New Direct Torque Control Scheme of Induction Motor for

Electric Vehicles
M.Vasudevan* and Dr.R.Arumugam✝

*Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Anna University, Chennai-25,

e-mail: vasumame@yahoo.com
✝
Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Anna University, Chennai-25,
e-mail: arumugam@annauniv.edu

Abstract

In this paper, new scheme of direct torque been developed for each motor. This has the advantage
control of induction motor for electric vehicles is of being able to produce three different levels of output
proposed and the results of an investigation into voltage compared to the standard two levels. With a
suitable torque control schemes are also presented. greater number of available levels for the output voltage
The electric vehicle drive consists of rewound the desired sinusoidal voltage can be achieved more
induction motors and a three-level IGBT inverter. accurately without increasing the switching frequency.
The schemes investigated are Field Oriented Control, This results in less current harmonics and therefore more
Direct Torque Control (DTC), and DTC using Space efficient utilization of the available energy. The three-
Vector Modulation. The results of Matlab-Simulink level IGBT inverter that was developed was only tested
simulations and a comparison between the control under open loop conditions, as no suitable controller
schemes are presented. It is found that the DTC using was available.
Space Vector Modulation scheme is best for this A suitable closed loop torque controller is required
application. to enable this new three-level inverter to be used in the
electric vehicle. Torque control is preferred for electric
Keywords: Induction Motor, Field Oriented Control,
vehicle applications instead of precise closed loop speed
Direct Torque Control, Space Vector Modulation
control because it mimics the operation of an internal
combustion engine. It is important to make an electric
1 Introduction vehicle drive like a standard vehicle. An ideal electric
vehicle motor drive system would have high efficiency
Induction motors are today the most widely used ac and produce low torque ripple. By reducing the current
machines due to the advantageous mix of cost, distortion, losses in the motor are reduced. Increasing
reliability, and performances. Torque control in the inverter switching frequency could reduce current
induction motors can be achieved according to distortion, but this would result in increased switching
different techniques ranging from the inexpensive losses in the inverter. Therefore it is important for the
constant voltage/frequency ratio strategy to the control scheme to produce minimal current distortion for
sophisticated sensorless control schemes. Now-a- a given switching frequency. In this paper, four different
days, such efficient schemes have been implemented control schemes are investigated to determine their
in electric vehicles. The University of Canterbury has suitability for this application. A brief overview of the
developed an electric vehicle over many years as the operation of each scheme is presented followed by
test bed for a variety of projects. It is based on a 1962 results from Matlab-Simulink simulations. A
Austin Farina body with 20 lead acid batteries comparison of the advantages and disadvantages of
providing a nominal 240-volt DC supply. Two 2.2kW these three schemes is included.
50Hz induction motors that have been rewound to
operate with an applied frequency of up to 150Hz 2 Control methods
drive it. An SCR inverter originally drove the motors, A number of different control schemes for accurate
but recently new three-level IGBT inverters have torque control of an induction motor for this electric
 Figure 1: Field Oriented Control Block Diagram

vehicle application, have been investigated. Field A diagram of the field-oriented controller is shown in
Oriented Control (FOC) and Direct Torque Control Figure 1. A proportional-integral controller regulates the
(DTC) were chosen for simulation, as they are stator voltage to achieve the calculated stator
standard induction motor control techniques. An
improvement to DTC is DTC using Space Vector current. The required voltage is then synthesized by the
Modulation, a new torque control scheme proposed is inverter using space vector modulation (SVM).During
also simulated. These are briefly described in the motor operation the actual rotor resistance and
following sections. inductance can vary, for example with temperature. The
resulting errors between the values used and the actual
2.1 Field oriented control parameters cause an incomplete decoupling between
torque and flux.
Field Oriented Control refers to induction motor
operation in a synchronously rotating d-q reference 2.2 Direct Torque Control
frame that is aligned with one of the motor fluxes,
typically the rotor flux [2]. In this mode of operation, In principle, the DTC method selects one of the
control of the torque and flux is decoupled such that inverter’s six voltage vectors and two zero vectors in
the d-axis component of the stator current controls order to keep the stator flux and torque within a
the rotor flux magnitude and the q-axis component hysteresis band around the demand flux and torque
controls the output torque. magnitudes. The torque produced by the induction
The required d-axis component of the stator motor can be expressed as Equation (4),
current, ids, to achieve a given rotor flux magnitude
demand, Ȝ*dr can be determined from Equation (1). 3 P Lm
Tem = λ r λ s . sin α (4)
λdr* = Lmids (1) 2 Ls ' Lr

