EC motor and method for operating same

• US 7,279,859 B2
• Filed: 10/29/2004
• Issued: 10/09/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Schaeffler Technologies AG & Co.KG (INA-Holding Schaeffler GmbH & Co. KG)
• Original Assignee: LuK Lamellen und Kupplungsbau Beteiligungs KG (INA-Holding Schaeffler GmbH & Co. KG)
• Inventors: Hill, Wolfgang
• Primary Examiner(s): Donovan; Lincoln
• Assistant Examiner(s): COLON SANTANA, EDUARDO
• Application Number:
  US10/976,704
• Publication Number:
  US 20050093498A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,075 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 318/400.01
• CPC Class Codes: H02K 29/08 using magnetic effect devices, e.g. Hall-plates, magneto-resistors H02K29/12 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 6/12 Monitoring commutation; Providing indication of commutation failure
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 6/15 Controlling commutation time
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 6/16 Circuit arrangements for detecting position
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 6/182 using back-emf in windings

Abstract

In a method for operating an EC motor, position-measurement signals are recorded by a position-measuring device, and, on the basis of the position-measurement signals, commutation instants are determined, at which the current supply to the EC motor is commutated. At least one correction value for at least one position-measurement error contained in the position-measurement signals is ascertained and stored. To compensate for the at least one position-measurement error, the correction value is considered when determining the commutation instants.

Claims

1. A method for operating an EC motor, comprising:

recording a plurality of position-measurement signals using a position-measuring device;

ascertaining at least one correction value for at least one position-measurement error contained in the position-measurement signals;

storing the at least one correction value;

determining commutation instants based on the position-measurement signals and taking into account the at least one correction value so as to compensate for the at least one position-measurement error; and

commutating current supply to the EC motor at the commutation instants.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the EC motor includes a winding having a plurality of phases, wherein the at least one correction value includes a separate correction value corresponding to each of the plurality of phases, and wherein the determining of the commutation instants is performed for each of the plurality of phases, taking into account a respective separate correction value for each phase so as to compensate for a respective position measurement signal corresponding to the phase.

3. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein the EC motor includes an armature having a plurality of poles, wherein the at least one correction value includes a separate correction value corresponding to each of the plurality of poles, and wherein the determining of the commutation instants is performed for each of the plurality of poles, taking into account a respective separate correction value for each pole so as to compensate for a respective position measurement signal corresponding the pole.

4. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein a number of correction values corresponding to the number of poles is ascertained for each phase, and wherein the determining of the commutation instants of the phases is performed taking into account the number of correction values so as to compensate for position-measurement errors.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the EC motor includes a stator, a winding, and an armature, and wherein the recording of the plurality of position-measurement signals includes:

causing a relative motion between the armature relative and the stator when the winding has zero current,

measuring at least one induction-voltage measurement signal for an electrical voltage induced by the poles in at least one phase during the relative motion, and

recording the at least one position-measurement signal using the position-measuring device during the relative motion, and wherein the ascertaining of the at least one correction value is performed by comparing the at least one position-measurement signal with the at least one induction-voltage measurement signal.

6. The method as recited in claim 5, wherein the causing of the relative motion is performed by accelerating the armature to a predefined speed relative to the stator by supplying a current to the winding and then interrupting the current supply to the winding.

7. The method as recited in claim 5, wherein the measuring of the at least one induction-voltage measurement signal includes measuring the electrical voltage induced in the phase against the potential at a star point of the winding.

8. The method as recited in claim 5, wherein the recording of the at least one position-measurement signal includes:

recording a plurality of first time-measurement values for each instant when the induction-voltage measurement signal assigned to the at least one phase has a zero crossing;

assigning a plurality of measuring points in the position-measurement signal of the phase to the zero crossings; and

recording a plurality of second time-measurement values, each corresponding to one of the plurality of measuring points, and wherein the ascertaining of the at least one correction value is performed by comparing each of the plurality of first time-measurement values to a respective one of the plurality of second time-measurement values.

9. The method as recited in claim 8, further comprising:

comparing the induction-voltage measurement signal with a first, positive threshold voltage and with a second, negative threshold voltage;

the threshold voltages being defined as the voltages at which the induction-voltage measurement signal exhibits a slope greater than a slope in the area of the zero crossing; and

recording a positive time-measurement values for the instant when the induction-voltage measurement signal traverses the first, positive threshold voltage;

recording a negative time-measurement value for the instant when the induction-voltage measurement signal traverses the second, negative threshold voltage; and

determining the time-measurement value for the zero crossing from the positive and negative time-measurement values by interpolation.

10. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the ascertaining of the at least one correction value includes ascertaining a plurality of correction values, one after another, and further comprising generating a mean value from the plurality of correction values;

and wherein the compensating for the at least one position-measurement is performed using the mean value.

