Motor control apparatus

• US 9,231,465 B2
• Filed: 09/16/2014
• Issued: 01/05/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/20/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Hara, Yoshimichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Luo, David S
• Application Number:
  US14/487,455
• Publication Number:
  US 20150084570A1
• Time in Patent Office: 476 Days
• Field of Search: 318/494, 318/495, 318/496
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 5/0403 characterised by constructional features, e.g. common housing for motor and gear box
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 5/0463 calculating assisting torque from the motor based on driver input
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 5/0484 for reaction to failures, e.g. limp home
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 5/0496 by using a temperature sensor
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 1/32 Means for protecting converters other than automatic disconnection
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/219 in a bridge configuration
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 21/22 Current control, e.g. using a current control loop
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 25/22 Multiple windings; Windings for more than three phases
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 27/06 using dc to ac converters or inverters H02P27/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 29/032 Preventing damage to the motor, e.g. setting individual current limits for different drive conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 29/68 based on the temperature of a drive component or a semiconductor component

Abstract

A motor control apparatus controlling a driving of a motor having two pairs of winding sets is provided. The motor control apparatus includes a current command value calculation portion, a first system, a second system, and a temperature difference calculation portion. The first system includes a first power inverter circuit, a first temperature sensor, a first current limit setting portion, and a first controller. The second system includes a second power inverter circuit, a second temperature sensor, a second current limit setting portion, and a second controller. One of the first controller and the second controller stops a driving of one of the first power inverter circuit and the second power inverter circuit or reduces the current limiting value of this.

Claims

1. A motor control apparatus controlling a driving of a motor having two pairs of winding sets, comprising:

a current command value calculation portion calculating a current command value supplied to the motor;

a first system including

a first power inverter circuit provided to the motor control apparatus corresponding to one of the two pairs of the winding sets, and supplying electricity to the one of the two pairs of the winding sets,

a first temperature sensor detecting a first detection temperature of the first power inverter circuit,

a first current limit setting portion setting up a current limiting value, which is an upper limit of the current command value, and

a first controller controlling an output to the first power inverter circuit by a current feedback control to the first system;

a second system including

a second power inverter circuit provided to the motor control apparatus, corresponding to an other of the two pairs of the winding sets, and supplying electricity to the other of the two pairs of the winding sets, wherein the first power inverter circuit and the second power inverter circuit have an equivalent specification and an equivalent electrical performance,

a second temperature sensor detecting a second detection temperature of the second power inverter circuit,

a second current limit setting portion setting up the current limiting value, which is the upper limit of the current command value, and

a second controller controlling the output to the second power inverter circuit by the current feedback control to the second system; and

a temperature difference calculation portion obtaining the first detection temperature and the second detection temperature to calculate a system-to-system temperature difference, wherein;

the system-to-system temperature difference is defined as an absolute value of a difference of the first detection temperature and the second detection temperature,

one of the first controller and the second controller stops a driving of one of the first power inverter circuit and the second power inverter circuit or reduces the current limiting value of the one of the first power inverter circuit and the second power inverter circuit when the system-to-system temperature difference is equal to or more than a predetermined temperature difference threshold, and

the one of the first power inverter circuit and the second power inverter circuit is included in one of the first system and the second system having a detection temperature higher than an other of the first system and the second system,

the one of the first controller and the second controller sets the current limiting value of the one of the first power inverter circuit and the second power inverter circuit into zero and stops the driving of the one of the first power inverter circuit and the second power inverter circuit, when the system-to-system temperature difference is equal to or more than the predetermined temperature difference threshold, and

the one of the first power inverter circuit and the second power inverter circuit corresponds to the one of the first system and the second system having the detection temperature higher the other of the first system and the second system.

2. The motor control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the first controller stops the driving of the first power inverter circuit included in the first system when the first detection temperature obtained by the temperature difference calculation portion is equal to more than a predetermined temperature threshold, and

the second controller stops the driving of the second power inverter circuit included in the second system when the second detection temperature obtained by the temperature difference calculation portion is equal to more than a predetermined temperature threshold.

3. A motor control apparatus controlling a driving of a motor having two pairs of winding sets, comprising:

a current command value calculation portion calculating a current command value supplied to the motor;

a first system including

a first power inverter circuit provided to the motor control apparatus corresponding to one of the two pairs of the winding sets, and supplying electricity to the one of the two pairs of the winding sets,

a first temperature sensor detecting a first detection temperature of the first power inverter circuit,

a first current limit setting portion setting up a current limiting value, which is an upper limit of the current command value, and

a first controller controlling an output to the first power inverter circuit by a current feedback control to the first system;

a second system including

a second power inverter circuit provided to the motor control apparatus, corresponding to an other of the two pairs of the winding sets, and supplying electricity to the other of the two pairs of the winding sets, wherein the first power inverter circuit and the second power inverter circuit have an equivalent specification and an equivalent electrical performance,

a second temperature sensor detecting a second detection temperature of the second power inverter circuit,

a second current limit setting portion setting up the current limiting value, which is the upper limit of the current command value, and

a second controller controlling the output to the second power inverter circuit by the current feedback control to the second system; and

a temperature difference calculation portion obtaining the first detection temperature and the second detection temperature to calculate a system-to-system temperature difference, wherein;

the system-to-system temperature difference is defined as an absolute value of a difference of the first detection temperature and the second detection temperature,

one of the first controller and the second controller stops a driving of one of the first power inverter circuit and the second power inverter circuit or reduces the current limiting value of the one of the first power inverter circuit and the second power inverter circuit when the system-to-system temperature difference is equal to or more than a predetermined temperature difference threshold, and

the one of the first power inverter circuit and the second power inverter circuit is included in one of the first system and the second system having a detection temperature higher than an other of the first system and the second system,

the temperature difference calculation portion obtains the first detection temperature of the first temperature sensor and the second detection temperature of the second temperature sensor after powering on the motor control apparatus, and

the temperature difference calculation portion determines that either the first temperature sensor or the second temperature sensor has an abnormality when a total number of times determined that the system-to-system temperature difference is equal to or more than a predetermined initial temperature difference threshold reaches a predetermined number of times in a plurality of times of powering on of the motor control apparatus.

4. The motor control apparatus according to claim 3, wherein

the first controller stops the driving of the first power inverter circuit included in the first system when the first detection temperature obtained by the temperature difference calculation portion is equal to more than a predetermined temperature threshold, and

the second controller stops the driving of the second power inverter circuit included in the second system when the second detection temperature obtained by the temperature difference calculation portion is equal to more than a predetermined temperature threshold.