Comparison of Fault Tolerant Capability of Three-phase Induction Motor Drives for Automotive Applications

With the increase proliferation of electric vehicles in the world, the demand for more reliable power electronics drive train is also on the rise. While theoretically the use of multiphase (more than three-phase) motors can increase the reliability of electrical drive train for EV, they are generally not commercially ready and available in the market. Hence, three-phase drive train are still the main stream in current EV technology and the fault-tolerant control of these motor drives remain an interesting and important topic. In this presentation, the existing fault tolerant three-phase motor drive topologies and control methods are reviewed. In particular, the post-fault controls of three-phase motor using 4 legs inverters are discussed and the opportunity for voltage utilization improvement with this configuration is demonstrated.