ELECTRICAL DRIVES

Academic Year 2022/2023 - Teacher: Giuseppe SCARCELLA

Expected Learning Outcomes

The course has the purpose to provide the fundamentals of modeling, principles of operation and control, main basic knowledge and future developments of electrical drives.

Learning outcomes: Knowledge of the design and operation of most common and advanced control tecniques in conventional and advanced electrical drives. New special machines contol.

Knowledge and understanding

The student will acquire the knowledge of the operating principles and the main control methods of modern electrical drives. The main applications will be related to the fields of automation, electrical and electronic engineering.

Ability to apply knowledge and understanding

At the end of the course, students will have the necessary skills to analyze an electrical drive, identifying its main sections and functions. Students will have the skills necessary for the characterization of systems and processes and the design of electromechanical systems control, with reference to the new special machines contol.

Autonomy of judgment

Students will acquire independent judgment for an accurate analysis of electrical drives, these skills will also be refined through experimental activities carried out in the laboratory.

Communication skills

The student will strengthen the technical language of electrical energy engineering with the aim of being able to adequately present himself to the world of work with adequate skills and an adequate technical profile. The ability to work in groups will be refined through the experimental experiences in the laboratory carried out in small groups. The drafting of the laboratory report and/or the oral exam will allow students to refine technical language and communication skills.

Learning skills

The student will be able to autonomously expand their knowledge on electrical drives by deepening the reference texts and papers in specialized scientific journals. The results of learning the concepts of the course are the knowledge of the operation of the most common electromechanical actuators and their most common control modes.

Course Structure

The training objectives are linked both to the acquisition of new knowledge, therefore frontal lessons as teaching method and tutorials to include the ability to apply the  acquired knowledge through computer and/or laboratory exercises.

This year's teaching could be taught not only at University but in a mixed or remote way.

Should teaching be carried out in mixed mode or remotely, it may be necessary to introduce changes with respect to previous statements, in line with the programme planned and outlined in the syllabus.

Detailed Course Content

The objective of this course is the knowledge of design features and operation of the AC electrical drives and of their most common control modes. Emphasis is placed on electromagnetic rotating machinery, by means of which the bulk of this energy conversion takes place. The control techniques studied in the course, however, are generally applicable to renewable energy conversion and to a wide range of additional devices including linear machines, drones, and modern actuators.

Summary of the course program

First part: Definition of an Electrical Drive.

Electrical Drives: DC and AC Electrical Drives: control of torque, speed, and position. Losses and derating. Low and high dynamic performance. Stability. 

Second part: Induction Motor Drives.

Scalar and Vector Control. Field-Oriented Control in steady-state and transient. Voltage and current control. CRPWMs. Rotor and stator flux estimation: Indirect methods. Direct methods. IFOC, DFOC: VI, I-omega, I-theta.

Third part: Flux Observers and Tuning.

Rotor flux observers. Stator flux observers. Rotor time constant tuning and parameter identification. Self-Commissioning and continuous self-tuning.

Fourth part: Synchronous and PM Motor Drives.

Synchronous and Permanent Magnet (PM) motor drives: Field Oriented Control. Special Machine Drives: stepper and switched reluctance motors. DC brushless, surface mounted and Interior PM motor drives, SynchRels, PM assisted SynchRels. 

Fifth part: Fault tolerance and Reliability.

Integration of the electrical drives in industrial production. Fault tolerance and Reliability. Renewable energy electrical drives. Energy saving. Electrical Vehicles. EMI in electrical drives.

Textbook Information

Lipo, Novotny: "Modern Electrical Drives", Kluwer Editor, 1998.
B. Bose “Power Electronics and Variable Frequency Drives”, IEEE Press.
Mohan: "Power Electronics", Hoeply. 

Fitzgerarld: "Electric Machinery", Mc Graw Hill. 

Course Planning

 SubjectsText References
1Fundamentals of electrical machines and drives basic principles.B. Bose “Power Electronics and Variable Frequency Drives”, IEEE Press.
2Modern Electrical Drives.Lipo, Novotny: "Modern Electrical Drives", Kluwer Editor, 1998.
3Power Electronics.Mohan: "Power Electronics", Hoeply.
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