Hardware and software implementation of sensorless rotor temperature estimation technique for Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor

The paper focuses on the hardware and software implementation of a novel sensorless rotor temperature estimation technique for Permanent Magnet Synchronous Machines (PMSMs). The method requires an intermittent injection of a voltage pulse in the d-axis of the motor while the q-current is kept zero. The slope of the resulted d-current response reflects a given saturation level of the machine stator steel core which is distinctive for a given magnet temperature. Since this is a strongly non-linear relationship, a look-up-table (LUT) for the motor is required. In order to capture correctly the current derivative, a synchronous oversampling of the d-current along the voltage pulse duration is required. The paper demonstrates a suitable hardware setup and software integration of the method into a common field oriented space vector control.