Comparison Between Sinusoidal and Space Vector Modulation Techniques on the Resulting Electromagnetic Torque Ripple Produced by a Three-Phase BLDC Motor under Field-Oriented Control

The current trend in the automotive industry is increasingly focusing on the concept of automated / autonomous driving, in parallel with the development of hybrid and full-electric vehicles (FEV). In this context, the provision of redundant solutions and, implicitly, the development of highly-reliable and highly-efficient electric drive systems represents a strategic and a real interest point in the design process. Thus, it is imperative to use the most efficient control algorithms correlated with optimal modulation / transition methods from the idealized mathematical computing domain (analytical / virtual) to the real physical domain, with minimum errors. The paper proposes a comparative study between two performant modulation techniques: synchronous sinusoidal modulation (SSM) and space vector modulation (SVM) respectively. These algorithms provide equivalent pulse width modulation (PWM) signals to the transistor gates of the B6 bridge power inverter based on the rotating voltage vector given as reference signal by the motor control algorithm. To achieve optimum results, the control algorithm is implemented as vector or field-oriented control (FOC). For plausible and realistic results, an extensive mathematical model equivalent to a servo-steering / servo-braking system that can be successfully integrated into current vehicles platforms was developed. To extend the analysis for both static and dynamic regimes, the resulting mathematical model was further implemented in MATLAB / Simulink software environment. To increase the overall performance and to reduce the noise vibration harness (NVH) of the system, special attention was paid to the resulting rotating current and electromagnetic torque ripple developed by the three-phases brushless direct current (BLDC) motor.