Controller for a switched reluctance machine
AssigneeHamilton Sundstrand Corporation
InventorsNaison E. Mastrocola, Scott R. Durkee, Stefanos Skoulaxinos, Andrei Dinu, Jonathan Mark Roadley-Battin
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Abstract
A controller for a switched reluctance machine, the machine comprising two concurrently energised phases and two concurrently non-energised phases. The controller is configured to, in an injection stage, inject a signal into the two non-energised phases; in a measurement stage, determine a current in each of the two non-energised phases; and in a calculation stage, apply an algorithm to the determined currents to determine a rotor angle.
Claims20
An apparatus for a switched reluctance machine, the switched reluctance machine comprising two concurrently energized phases and two concurrently non-energized phases, the apparatus comprising:
- a controller configured to:
- in an injection stage, inject a signal into the two non-energized phases;
- in a measurement stage, determine a current in each of the two non-energized phases;
- and
- in a calculation stage, process the determined currents to determine a rotor angle;
- wherein, to process the determined currents, the controller is configured to:
- perform signal processing of the determined current of each phase to provide processed data for each phase;
- convert the processed data into an estimated rotor angle for each phase;
- and
- average the estimated rotor angle from each phase to determine the rotor angle.
A method for controlling a switched reluctance machine, the switched reluctance machine comprising two concurrently energized phases and two concurrently non-energized phases, the method comprising:
- injecting a signal into the two non-energized phases;
- determining a current in each of the two non-energized phases;
- processing the determined currents to determine a rotor angle;
- and
- controlling a flow of electrical power to or from the switched reluctance machine based on the rotor angle;
- wherein the flow of electrical power is controlled such that an initial motoring period of a first phase occurs concurrently with a final generation period of a second phase, an initial generation period of a third phase, and a final motoring period of a fourth phase.
An apparatus for a switched reluctance machine, the switched reluctance machine comprising two concurrently energized phases and two concurrently non-energized phases, the apparatus comprising:
- a controller configured to:
- in an injection stage, inject a signal into the two non-energized phases;
- in a measurement stage, determine a current in each of the two non-energized phases;
- in a calculation stage, process the determined currents to determine a rotor angle;
- and
- in a power management stage, control a flow of electrical power to or from the switched reluctance machine based on the rotor angle;
- wherein the controller is configured to control the flow of electrical power in the power management stage such that an initial motoring period of a first phase occurs concurrently with a final generation period of a second phase, an initial generation period of a third phase, and a final motoring period of a fourth phase.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.