where, Lm = magnetizing inductance which shows the torque produced is dependent on the
stator flux magnitude, rotor flux magnitude, and the
The required q-axis component of the stator current, phase angle between the stator and rotor flux vectors.
iqs, for a given torque demand (T*em ),can be The induction motor stator equation, (5),
determined from Equation (2).
d λs
3 P Lm Vs = − Is.rs (5)
T * em = λ * dr i qs (2) dt
2 2 Lr
can be approximated as Equation (6) over a short time
For the d-axis of the synchronously rotating reference period if the stator resistance is ignored.
frame to be aligned with the rotor flux the ‘slip
relation’, Equation (3), must be maintained.
∆ λs = Vs.∆t (6)
r r i qs
ϖ e − ϖ r = (3)
L r i ds
This means that the applied voltage vector as shown TABLE 1: OPTIMAL VECTOR SELECTION TABLE
in Figure 2(b) determines the change in the stator flux (2-LEVEL) SECTOR
vector as shown in figure 2(a). If a voltage vector is Sector
applied that changes the stator flux to increase the ǻȜ ǻTem 1 2 3 4 5 6
phase angle between the stator flux and rotor flux Ĺ V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V1
vectors, then the torque produced will increase. Ĺ 0 V0 V0 V0 V0 V0 V0
Ļ V6 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5
Ĺ V3 V4 V5 V6 V1 V2
It Ļ 0 V0 V0 V0 V0 V0 V0
Ļ V5 V6 V1 V2 V3 V4
It
3 It 2
3 The stator flux vector can be estimated using the stator
4 1 voltage equation, (5), as given in Equation (7).

)
4 It
5 6 λ s = ∫ ( Vs − rs I s dt (7)
As shown in Figure 3, the estimated stator flux magnitude
5 6 and torque output is compared to the demand values. A
voltage vector is then selected that will drive the torque and
λ flux towards the demanded values.

Figure 2(a): Torque change corresponding to the

position of flux

Figure 3: Direct Torque Control Block Diagram

2.3 Direct torque control using space vector

modulation

Figure 2(b): Direct Torque Control Operation Based on instantaneous current and voltage
(2-level) measurements it is possible to calculate the voltage
required to drive the current output torque and stator
Since a two-level inverter is only capable of flux to the demanded values within a fixed time period.
producing six non-zero voltage vectors and two zero This calculated voltage is then synthesized using Space
vectors, it is possible to create a table that determines Vector Modulation.
the voltage vector to apply based on the position of The applied voltage and motor current can be used
the stator flux and the required changes in stator flux to estimate the instantaneous stator flux and output
magnitude and torque. This is called the optimal torque. From these the required change in output torque
vector selection table and is shown as Table 1 for the and stator flux in order to reach the demanded values by
case of a two level inverter. It is possible to expand the end of the current switching period can be
the optimal vector selection table to include the larger calculated.
number of voltage vectors produced by a three-level Equation (8) shows that a change in torque
inverter. corresponds to a change in stator current. The voltage,
 V, required to achieve that change in stator current ∆λ s = V .∆t (10)
can be calculated knowing the back EMF of the
motor. The back EMF can be calculated from the
stator flux and current. These two equations can be solved to find the
smallest voltage required to drive both the torque and
flux to the demand values. The required stator voltage
∆ T em =
3 P
2 2
(
λs X∆ Is ) (8) can be calculated by adding on the voltage drop across
the stator resistance calculated using the current
measured from the last cycle. The calculated voltage is
As shown by Equation (6), the change in the stator then synthesized directly using space vector modulation.
flux vector is only dependent on V. To solve for the If the inverter is not capable of generating the required
unknown voltage vector requires two equations, one voltage then the voltage vector that will drive the torque
for the required change in torque, (9), and another for and flux towards the demand value is chosen and held
the change in stator flux, (10). for the complete cycle. The complete circuit diagram of
space vector pulse width modulation is shown in
figure4.
∆Tem =
3 P ∆t
2 2 Ls '
(
λ s X (V − E ) ) (9)

