Sensorless DTC-SVM applied to an induction motor controlled by a three-level inverter using SMSFO


Purpose
The direct torque control (DTC) of induction motor (IM) drive is featured by high ripples in the electromagnetic torque and stator flux profiles because they are controlled by two hysteresis regulators. Furthermore, the machine flux is not directly measurable. Hence, it is better to reconstitute it from the instantaneous electrical equations of the machine. Once the stator flux is estimated, we can guarantee a reliable sensorless DTC control. Thus, the purpose of this research work is to ensure fast response and full reference tracking of the IM under sensorless DTC strategy with desired dynamic behavior and low ripple levels.


Design/methodology/approach
In this work, an improved DTC strategy, which is DTC_SVM_3L, is suggested. The first step of the designed approach is to substitute the conventional inverter feeding the motor with a three-level inverter because it guarantees reduced switching losses, improved quality of voltage waveform and low-current total harmonic distortion rate. The second aim of this paper is to make the IM operate at a constant switching frequency by using the nearest three vectors-based space vector modulation (SVM) technique rather than hysteresis controllers. The third objective of this study is to conceive a sliding-mode stator flux observer, which can improve the control performances by using a sensorless algorithm to get an accurate estimation, and consequently, increase the reliability of the system and decrease the cost of using sensors. The stability of the proposed observer is demonstrated based on the Lyapunov theory. To overcome the load change disturbance in the proposed DTC control strategy, this paper exhibits a comparative assessment of four speed regulation methods: classical proportional and integral (PI) regulator, fuzzy logic PI controller, particle swarm optimization PI controller and backstepping regulator. The entire control algorithm was tested under different disturbances such as stator resistance and load torque variations.


Findings
It was ascertained that the IM, controlled with three-level inverter, exhibits good performances under the proposed DTC-SVM strategy based on a sliding-mode observer. The robustness of the suggested approach against parameter variations is also proved.


Originality/value
The theoretical development of the proposed control strategy is thoroughly described. Then, simulations using Matlab/Simulink software are launched to investigate the merits of the sensorless DTC-SVM command of three-level inverter-fed IM drive with different speed regulators.
