Enhanced Starting Control Scheme for PMM-Based Starter/Generator System for MEA

Abstract

A control approach for aircraft Starter/Generator (S/G) with Permanent Magnet Machine (PMM) operating in Flux Weakening (FW) mode is presented. The proposed strategy helps the previous approaches which are adopted for the Variable Voltage Bus (VVB) or Voltage Wild Bus (VWB) concept for an aircraft Electric Power System (EPS), to cover a wide speed range in motoring and generation modes. Compared to prior works, the proposed control approach adjusts the q-axis reference voltage with a single current regulator, and the maximum available voltage provided by the converter is used to evaluate the d-axis voltage. By adopting the proposed approach, the DC bus voltage can be fully utilized, increasing aircraft efficiency by allowing the S/G system to operate at a wide range of speeds. The results of the analytical design and the performance of the system were verified by time-domain simulations using MATLAB/Simulink and experiments and compared to the conventional method.