Reduced Acoustic Noise Variable DC-Bus-Voltage-Based Sensorless Switched Reluctance Motor Drive for HVAC Applications

In this paper, a control strategy for reduced acoustic noise and sensorless operation of a switched reluctance (SR) motor is proposed for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) application, where the magnitude of the dc-bus voltage is controlled as a function of speed and the motor is operated in a single-pulse mode for all speed range. The dc-bus voltage is controlled by incorporating a dc chopper between the three-phase line rectifier and a split dc-link capacitor-type four-switch power converter. Such controller reduces the acoustic noise, provides more accurate position estimation for sensorless operation, and improves the life expectancy of the motor. The algorithm is first simulated through MATLAB/SIMULINK and then tested on a four-phase 8/6-pole 4-kW SR motor. The test results of achieved acoustic noise and improved sensorless operation are presented. Through the proposed method, the acoustic noise is reduced by almost 15 dB compared to the conventional scheme at low-speed regime. The proposed method is intended to drive a fan type of load in HVAC applications, where the dynamic performance requirement is not a stringent criterion.