11. The method as recited in claim 10, wherein the EC motor includes a stator, a winding, and an armature and wherein the position-measuring device includes an encoder having a pattern cooperating with at least one sensor element configured to scan the pattern during a relative motion between the stator and the armature, wherein the pattern has a plurality of substantially conforming sections and a reference section recurring along a path covered during the relative motion, the reference section differing from the plurality of substantially conforming sections, and wherein the method further comprises:

determining a first correction value for the reference section;

subsequently moving the armature relative to the stator by supplying current to the winding;

performing a plausibility check including interrupting the current supply and determining a second correction value for the reference section;

comparing the first and second correction values to one another; and

detecting the commutation error in the case of a deviation in the first and second correction values.

12. An EC motor comprising:

a stator having a winding including a plurality of phases;

an armature movable relative to the stator and having a plurality of permanent-magnetic poles;

a driving device having at least one measurement-signal input and a plurality of control-signal outputs linked via an output stage to the winding so as to control a current supply to the winding phases; and

a position-measuring device for recording a position of the poles relative to the phases of the winding and having at least one measurement-signal output linked to the at least one measurement-signal input to carry a plurality of measurement signals for electronically commutate the EC motor;

wherein the measurement signals contain at least one position-measurement error, wherein the driving device has a correction-value memory for storing at least one correction value, and wherein the driving device has a compensating device communicating with the at least one measurement-signal input, the correction-value memory and the control-signal outputs, to compensate for the at least one position-measurement error.

13. The EC motor as recited in claim 12, the position-measuring device has one sensor element for each of the plurality of phases of the winding, wherein the at least one correction value includes a correction value corresponding to each of the plurality of phases, wherein the correction-value memory includes a memory location for each correction value, and wherein the compensating device includes a correction-value assignment device for allocating each of the correction values of a corresponding one of the memory locations for each of the phases.

14. The EC motor as recited in claim 12, wherein the at least one correction value includes a correction value corresponding to each of the plurality of poles, wherein the correction-value memory includes a memory location for each correction value, and wherein the compensating device includes a correction-value assignment device for allocating each of the memory locations to a respective one of the poles.

15. The EC motor as recited in claim 12, wherein the correction-value memory includes a number of memory locations corresponding to the number of poles for each phase for correction values assigned to each of the poles, and the compensating device includes a correction-value assignment device for allocating each of the memory locations to each of the phases of the poles.

16. The EC motor as recited in claim 12, wherein the compensating device includes a voltmeter for measuring an induced electrical voltage induced by the magnetic poles in response to a relative motion between the stator and the armature in the phases of the winding, wherein the voltmeter has measuring inputs connected to electrical terminals of the phases, and wherein the compensating device includes a comparator linked to at least one measurement-signal output of the voltmeter and to the at least one measurement-signal output of the position-measuring device so as to compare the induced electrical voltages with position-measurement signals of the position-measuring device.

17. The EC motor as recited in claim 16, wherein the voltmeter includes at least one further measuring input connect to a star point of the winding.

18. The EC motor as recited in claim 12, wherein the position-measuring device includes an encoder having a pattern and a sensor element, the encoder positioned relative to the sensor element and in such a way that the pattern is scanned by the sensor element in response to the relative motion between the stator and the armature, wherein the pattern has at least two types of different pattern sections, each assigned to one phase of the winding, wherein the pattern-section types are coordinated with the sensor element so that each effects a different measurement-signal section in a measurement signal of the sensor element during the relative motion, and wherein the driving device includes a assigning device for allocating each of the different measurement-signal sections to the corresponding phase.

19. The EC motor as recited in claim 18, wherein the encoder includes an electrically conductive material, and the sensor element includes an eddy-current sensor having an excitation coil and a receiver coil.

20. The EC motor as recited in claim 18, wherein the pattern is formed by a toothing of the encoder having a plurality of teeth spaced apart from one another by tooth gaps, and wherein the pattern sections have different dimensions of one of the corresponding teeth and the corresponding teeth gaps, the different dimensions being detectable by the sensor element.

21. The EC motor as recited in claim 20, wherein the plurality of teeth are positioned radially with respect to an axis of rotation of the armature.

22. The EC motor as recited in claim 20, wherein the plurality of teeth are positioned in parallel with respect to an axis of rotation of the armature.

23. The EC motor as recited in claim 18, wherein the pattern is formed by a toothing of the encoder having a plurality of teeth having different heights according to the pattern sections assigned to different phases, and wherein the assigning device is configured to assign the pattern sections as a function of a signal level of the measurement signal.

24. The EC motor as recited in claim 18, wherein the pattern is formed by a toothing of the encoder having a plurality of teeth having different lengths in a direction transverse to the relative motion direction according to the pattern sections assigned to different phases, and wherein the assigning device is configured to assign the pattern sections as a function of a signal level of the measurement signal.

25. The EC motor as recited in claim 18, wherein the pattern is formed by a toothing of the encoder having a plurality of teeth, each having a tooth width spaced apart from one another by a tooth-gap having a tooth-gap width, and wherein the pattern sections have different ratios of tooth width to tooth-gap width in the relative motion direction, and wherein the assigning device is configured to assign the pattern sections as a function of a mark-to-space ratio of the measurement signal.

26. The EC motor as recited in claim 18, at least one of the pattern sections is a reference section and is configured to induce in the sensor element a reference measurement signal section in the measurement signal that is distinguished from measurement-signal sections the remaining pattern sections.