Estimation of the fundamental current in low-switching-frequency high dynamic medium-voltage drives

The switching frequency of medium-voltage ac drives is limited to low values to restrain the dynamic losses of the power devices. This favors the use of synchronous optimal pulsewidth-modulation schemes that minimize the harmonic current. It is a drawback, though, that optimal algorithms do not have a means to extract the fundamental component of the load current. High-performance torque control is therefore difficult to obtain. This paper proposes a method to identify the instantaneous fundamental component of the stator currents. A novel observer is developed for this purpose. The approach enables fast torque control at very low switching frequency. Experimental results from a 30-kW induction motor drive are presented.