A drive for all users

The forces of industrial automation and efficiency, both in terms of process capability and energy, continue to fuel the rapid growth in the market for electrical variable speed drives. This demand coupled with the need for improved performance and the inevitable consequence of growth, results in a fiercely competitive market place. Within such an environment the claim of "a drive for all users" is not new, and those with some knowledge of the drives industry will consider any such claim with great scepticism. The literature on drives is littered with industrialists, and more than a few academics, claiming to have the ultimate drive, the optimum for each and every application. This situation is particularly true in the case of AC motor drive technology. The documented battles between proponents of current source verses PWM voltage source, not to mention the quest for the ultimate PWM strategy, have resulted in substantial deforestation of the planet. This paper makes no such unqualified claims, rather it describes a substantial and significant step towards such a eutopia.