Vector Control Methods for Brushless Doubly Fed Reluctance Machines

This paper is concerned with flux and voltage vector-oriented control of a promising brushless doubly fed reluctance machine (BDFRM) for generator and drive systems with limited adjustable speed ranges (e.g., wind turbines and/or pump drives). The BDFRM has been receiving increasing attention because of the low capital and operation and maintenance costs afforded by using partially rated power electronics and the high reliability of brushless design. Furthermore, it has the potential to offer competitive performance to its well-known slip-ring counterpart, i.e., doubly fed induction generator. The experimental studies have evaluated the control algorithms on a custom-built BDFRM in both motoring and generating modes under the maximum torque per inverter ampere conditions. The test results achieved should make a step forward toward the development of robust generic controllers for doubly excited machines.