A new shaft position control for switched reluctance motor in harsh environment

This paper describes a new method for direct sensing of the rotor position in switched reluctance motor that can be utilized in a very harsh environment such as a furnace. In this method, a new sensorless technique applied to a mechanical sensing unit made up of a rotor and a stator laminations used in that motor. This detection method uses a sine wave signal applied to every other stator pole windings of the sensing unit and from the resulting induced signals obtained from the opposite coils, the position of the rotor is accurately determined. This sensing unit is immune from motor switching noises. An advancement technique for the dwell angle from zero degree at standstill to 10 degrees at an arbitrary pre set speed of 100 rpm is also utilized in the control circuit for achieving higher performance from the motor. Finally the experimental results are presented which demonstrate the robust functionality of the method.