Switched Reluctance Motor Control – Basic …

1 Application ReportSPRA420A - February 20001 Switched Reluctance Motor Control Basic Operation andExample Using the TMS320F240 Michael T. DiRenzoDigital Signal Processing SolutionsABSTRACTThis report describes the Basic operation of Switched Reluctance motors (SRMs) anddemonstrates how a TMS320F240 DSP-based SRM drive from Texas Instruments (TI ) canbe used to achieve a wide variety of Control first part of the report offers a detailed review of the operation and characteristics ofSRMs. The advantages and disadvantages of this type of Motor are second part of the report provides an example application of a four-quadrant, variablespeed SRM drive system using a shaft position sensor.

2 The example has complete hardwareand software details for developing an SRM drive system using the TMS320F240. The SRMoperation is described, along with the theoretical basis for designing the various controlalgorithms. The example can be used as a baseline design which can be easily modified toaccommodate a specific report contains material previously released in the Texas Instruments application reportDeveloping an SRM Drive System Using the TMS320F240 (literature number SPRA420),and has been updated for inclusion in the Application Design Kit (ADK) for switchedreluctance .. 2 Motor Characteristics3.

3 Torque-Speed Characteristics4.. Electromagnetic Equations5.. General Torque Equation6.. Simplified Torque Equation8.. 3 Control9.. 4 Example SRM Drive with Position Feedback12.. Hardware Description12.. SRM Characteristics12.. Control Hardware12.. Position Sensor12.. Power Electronics Hardware14.. Software Description16.. Program Structure17.. Initialization Routines20.. TI is a trademark of Texas Instruments Reluctance Motor Control Basic Operation and Example Using the Current Controller21.. Position Estimation23.. Velocity Estimation24.. Commutation27.

4 Velocity Controller29.. 5 References32.. Appendix A Software Listings for a TMS320F240-Based SRM Drive With Position Sensor34.. List of FiguresFigure 1. Various SRM Geometries4.. Figure 2. SRM Torque-Speed Characteristics5.. Figure 3. Graphical Interpretation of Magnetic Field Energy7.. Figure 4. Graphical Interpretation of Magnetic Field Co-Energy7.. Figure 5. Basic Operation of a Current-Controlled SRM Motoring at Low Speed9.. Figure 6. Commutation of a 3-Phase SRM10.. Figure 7. Single-Pulse Mode Motoring, High Speed11.. Figure 8. SRM Shaft Position Sensor13.. Figure 9. Opto-Coupler Output Signals vs.

5 Rotor Angle13.. Figure 10. Opto-Coupler Connections to the TMS320F240 EVM14.. Figure 11. Two-Switch Per Phase Inverter15.. Figure 12. Schematic Diagram of SRM Inverter Using the IR2110 and Connections to the EVM16.. Figure 13. Block Diagram of the SRM Controller17.. Figure 14. TMS320F240 SRM Control Program Structure17.. Figure 15. Processor Timeline Showing Typical Loading and Execution of SRM Control Algorithms18.. Figure 16. Initialization Flowchart20.. Figure 17. Approximate SRM Current Loop Model21.. Figure 18. Frequency Response Plots for the SRM Current Loop at the Unaligned Position (Squares) and at the Aligned Position (Circles)22.

6 Figure 19. State Transition Diagram for the SRM Position Pickoff23.. Figure 20. Simplified Block Diagram of SRM Velocity Loop Using PI Control30.. Figure 21. Open-Loop Frequency Response of the SRM Velocity Loop at Several Motor Speeds, for a = rad/s31.. List of TablesTable 1. SRM Parameters12.. Table 2. Benchmark Data for the Various SRM Drive Software Modules19.. 1 IntroductionElectric machines can be broadly classified into two categories on the basis of how they producetorque electromagnetically or by variable the first category, motion is produced by the interaction of two magnetic fields, one generatedby the stator and the other by the rotor.

7 Two magnetic fields, mutually coupled, produce anelectromagnetic torque tending to bring the fields into alignment. The same phenomenon causesopposite poles of bar magnets to attract and like poles to repel. The vast majority of motors incommercial use today operate on this principle. These motors, which include DC and inductionmotors, are differentiated based on their geometries and how the magnetic fields are of the familiar ways of generating these fields are through energized windings, withpermanent magnets, and through induced electrical Switched Reluctance Motor Control Basic Operation and Example Using the TMS320F240In the second category, motion is produced as a result of the variable Reluctance in the air gapbetween the rotor and the stator.

8 When a stator winding is energized, producing a singlemagnetic field, Reluctance torque is produced by the tendency of the rotor to move to itsminimum Reluctance position. This phenomenon is analogous to the force that attracts iron orsteel to permanent magnets. In those cases, Reluctance is minimized when the magnet andmetal come into physical contact. As far as motors that operate on this principle, the switchedreluctance Motor (SRM) falls into this class of construction, the SRM is the simplest of all electrical machines. Only the stator has rotor contains no conductors or permanent magnets. It consists simply of steel laminationsstacked onto a shaft.

9 It is because of this simple mechanical construction that SRMs carry thepromise of low cost, which in turn has motivated a large amount of research on SRMs in the lastdecade. The mechanical simplicity of the device, however, comes with some limitations. Like thebrushless DC Motor , SRMs can not run directly from a DC bus or an AC line, but must always beelectronically commutated. Also, the saliency of the stator and rotor, necessary for the machineto produce Reluctance torque, causes strong non-linear magnetic characteristics, complicatingthe analysis and Control of the SRM. Not surprisingly, industry acceptance of SRMs has beenslow.

10 This is due to a combination of perceived difficulties with the SRM, the lack ofcommercially available electronics with which to operate them, and the entrenchment oftraditional AC and DC machines in the marketplace. SRMs do, however, offer some advantagesalong with potential low cost. For example, they can be very reliable machines since each phaseof the SRM is largely independent physically, magnetically, and electrically from the other motorphases. Also, because of the lack of conductors or magnets on the rotor, very high speeds canbe achieved, relative to comparable often cited for the SRM; that they are difficult to Control , that they require a shaftposition sensor to operate, they tend to be noisy, and they have more torque ripple than othertypes of motors; have generally been overcome through a better understanding of SRMmechanical design and the development of algorithms that can compensate for these CharacteristicsThe Basic operating principle of the SRM is quite simple.