Method for commutating a brushless motor and power supply for a brushless motor

• US 6,028,406 A
• Filed: 12/29/1998
• Issued: 02/22/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 07/16/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Secop GmbH (Nidec Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Danfoss A/S
• Inventors: Birk, Jens
• Primary Examiner(s): Masih, Karen
• Application Number:
  US09/214,450
• Time in Patent Office: 420 Days
• Field of Search: 318/254, 318/138, 318/439, 318/727, 318/801, 318/812, 318/799, 318/800
• US Class Current: 318/400.04
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 2201/07 DC-DC step-up or step-down converter inserted between the power supply and the inverter supplying the motor, e.g. to control voltage source fluctuations, to vary the motor speed
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 29/40 Regulating or controlling the amount of current drawn or delivered by the motor for controlling the mechanical load
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 6/14 Electronic commutators

Abstract

Method for commutation of a brushless motor being supplied with electrical energy from a DC intermediary circuit via a multi-phase inverter, by which a first current and a second current value are determined and the length of a commutation interval is set in dependence of these current values. With motors being exposed to heavily varying load torques during one rotation, e.g. motors driving a compressor, a stable operation must be reached. For this purpose a correction value is added to the pre-set commutation interval determined by the speed of the motor, said correction value being the result of the difference of the actual value of the intermediary circuit current and a filtered and delayed value of the intermediary circuit current, multiplied by a weighting factor.

Claims

1. Method for commutation of a brushless motor supplied with electrical energy from a DC intermediary circuit via a multiphase inverter, comprising the steps of determining a first current value and a second current value, setting the duration of a commutation interval in dependence of the current values, and adding a correction value to the commutation interval determined by the speed of the motor, said correction value being determined from computing the difference between an actual value of the intermediary circuit current and a filtered, time delayed value of the intermediary circuit current and multiplying the difference by a weighting factor, and in which the moment of the actual value of the intermediate current is selected in dependence of the load on the motor.

2. Method according to claim 1, in which the load of the motor is expressed in terms of a commutation interval, whereby the moment of sampling is calculated as a function of said commutation interval.

3. Method according to claim 1, in which the actual value of the intermediary circuit current is determined at least once per commutation interval and no earlier than in the middle of the commutation interval.

4. Method according to claim 2, in which the actual value of the intermediary circuit current is determined at least once per commutation interval and no earlier than in the middle of the commutation interval.

5. Method according to claim 1, in which the weighting factor is selected in dependence of the speed.

6. Method according to claim 1, in which the inverter is block commutated.

7. Method according to claim 1, in which the inverter is pulse width modulated.

8. Method according to claim 1, in which the motor is a brushless DC motor.

9. Method according to claim 1, in which the motor is a switched reluctance motor.

10. Power supply for a brushless motor, said motor being connected with a DC intermediary circuit via an inverter, comprising a control unit with an input connected to the DC intermediary circuit, the control unit comprising a filter device filtering, delaying and inverting the intermediary circuit current, a first summation point forming the difference between the filtered and delayed intermediary circuit current and the actual intermediary circuit current, a multiplier multiplying the difference by a weighting factor and a second summation point in which the product of the multiplier is added as correction value for a speed dependent commutation interval, the output of the second summation point being connected with the inverter.

11. A power supply according to claim 10, in which the inverter is block commutated.

12. A power supply according to claim 10, in which the inverter is pulse width modulated.

13. A power supply according to claim 10, in which the motor is a brushless DC motor.

14. A power supply according to claim 10, in which the motor is a switched reluctance motor.