Figure 4: Circuit Diagram of Space Vector Modulation

2.4 Simulation and results

All three of the control schemes have been simulated chosen motor speed and load. A minimum vector hold
using Matlab-Simulink. All simulations were time of 25ms was chosen to simulate the time required to
performed using a model of the motors that are used in sample currents and voltages, and calculate the new
the electric vehicle. For the control schemes that vector. In sensored indirect field oriented control, the
operate at a fixed switching frequency, an inverter complete system is simulated and explored the
switching frequency of 10kHz was used. For the performance of speed control. The simulation results are
standard DTC simulations, torque and flux hysteresis presented based on MATLAB programming. The indirect
bands of 1Nm and 0.0016Wb respectively were used to field oriented control speed closed-loop system is using
give a switching frequency close to 10kHz at the the estimated speed as the speed feedback. All physical
variables such as voltages, currents, flux linkages, flux
angle, speed and torque are normalized in per-unit. The
reference speed is set at 900 r.p.m. or 0.5 p.u. with
1800 r.p.m. base. The rotor angular velocity, estimated
rotor flux and torque response are shown in figures 6, 8
and 9 respectively.

In Sensorless direct field oriented control

scheme, rotor flux, its angle and rotor speed have been
estimated. The DFOC speed closed-loop system is
using the estimated speed as the speed feedback. The
stator currents and DC-bus voltage are measured and
all physical variables such as voltages, currents, flux
linkages, flux angle, speed, and torque are normalized
in per-unit. Torque demand response of sensorless
field oriented control is shown in figure8. Motor per
unit stator current is also shown in figure 10. Figure 7: Direct Field oriented Control torque
demand response

Figure 5: DTC using Space vector modulation

response to step change in torque demand
Figure 8:Estimated Rotor flux in Indirect Field
Oriented Control

Figure 6: Plot of rotor angular velocity in indirect Figure 9: Response to step change in torque demand
field oriented control in Indirect Field oriented Control
 Disadvantages;
i) High current distortion
ii) High torque ripple
iii) Switching frequency changes with
motor speed.

3.3 DTC using Space Vector Modulation

Advantages:
i) Fast torque response that is equivalent
Figure 10: Motor per unit stator current to standard direct torque control
ii) Low steady state torque ripple and
current distortion that is equal to FOC
3. Comparison iii) Constant switching frequency
iv) Not as parameter sensitive as FOC
Direct Torque Control was developed as an alternative v) No speed or position encoder is
to FOC that had been in use for a number of years. required
DTC has the advantage of not requiring speed or Disadvantages:
position encoders and uses voltage and current i) The control algorithm is very complex
measurements only. It also has a faster dynamic compared to other control schemes.
response due to the absence of the PI current regulator. ii) It requires a relatively fast processor to
A disadvantage of DTC is its comparatively high implement at the desired switching
current distortion and torque ripple. DTC using SVM frequency.
is a different approach that involves a direct predictive
calculation of the voltage required to be applied to the 4. Conclusions
induction motor to change the stator flux and torque
magnitudes to the demanded values. It combines the Three different control schemes have been evaluated for
best features of the direct torque control schemes such induction motor torque control in an electric vehicle
as fast torque response, no fixed switching frequency. application. All other direct torque control techniques
DTC using SVM was chosen as the torque control exhibited improved transient torque response compared to
scheme in this electric vehicle application. From the standard rotor flux FOC. The disadvantage of these
above discussions, advantages and disadvantages of all schemes is increased current distortion. Since high
the control schemes are summarized as follows: efficiency is one of the prime requirements for an electric
vehicle drive and high current distortion results in
increase motor losses, this is unacceptable. DTC using
3.1 Field-oriented control space vector modulation is an exception that exhibited
fast torque response and low current distortion and torque
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i) Relatively simple high performance
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