1) WHAT ARE THE FACTORS CONSIDERED FOR SIZING THE POWER ELECTRONICS OF A MOTOR?

 All of the electrical power directed to the hybrid propulsion M/G must pass through the power
electronics. It has been said that control electronics uses power to process information and that
power electronics uses information to process power.
 Figure given below, is a schematic for the hybrid propulsion system ac drive system consisting of
on board energy storage, power processing according to control algorithms, and traction
actuation via the M/G and vehicle driveline.

 The essentials of ac drive system operation are that :

1) Power from a dc source such as a fuel cell, battery or ultra-capacitor is converted to
variable voltage, variable frequency ac power at the M/G terminals, Vφ and Iφ.
2) The M/G then converts this electrical power to mechanical power in the form of torque
and speed at the transmission input shaft, T and ω.

 The power electronics is an electrical matching element in much the same manner that a
gearbox processes mechanical power to match the engine to the road load requirements.

1.1) Switch technology selection

Two Layer Design (has a single p-n junction. E.g.: Diode
Three Layer Design (have two p-n junction. E.g.: Transistors
Four Layer Design (have three p-n junction. E.g.: Thyristors

1.2) kVA/kW and power factor

 Power semiconductor devices range in voltage withstand capability of from 3kW to 6.5 kV
and current magnitudes of 3 to 4.5 kA.
 Thyristors have the highest kVA ratings, but are generally slow switching.
 GTO is capable of switching 3 kA at 4.5 kV but is limited to less than 700 Hz
 The emitter turn off thyristor, ETO, is capable of simultaneously switching 4 kA
at 4.5 kVA at relatively high frequency
 IGBTs are making enormous progress in both voltage and current ratings.
Thus, virtually all power electronics inverters for hybrid propulsion employ
IGBT device.
 1.3) Ripple capacitor design

 Power electronic inverters may have as much as 60% of their volume taken by the dc link
capacitors needed for bypassing the load ripple currents.
 The dc bus capacitor is sized not so much for energy or hold up time, but thermally by the
rms ripple current it must circulate.
 First-principle understanding of inverters –
1) No energy storage occurs in the inverter, only switching elements.
2) However, the high frequency currents generated by the inverter switching are
sourced by the dc link capacitor, particularly if the battery is located far from the inverter.
 In hybrid propulsion systems when the inverter is required to be packaged within 1m of the
M/G to minimize EMI, it is the bus capacitors that source and sink the switching frequency
components. The battery in effect keeps the capacitor bank charged by supplying the real
power demand.

1.4) Switching frequency and PWM

 The process of generating digital switch waveforms representing the magnitude of an

analog controlling signal is pulse width modulation.

2) WHAT ARE THE FACTORS CONSIDERED FOR SIZING THE PROPULSION MOTOR OF AN EV?

 The motor-generator, M/G, is sized as follows:

- Maximum input speed at transmission is restricted to < 12 000 rpm from the
engine side by the rev-limiter function in the electronic engine controller and
on the transmission side by the proper gear selection.
- Most electric machines rated for vehicle traction applications are limited to
12000 rpm for several inherent reasons: i) rotor burst limits ii) rotor position
sensing encoders and their attendant digital interface, iii) bearing system, and
iv) critical speeds of the M/G geometry.
 M/G torque and power is dictated by the electric fraction, EF
EF = M/G Peak power
Total Peak power
0.1<EF<0.4

2.1) Torque and power

 Motor-generator capability curves for torque and power define the peak operating capability
of the hybrid electric system. The capability curve defines the operating bounds of the
hybrid ac drive system.
  Figure shows the defining characteristics of the torque-speed envelope regardless of M/G
technology.

- The horizontal line labeled peak torque is 250% of continuous operating torque and represents a
sizing specification carried over from industrial induction motors.
- The region bounded by the speed axis, the torque axis, the flat line representing constant torque,
and a vertical to trapezoidal boundary back to the speed axis represents the constant torque
operating region. In the constant torque operating region the power electronics inverter has sufficient
voltage from the dc bus (battery or ultra-capacitor or generator or some combination) to synthesise
currents for injection into the electric machine.
- When the machine speed increases to the corner point speed defining the break point between
constant torque and constant power the inverter has essentially run out of voltage, the modulator
that regulates current synthesis begins pulse dropping, and the process ends with the inverter
entering six step mode (also called block mode).
- Constant power is the region of field weakening bounded by the already mentioned constant
torque region plus the hyperbola that defines the continuous or intermittent power envelope, and the
speed axis. Useful operation ceases when the machine enters second breakdown.

2.2) Constant power speed ratio (CPSR)

 Motoring operation of the M/G occurs for positive torque and positive (CCW) speed or for
negative torque and negative (CW) speed. When the sign of either torque or speed are
reversed the M/G is in generating mode. With modern power electronic controllers the
machine is capable of operating anywhere within the confines of its torque–speed envelope.
 The constant power speed range for the SPM without use of a novel cascade inverter , IM
and VRM, IPM is important. Wide CPSR in these machines comes at a price: generally IPMs
with CPSR are physically larger and heavier than their counterparts having the same power
 rating. One difference is the DMIC power electronics driver for an SPM in which CPSR has
been demonstrated provided the rotor structure can withstand the stress.

2.3) Machine sizing

 The electric machine is physically sized by its torque specification. Since electric machine
torque is determined by the amount of flux the iron can carry and the amount of current the
conductors can carry plus the physical geometry of the machine,the following can summarise
the sizing process.
- Torque is proportional to scaling constants times the product of electric and magnetic
loading times the stator bore volume.
- Electric loading is defined as the total amp-conductors per circumferential length (A, in units
of A/m) – in effect, it is the description of a current sheet. The electric loading is limited by
thermal dissipation of the conductor bundles.
- Magnetic loading is set by the material properties of the lamination sheets (B, in units of
Wb/m2) and of the physical dimensions of the airgap. The product of electric and magnetic
loading is a volumetric shear force, AB (Nm/m3).

 The stator bore volume, D2L, defines the airgap surface area (πDL) times the torque lever
arm (D) of the rotor on which the volumetric shear force acts. The scaling constants and
coefficients
are absorbed into the proportionality constant for M/G torque in terms of its design loading
and geometry. For electric machines of interest to hybrid propulsion the volumetric shear
force ranges from 25 000 to 80 000 Nm/m3. The relationship for machine torque is:

T=KABD2L