[1]. The dc voltage sources in each submultilevel inverter are equal. The output voltage of the submultilevel inverters (and series connection of them) is always positive or zero. To operate as an inverter, it is necessary to change the voltage polarity in every half cycle. 168 International Journal of Emerging Technology and Advanced Engineering Website: www.ijetae.com (ISSN 2250-2459, ISO 9001:2008 Certified Journal, Volume 4, Issue 2, February 2014) Mode 5(400Vdc): The switch S1, S2, S5, S8, S9 and S10 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S5, S1, LOAD, S2, S10, V4, S9, S8, V3, V2, V1, S5. The voltage applied to the load terminal is 400V. Mode 6(500Vdc): The switch S1, S2, S5, S8, S9 and S11 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S5, S1, LOAD, S2, S11, V5, V4, S8, V3, V2, V1 ,S5. The voltage applied to the load terminal is 500V. Similarly for all other modes in negative output voltages. So, we get output voltages as -400V, 500V, and -600V. b) Switching patterns The table 2. shows the Switching pattern of 13 level inverter for a proposed Symmetric Multilevel inverter system. Table 2. Switching pattern for Symmetric Sub MLI Symmetric Sub Multi Level Inverter Fig 3 Circuit diagram of symmetric sub multilevel inverter Mode 7(600Vdc): The switch S1, S2, S5, S8, S9 and S12 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S5, S1, LOAD, S2, S12, V6, V5, V4, S9, S8, V3, V2, V1, S5. The voltage applied to the load terminal is 600V. Mode 8(-100Vdc): The switch S3, S4, S5, S6, and S13 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S5, S3, LOAD, S4, S13, S6 ,V1(100V),S5. The voltage applied to the load terminal is -100V. Mode 9(-200Vdc): The switch S3,S4 ,S5, S7and S13 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S5, S3, LOAD, S4, S13, S7, V2, V1, S5. The voltage applied to the load terminal is -200V. Mode 10(-300Vdc): The switch S3,S4, S5, S8, and S13 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S5, S3, LOAD, S4, S13, S8, V3, V2, V1 ,S5. The voltage applied to the load terminal is -300V. S S S S S S S S S S S S S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Voltage Level(v) 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 100 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 200 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 300 400 500 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 600 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 500 400 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 300 200 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 100 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 -100 -200 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 -300 -400 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 -500 -600 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 -500 -400 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 -300 -200 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 -100 0 IV. ASYMMETRIC CASCADED MULTI LEVEL INVERTER Asymmetric sub multilevel inverter circuit diagram is shown in Fig 4. The circuit diagram consists of ten switches, three asymmetric voltage source and a load. 169 International Journal of Emerging Technology and Advanced Engineering Website: www.ijetae.com (ISSN 2250-2459, ISO 9001:2008 Certified Journal, Volume 4, Issue 2, February 2014) a) Operation for 13 level asymmetric inverter The required thirteen levels of output voltage were generated as follows: Mode 1(0Vdc): All the switches will be turned OFF and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So no current flows. The voltage applied to the load terminal is zero (0). Mode 2(100Vdc): The switch S1, S2, S5, S8, and S9 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S5, S1, LOAD, S2, S9, S8, VDC(100V),S5. The voltage applied to the load terminal is 100V. Mode 8(-100Vdc): The switch S3, S4, S5, S8, and S9 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S5, S3, LOAD, S4, S9, S8, VDC(100V),S5. The voltage applied to the load terminal is -100V. Mode 9(-200Vdc): The switch S3, S4, S6, S7and S9 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S6, S3, LOAD, S4, S9, 2VDC, S7, S6. The voltage applied to the load terminal is -200V. Mode 10(-300Vdc): The switch S3, S4, S6, S8, and S10 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S6, S3, LOAD, S4,S10, 3VDC,S8,S6 .The voltage applied to the load terminal is -300V. Similarly for all other modes in negative output