# US 12,184,209 B2 · Motor control device and steering system > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,184,209 B2 - Document ID: US12184209B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 18/065,470 - Filed: 2022-12-13 - Published: 2023-04-13 - Granted: 2024-12-31 - Earliest claimed: 2020-06-17 - Assignees: Denso Corporation - Applicants: Denso Corporation - Inventors: Takashi Suzuki - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12184209B2 ## CPC - B62D 5/046: {Controlling the motor} - H02P 21/22: Current control, e.g. using a current control loop - B62D 5/0409: {Electric motor acting on the steering column} - H02P 21/0003: {Control strategies in general, e.g. linear type, e.g. P, PI, PID, using robust control} - H02P 21/0089: {using field weakening} - H02P 25/22: Multiple windings; Windings for more than three phases - H02P 27/12: pulsing by guiding the flux vector, current vector or voltage vector on a circle or a closed curve, e.g. for direct torque control - H02P 29/028: the motor continuing operation despite the fault condition, e.g. eliminating, compensating for or remedying the fault - B62D 5/0403: {characterised by constructional features, e.g. common housing for motor and gear box} - B62D 5/0481: {monitoring the steering system, e.g. failures} - B62D: MOTOR VEHICLES; TRAILERS (steering, or guiding on a desired track, of agricultural machines or implements A01B69/00; wheels, castors, axles, increasing wheel adhesion B60B; vehicle tyres, tyre inflation or tyre changing B60C; connections between vehicles of a train or the like B60D; vehicles for use on rail and road, amphibious or convertible vehicles B60F; suspension arrangements B60G; heating, cooling, ventilating or other air treating devices B60H; windows, windscreens, non-fixed roofs, doors or similar devices, protective coverings for vehicles not in use B60J; propulsion plant arrangements, auxiliary drives, transmissions, controls, instrumentation or dashboards B60K; electric equipment or propulsion of electrically-propelled vehicles B60L; power supply for electrically-propelled vehicles B60M; passenger accommodation not otherwise provided for B60N; adaptations for load transportation or to carry special loads or objects B60P; arrangement of signalling or lighting devices, the mounting or supporting thereof or circuits therefor, for vehicles in general B60Q; vehicles, vehicle fittings or vehicle parts not otherwise provided for B60R; servicing, cleaning, repairing, supporting, lifting, or manoeuvring, not otherwise provided for, B60S; brake arrangements, brake control systems or parts thereof B60T; air-cushion vehicles B60V; motor-cycles, accessories therefor B62J, B62K; testing of vehicles G01M) - H02P: CONTROL OR REGULATION OF ELECTRIC MOTORS, ELECTRIC GENERATORS OR DYNAMO-ELECTRIC CONVERTERS; CONTROLLING TRANSFORMERS, REACTORS OR CHOKE COILS ## Abstract A motor control device for a motor including first and second winding sets, includes: first and second inverters; and a control unit that controls the first and second inverters by differentiating a magnitude of current flowing through the first winding set and a magnitude of current flowing through the second winding set, or by restricting an output voltage of the second inverter so as to reduce a first output voltage from the first inverter to the first winding set when the first output voltage is higher than a first upper limit voltage. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A motor control device for controlling a motor including a first winding set and a second winding set, the motor control device comprising: a first inverter connected to the first winding set and supplied with electric power from a first power supply unit; a second inverter connected to the second winding set and supplied with electric power from a second power supply unit; and a control unit that controls the first inverter and the second inverter by differentiating a magnitude of current flowing through the first winding set and a magnitude of current flowing through the second winding set, or by restricting an output voltage of the second inverter, so as to reduce a first output voltage as a voltage to be output from the first inverter to the first winding set when a voltage to be output from the first inverter is higher than a first upper limit voltage determined based on a first maximum output voltage. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The motor control device according to claim 1, wherein: the control unit includes: a first control unit that controls the first inverter based on a first request voltage when the first request voltage, which is a request value of the voltage to be output by the first inverter, is not higher than the first upper limit voltage set based on the first maximum output voltage, and controls the first inverter to reduce the first request voltage when the first request voltage is higher than the first upper limit voltage; and a second control unit that controls the second inverter based on a second request voltage, which is a request value of the voltage to be output by the second inverter. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The motor control device according to claim 2, wherein: the first control unit calculates the first request voltage based on a command value that commands a torque to be output to the motor, controls the first inverter based on the first request voltage when the first request voltage is not higher than the first upper limit voltage set to be equal to or lower than the first maximum output voltage, and controls the first inverter to reduce the first request voltage when the first request voltage is higher than the first upper limit voltage; and the second control unit calculates the second request voltage, which is the request value of the voltage to be output by the second inverter, based on the command value, and controls the second inverter based on the second request voltage. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The motor control device according to claim 3, wherein: the control unit calculates a first d-axis current command for instructing a command of a d-axis current of the first winding set and a first q-axis current command for instructing a command of a q-axis current of the first winding set based on the command value that instructs a command for the torque to be output to the motor; the control unit calculates the first request voltage, which is the request value of the voltage to be output by the first inverter, based on the first d-axis current command and the first q-axis current command; and the control unit controls the first inverter to reduce an absolute value of the first q-axis current command when the first request voltage is higher than the first upper limit voltage. ### Claim 5 (depends on 3) The motor control device according to claim 3, wherein: the control unit controls the first inverter to reduce the first request voltage as a first voltage excess amount, by which the first request voltage as a request value of the voltage to be output by the first inverter exceeds the first upper limit voltage, becomes larger. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The motor control device according to claim 5, wherein: the control unit controls the first inverter so that the larger an integrated value of the first voltage excess amount is, the lower the first request voltage is. ### Claim 7 (depends on 3) The motor control device according to claim 3, wherein: the control unit controls the first inverter so as to reduce the first request voltage, which is the request value of the voltage to be output by the first inverter to be lower than the second request voltage, which is the request value of the voltage to be output by the second inverter when the first maximum output voltage is lower than the second maximum output voltage, which is the maximum output voltage that the second inverter outputs to the second winding set. