Losses
Core and winding losses split and estimated at your waveform, not at a datasheet test point.
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Custom magnetics design, from your waveform to production
ConverNova is a custom magnetics design and manufacturing company based in Madrid, Spain. We design transformers, inductors and common mode chokes around your converter's real operating point, then build them from a single prototype to production series. You get a first design proposal with loss split, inductances, dimensions and hotspot temperature before you spend anything.
The idea
What custom magnetics design means
A catalog magnetic is designed for an average application and measured at one test point. A custom magnetic is designed for yours: your topology, your switching frequency, your waveform, your isolation class, your cooling and the space you have. Core material, core geometry, winding technology and construction are chosen together, so the part hits your efficiency and temperature targets without guesswork and without oversizing.
The honest version
When you need a custom design, and when you do not
Custom pays off when
- The catalog part saturates at your peak current or runs too hot.
- Leakage or magnetizing inductance is part of your control loop, as in LLC, CLLC or dual active bridge.
- Isolation, creepage or partial discharge margins drive the design.
- The space, height or footprint does not match any standard part.
- Your previous supplier stopped making the part.
A catalog part is fine when
- The power is low and a standard buck or boost inductor meets the spec.
- Volume is small and the efficiency target is not tight.
If a catalog part is the right answer, we will tell you and point you to it. See COTS Magnetics.
How it works
How our design process works
01
You send the specification
Through the specification form or by email. A schematic and the waveforms are enough to start.
02
We ask what is missing
An engineer reviews the spec and asks about the waveforms, the operating corners and the constraints that are not written down. This usually takes the first one or two days.
03
You get a design proposal
Core and winding selection, dimensions, simulated core and winding losses, leakage and magnetizing inductance, and the expected hotspot temperature.
04
We agree the design, then the price
You approve or ask for changes. The quote follows the agreed design and the quantities you need, usually within a few days.
05
We build and measure
Prototypes in 4 to 8 weeks from the agreed design, measured at your operating conditions, with a test report.
06
Production on the same drawing
The same design, bill of materials and people take it from samples to series.
The targets
What we design for
Saturation
Margin held at worst-case current and temperature, not at room temperature.
Leakage and magnetizing inductance
Set as design targets through interleaving and winding order, then measured.
Thermal
Hotspot temperature for your cooling method, whether it is natural convection, forced air or a cold plate.
Isolation
Creepage, clearance and insulation system designed to the standard your product answers to.
Parasitics
Interwinding capacitance controlled where it drives your common mode noise.
Manufacturing
Design for manufacturing from day one, so the prototype that works is the part you can buy in volume.
By product: Custom Transformers, Custom Inductors and Common Mode Chokes.
Straight answers
Custom magnetics design, the usual questions.
What is custom magnetics design?
It is the design of a transformer, inductor or choke for one specific converter, instead of choosing the closest catalog part. Core, winding and construction are selected for your waveform, frequency, isolation and space, and the result is verified by measurement.
Do you only design, or do you also manufacture?
Both. We design the magnetic and we deliver it, from the first prototype to production series. If you already have a design, we can also build it to print.
Do I pay for the design?
The engineering review and the first design proposal are free.
How long does a custom magnetic take?
The first design proposal usually arrives within a few days of a complete specification. Prototypes take 4 to 8 weeks from the agreed design, when the raw materials are in stock.
What is the minimum order?
One unit. Prototypes, samples and production come off the same drawing.
Start here
Send us your design problem.
Topology, frequency, voltages, currents, isolation and the space you have. Or just the schematic, the waveform and what is not working.