voltages. So, we get output voltages as -400V,-500V, and -600V. b) Switching patterns The table 3 shows the Switching pattern of 13 level Asymmetric inverter for a proposed Multilevel inverter system. Table 3. Switching pattern for Symmetric Sub MLI Asymmetric sub multi level inverter Fig 4. Circuit diagram of Asymmetric sub multilevel inverter Mode 3(200Vdc): The switch S1,S2,S6, S7and S9 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S6, S1, LOAD, S2,9,2VDC,S7,S6. The voltage applied to the load terminal is 200V. Mode 4(300Vdc): The switch S1, S2, S6, S8, and S10 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S6, S1, LOAD, S2,S10, 3VDC,S8,S6 .The voltage applied to the load terminal is 300V. Mode 5(400Vdc): The switch S1, S2, S5, S8, and S10 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path S5, S1, LOAD, S2, S10,3VDC,S8,VDC,S5..The voltage applied to the load terminal is 400V. Mode 6(500Vdc): The switch S1, S2, S6, S7, and S10 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S6, S1, LOAD, S2, S10,3VDC,2VDC,S7,S6. The voltage applied to the load terminal is 500V. Mode 7(600Vdc): The switch S1, S2, S5, S7, and S10 will be turned ON and all other controlled switches are turn OFF. So the current flows path from S5,S1,LOAD,S2,S10,3VDC,2VDC,VDC,S5. The voltage applied to the load terminal is 600V. 170 S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6 S7 S8 S9 S10 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 Voltage Level (v) 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 500 400 300 200 100 0 -100 -200 -300 -400 -500 -600 -500 -400 -300 -200 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 -100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 International Journal of Emerging Technology and Advanced Engineering Website: www.ijetae.com (ISSN 2250-2459, ISO 9001:2008 Certified Journal, Volume 4, Issue 2, February 2014) Pulse generation V. SIMULATION RESULTS MATLAB is an interactive system whose basic data element is an array that does not require dimensioning. This allows you to solve many technical computing problems, especially those with matrix and vector formulations, in a fraction of the time it would take to write a program in a scalar non interactive language such as C or Fortran. The name MATLAB stands for matrix laboratory. MATLAB was originally written to provide easy access to matrix software developed by the LINPACK and EISPACK projects. Today, MATLAB engines incorporate the LAPACK and BLAS libraries, embedding the state of the art in software for matrix computation MATLAB has evolved over a period of years with input from many users. In university environments, it is the standard instructional tool for introductory and advanced courses in mathematics, engineering, and science. In industry, MATLAB is the tool of choice for high-productivity research, development, and analysis. Fig5 b) pulse generation Proposed symmetric sub multi level inverter: Fig.5b) shows the simulated gate Triggering pulses, which is measured by connecting a single scope measurement. Circuit diagram: Using MATLAB 7.3, the proposed inverter is drawn in a model file as shown in the Fig.5a) and the semiconductor devices are operated as per the switching sequence obtained as discussed in the previous chapter. component values are chosen based on the design requirement. Output voltage of symmetric 13-level inverter Fig. 5c) shows the simulated output voltage, which is measured across the output of resistive loads by connecting a voltage measurement with scope. Fig.5 c) output voltage waveform FFT analysis By using multilevel inverter the even harmonics are eliminated due to its symmetrical. And odd harmonics are reduced and input cycle is taken as five for a 50HZ supply. Fig.5 a) Simulation Diagram of sub multi thirteen-Level Inverter 171 International Journal of Emerging Technology and Advanced Engineering Website: www.ijetae.com (ISSN 2250-2459, ISO 9001:2008 Certified Journal, Volume 4, Issue 2, February 2014) Pulse generation Fig.5 d) FFT analysis As shown in the fig.5d), the total harmonics distortion is 14.05% for symmetric sub multi inverter. In comparison of cascaded and symmetric MLI, the THD value is minimized. Proposed asymmetric sub multilevel inverter Circuit diagram Fig.6 b) pulse generation Fig.6b) shows the simulated gate Triggering pulses, which is measured by connecting a single scope measurement. Output voltage of asymmetric 13-level