Decoupled Topologies and Radial Levitation Control of a Novel Permanent Magnet Biased Bearingless Switched Reluctance Motor

The coupling between torque and radial force, and between the two radial forces is detrimental to the efficient control and performance improvement of the bearingless switched reluctance motor (BSRM). In the article, an 18/16-pole permanent magnet (PM) biased BSRM with radial force windings driven by a three-phase full-bridge inverter is presented. To solve the coupling between two radial forces in this proposed BSRM, three of its derived decoupled topologies have been developed, and the decoupled characteristics of these structures are proved by the radial force mathematical model and finite element analysis. Further, based on the space vector pulse width modulation (SVPWM) technique for three-phase full-bridge inverters, a one-cycle digital control scheme for the radial force control applicable to four types of BSRMs has been developed. Finally, a BSRM is prototyped and tested for experimental validation of radial levitation.