Finite element method based co-simulation platform for the numerical analysis of motor drive system

Abstract

Purpose This study aims to develop a finite element method based co-simulation platform for the numerical analysis of motor drive system. With the rising requirement of industry, the comprehensive design of motor drive systems has attracted increasing attentions. An accurate model, which considers the coupling between motor and its drive system, is vital for the analysis and design of motor drive system. Design/methodology/approach Considering the coupling relationship between motor and its drive system, a flexible and extensible co-simulation platform of motor drive system is developed with the C++ language and finite element machine model to carry out the comprehensive analysis of motor drive system. The control system simulation program developed with C++ language adopts the same discrete form as the single-chip microcomputer and can simulate the interrupt mechanism, making the simulation closer to the actual control system. With the finite element analysis results of current step, the winding input voltage of next step is calculated by the executable program of control system and is fed into the finite element analysis, forming the two-way coupling analysis of drive system. Findings Preliminary studies, such as calculation of machine core losses fed by inverters, and control parameters optimization, are conducted with this platform, which shows the flexibility and expansibility of this platform. Originality/value The power inverter circuit along with the controller is modeled using the C++ language, and embedded into the finite element machine model to achieve more realistic motor drive system simulation and complex functions.