inverter Fig.6c) shows the simulated output voltage, which is measured across the output of resistive loads by connecting a voltage measurement with scope. Fig.6 c) output voltage waveform Fig.6 a) Simulation Diagram of a Asymmetric sub multi thirteenLevel Inverter FFT analysis By using multilevel inverter the even harmonics are eliminated due to its symmetrical. And odd harmonics are reduced and input cycle is taken as five for a 50HZ supply. Using MATLAB 7.3, the proposed inverter is drawn in a model file as shown in the Fig.6a) and the semiconductor devices are operated as per the switching sequence obtained as discussed in the previous chapter. Component values are chosen based on the design requirement. 172 International Journal of Emerging Technology and Advanced Engineering Website: www.ijetae.com (ISSN 2250-2459, ISO 9001:2008 Certified Journal, Volume 4, Issue 2, February 2014) REFERENCES Mohammad Farhadi Kangarlu, and Ebrahim Babaei, “A Generalized Cascaded Multilevel Inverter Using Series Connection of Submultilevel Inverters” IEEE transactions on power electronics, vol. 28, no. 2, february 2013 [2] J. Rodriguez, J. S. Lai, and F. Z. Peng, “Multilevel inverters: A survey of topologies, controls, and applications,” IEEE Trans. Ind. Electron.,vol. 49, no. 4, pp. 724–738, Aug. 2002. [3] J. H. Kim, S. K. Sul, and P. N. Enjeti, “A carrier-based PWM method with optimal switching sequence for a multilevel four-leg voltage-source inverter,” IEEE Trans. Ind. Appl., vol. 44, no. 4, pp. 1239–1248, Jul./Aug.2008. [4] O. Lopez, J. Alvarez, J. Doval-Gandoy, F. D. Freijedo, A. Nogueiras,A. Lago, and C. M. Penalver, “Comparison of the FPGA implementation of two multilevel space vector PWM algorithms,” IEEE Trans. Ind.Electron., vol. 55, no. 4, pp. 1537– 1547, Apr. 2008. [5] A. A. Boora, A. Nami, F. Zare, A. Ghosh, and F. Blaabjerg, “Voltagesharing converter to supply single-phase asymmetrical four-level diode clamped inverter with high power factor loads,” IEEE Trans. Power Electron., vol. 25, no. 10, pp. 2507–2520, Oct. 2010. [6] J. Rodriguez, S. Bernet, P. Steimer, and I. Lizama, “A survey on neutral point clamped inverters,” IEEE Trans. Ind. Electron., vol. 57, no. 7, pp. 2219–2230, Jul. 2010. [7] A. Nabae, I. Takahashi, and H. Akagi, “A new neutral-pointclamped PWM inverter,” IEEE Trans. Ind. Appl., vol. IA-17, no. 5, pp. 518–523, Sep./Oct. 1981. [8] [7] M. Manjrekar and T. A. Lipo, “A hybrid multilevel inverter topology for drive application,” in Proc. Appl. Power Electron. Conf., 1998, vol. 2, pp. 523–529. [9] A. Rufer, M. Veenstra, and A. Gopakumar, “Asymmetric multilevel converter for high resolution voltage phasor generation,” in Proc. Eur. Conf. Power Electron. Appl., Lausanne, Switzerland, 1999, pp. 1–10. [10] J. I. Leon, S. Kouro, S. Vazquez, R. Portillo, L. G. Franquelo, J. M.Carrasco, and J. Rodriguez, “Multidimensional modulation technique for cascaded multilevel converters,” IEEE Trans. Ind. Electron., vol. 58, no. 2,pp. 412–420, Feb. 2011. [11] M. H. Rashid, Power Electronics: Circuits, Devices and Applications,3rd ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, 2003. [1] Fig.6 d) FFT analysis As shown in the fig.6d), the total harmonics distortion is 13.83% for asymmetric sub multi inverter. In comparison of symmetric and asymmetric MLI, the THD value is minimized. VI. CONCLUSION Multilevel inverters are very interesting for high voltage applications, energy conversion and considerably improve the output voltage quality. This paper has proposed a new topology of the cascaded converter called Cascaded Sub-Multilevel Cells. The main advantages of the Cascaded Sub-Multilevel Cells are: improve the output voltage quality reduced number of switching devices operates in symmetric an asymmetric states small on-state voltage drop and conduction losses reduction of dv/dt stresses on the load Comparison between the conventional topologies of multilevel inverters and the proposed multilevel inverter is shown in this paper. In comparison with cascaded and sub multilevel inverters produce greater number of output voltage level with less dc sources and less switching devices. As with asymmetric condition, sub multilevel inverter produce more output voltages than any other multilevel inverter. Simulation results exhibit the good performance and feasibility of the proposed topology. Harmonics produced also less with this method. This makes the submulti level inverter more economic. 173