Chaotic Dynamics of Switched Reluctance Motor Drives: A State-of-the-Art Review

Complex nonlinear systems have been very often found to exhibit unpredictable, chaotic behavior as they become extremely sensitive to initial conditions. In electric motor drives, which are highly nonlinear systems, occurrence of chaos is inevitable and often causes undesirable phenomena in the system. This article begins with a structured introduction to chaotic phenomena in nature. Then it focuses on a state-of-the-art review on occurrence of chaos in switched reluctance motor drive, whose main source of nonlinearity is the nonlinear magnetization characteristics due to the doubly-salient structure of the motor. Analysis tools such as phase portraits, bifurcation diagrams, and Lyapunov exponents are also discussed to detect the presence of chaos in the motor. Some applications of chaos have also been reported. Also, some possible future works based on the research gaps in the literature are identified.