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The motor control device according to claim 1, wherein: the control unit controls the first inverter to reduce a q-axis current of the first winding set when a first request voltage, which is a request value of the voltage to be output by the first inverter, is higher than the first upper limit voltage. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The motor control device according to claim 8, wherein: the control unit calculates a second d-axis current command for instructing a d-axis current of the second winding set and a second q-axis current command for instructing a q-axis current of the second winding set based on the command value that commands the torque to be output to the motor, and controls the second inverter to increase the second q-axis current command based on an amount of decrease in which the q-axis current of the first winding set is reduced. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The motor control device according to claim 1, wherein: the control unit calculates a first d-axis current command for instructing a command of a d-axis current of the first winding set or a first q-axis current command for instructing a command of a q-axis current of the first winding set based on the command value that instructs a command for the torque to be output to the motor; the control unit calculates the first request voltage, which is the request value of the voltage to be output by the first inverter, based on the first d-axis current command and the first q-axis current command; and the control unit controls the first inverter to reduce a back electromotive force of the first winding set when the first request voltage is higher than the first upper limit voltage. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The motor control device according to claim 10, wherein: the control unit calculates a second d-axis current command for commanding a d-axis current of the second winding set and a second q-axis current command for commanding a q-axis current of the second winding set based on the command value; the control unit controls the second inverter to reduce a back electromotive force of the second winding set when the first d-axis current command reaches the first d-axis limit value; and the control unit controls the first inverter based on the second d-axis current command, the first d-axis limit value, and the first q-axis current command when the first d-axis current command reaches the first d-axis limit value. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) The motor control device according to claim 10, wherein: the first winding set and the second winding set are distribution-wound; the control unit calculates a second d-axis current command for commanding a d-axis current of the second winding set and a second q-axis current command for commanding a q-axis current of the second winding set based on the command value; the control unit controls the second inverter to increase a back electromotive force of the second winding set by a first d-axis excess amount by which the first d-axis current command exceeds the first d-axis limit value when the first d-axis current command exceeds the first d-axis limit value; and the control unit controls the first inverter based on the second d-axis current command, the first d-axis current command, and the first q-axis current command when the first d-axis current command exceeds the first d-axis limit value. ### Claim 13 (depends on 10) The motor control device according to claim 10, wherein: the first winding set and the second winding set are distribution-wound; and the control unit controls the first inverter to set a sum of a first d-axis correction amount, which is a correction amount for correcting the first d-axis current command so as to reduce the back electromotive force of the first winding set, and a second d-axis correction amount, which is a correction amount for correcting the second d-axis current command so as to reduce the back electromotive force of the second winding set, to be equal to or lower than a predetermined d-axis correction amount. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) The motor control device according to claim 1, wherein: the control unit controls the first inverter so as to set a positive and negative sign of the first q-axis current command for instructing the q-axis current of the first winding set to be opposite to a positive and negative sign of the command value that commands the torque to be output to the motor under a condition that the voltage to be output by the first inverter is higher than the first upper limit voltage set based on the first maximum output voltage. ### Claim 15 (depends on 1) The motor control device according to claim 1, wherein: the control unit calculates the first request voltage, which is a request value of a voltage to be output by the first inverter, and the second request voltage, which is a request value of a voltage to be output by the second inverter, based on the command value which commands a torque to be output to the motor; the control unit calculates the first request voltage to be lower than the second request voltage when the first maximum output voltage is lower than the second maximum output voltage; and the control unit controls the first inverter based on the first request voltage, and controls the second inverter based on the second request voltage. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The motor control device according to claim 15, wherein: the control unit calculates a first d-axis current command for commanding the d-axis current and a first q-axis current command for commanding the q-axis current in the first winding set according to the command value, and calculates a second d-axis current command for commanding the d-axis current and a second q-axis current command for commanding the q-axis current in the second winding set according to the command value; the control unit calculates the first request voltage based on the first d-axis current command and the first q-axis current command, and calculates the second request voltage based on the second d-axis current command and the second q-axis current command; and when the first maximum output voltage is lower than the second maximum output voltage, the control unit calculates the first q-axis current command to be smaller than the second q-axis current command. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The motor control device according to claim 16, wherein: the control unit calculates the first d-axis current command so as to reduce the back electromotive force of the first winding set based on a larger one of: the integrated value of the first voltage excess amount in which the first request voltage exceeds the first upper limit voltage set to be equal to or lower than the first maximum output voltage; and the integrated value of the second voltage excess amount in which the second request voltage exceeds the second upper limit voltage set to be equal to or lower than the second maximum output voltage; and the control unit calculates the second d-axis current command so as to reduce the back electromotive force of the second winding set. ### Claim 18 (depends on 1) The motor control device according to claim 1, wherein: limiting the output voltage indicates limiting the output voltage to be equal to or lower than a predetermined absolute value. ### Claim 19 (depends on 1) The motor control device according to claim 1, wherein: limiting the output voltage indicates stopping an integral operation in a control based on a deviation between the command value and the actual value of the current flowing through the second winding set. ### Claim 20 (depends on 1) A steering system comprising: the motor control device according to claim 1; a steering mechanism; and the motor that drives the steering mechanism.