Abstract:
The paper proposes a new 4-level converter
configuration for a 4-phase, 8/6 switched reluctance motor (SRM)
drive. The proposed converter is based on double bridge topology
and shares a common leg for the quadrature phases in 4-phase
SRM. The common leg allows the discharging quadrature-phase
energy to charge the corresponding capacitor in the bridge. This,
during the energization of the corresponding quadrature-phase,
provides a maximum boost in voltage. Thus, an inherent voltage
boosting is achieved. Analysis of different operating modes of the
proposed converter is discussed. The proposed converter's
effectiveness is verified through the simulation studies in the
MATLAB/Simulink environment on a prototype 4-phase 8/6
SRM, designed in ANSYS/Maxwell. The proposed converter
configuration uses the same number of switches and diodes as in a
conventional three-level asymmetric half-bridge converter (TLAHB). However, due to inherent boosting capability in the
proposed converter configuration, the constant torque region, and
the smooth torque output region are extended by 25%, compared
with TL-AHB.
