Estimation of Parameters of Five-Phase Induction Motors Using Step Voltage At Standstill

This paper proposes a new method to estimate the electrical parameters of five-phase induction motors based on the response to a step voltage applied to the stator with the rotor at standstill. The first part of the method consists of the identification of the parameters of the dynamic model expressed in terms of transfer functions including the fundamental and third-harmonic components of the airgap induction. The second part consists of an open-phase test proposed to estimate the stator leakage inductances of each circuit separately. Further, the impact of iron saturation on the parameters is discussed through Finite Element Analysis of a case study. The accuracy of the proposed method is experimentally assessed through the analysis of the behavior of a 4.5-kW motor running in a closed loop under Rotor Field-Oriented Control. The theoretical and practical results suggest that the method can also be applied to self-commissioned drives, given that the estimation proceeds under null torque and speed. The prominent advantages of the proposed method are (i) the possibility of tracking the saturation effects on the parameters, (ii) the tests are easy to execute, and (iii) few sensors are required.