Four-Quadrant Model Following Sliding Mode Cruise Control for SRM With DITC Applied to Transportation Electrification

The ability of the four-quadrant operation is essential for transportation electrification applications. Switched reluctance machines (SRMs) have been increasingly considered an option for electric vehicles’ traction. However, achieving higher efficiency and low torque ripple may be a challenge for this type of machine, especially at low speeds. This article proposes a cruise control for SRM with the four-quadrant operation for extended autonomy. The cruise control is realized with a model following sliding mode speed controller and direct instantaneous torque control (DITC) for direct torque control. The proposed generating mode DITC aims for higher efficiency. An asymptotic stable model is developed for mode transition. The developed control system is Lyapunov stable in motoring, generating, and transition modes. Furthermore, an online multiobjective optimum point tracker (OPTPT) based on the steepest descent method is proposed aiming for efficiency maximization and torque ripple minimization. The experimental results show that the OPTPT convergence time is 1.25 s for a speed step and 1.2 s for a load step. The proposed control was submitted to an EUDC driving schedule, showing good speed regulation. The speed MAE of the cruise controller was 1.1344%. The transition between operation modes (motor–generator) occurs smoothly, which substantiates the proposed system for four-quadrant transportation electrification applications.