Operating Limits and Practical Operation of a Brushless Doubly-Fed Reluctance Machine

In this paper a prototype brushless doubly-fed reluctance machine is investigated which is aimed a meeting commercial machine performance figures. The machine has 4 and 8 pole 3-phase stator windings and a 6 pole radially-laminated ducted rotor. The machine is investigated using finite element analysis (FEA), static torque tests with DC current excitation, a MATLAB/Simulink model, and experimentally using direct torque control (DTC). The investigations show that the machine can perform and match performance found in commercial industrial drives and is controllable. This is a step forward from the work that has been published because the machine is shown to be of a design that is commercially viable, and controllable using known control techniques adapted for the machine. Most previous reports use proof-of-concept machines or machines that are not suitable for commercial operation. This machine is designed to be more commercial in its design.