Predictive Power Factor Control of Induction Motor Drives

Induction motor drives play an essential role in industrial production. Energy saving of induction motor drives is a very popular topic. Therefore, studies on the techniques to improve energy efficiency of a motor drive system are important. Major solutions to improve energy efficiency can be divided into two categories, i.e., via hardware, e.g., design highly efficient motors, and through software, e.g., advanced control methods. In this work we present a predictive control strategy to improve the energy efficiency of an induction motor drive system. In the proposed solution, the power factor can be directly manipulated by a properly designed cost-function. Compared with the classical control strategies (here refers to the field oriented control, predictive current control, and predictive torque control), the proposed one is able to effectively improve the efficiency of induction motor drives. Simulation results confirm the effectiveness of the proposed strategy.