Implementation of two-step voltage commutation matrix converter

This paper describes an implementation and testing of a 5 kW matrix converter based on two-step voltage commutation. The primary objective of this research effort is to develop the practical applications of voltage commutation strategy in matrix converter. A prototype converter has been built using eighteen 60-A 1000-V discrete insulated gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs) based on the controller DSP in combination with FPGA. An improved commutation strategy is used for guaranteeing safe control of bidirectional switches at zero crossing of the input line voltage without additional explicit input voltage sign measurement circuits. The prototype converter and the commutation strategy have been tested under various operating conditions.