Electric vehicles (EVs) require an extremely efficient power train unit consisting of converters with very low power losses and a motor with excellent controllability, long life, and an extended speed range. Consequently, permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) drives are increasingly becoming popular for EV applications due to their higher torque density, better efficiency, and rugged structure. This paper explores the reduced switch five‐level transistor—clamped H bridge (TCHB) inverter topology for driving a PMSM, particularly for an EV application. The TCHB inverter emulates the modular structure of a cascaded H bridge (CHB) inverter, with each phase being energized by independent DC sources, thereby making it a natural fit for EVs. Simplified loss models have been developed to estimate the conduction and switching losses in the TCHB and CHB inverter circuits to assess their suitability for EV applications. An experimental prototype of the TCHB inverter, triggered with a novel space vector‐based modulation scheme, feeding a vector‐controlled PMSM has been designed, developed, and tested to ascertain the efficacy of this inverter‐motor electrical drive system for light‐duty EV applications, with regard to reduced losses, better DC bus utilization, diminished torque ripples, and improved dynamic response.

中文翻译：

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一种基于空间矢量调制的新型晶体管钳制H桥逆变器馈电永磁同步电动机驱动器，用于电动汽车应用

电动汽车（EV）需要非常高效的动力总成单元，其中包括功率损耗非常低的转换器以及具有出色可控性，长寿命和扩展速度范围的电动机。因此，永磁同步电动机（PMSM）驱动器因其更高的扭矩密度，更好的效率和坚固的结构而在EV应用中越来越受欢迎。本文探讨了用于驱动PMSM的简化开关五级晶体管-钳位H桥（TCHB）逆变器拓扑，尤其是在EV应用中。TCHB逆变器模拟级联H桥（CHB）逆变器的模块化结构，每个相均由独立的DC电源供电，从而使其自然而然地适用于EV。已开发出简化的损耗模型来估算TCHB和CHB逆变器电路中的传导和开关损耗，以评估其在EV应用中的适用性。已设计，开发和测试了TCHB逆变器的实验原型，该原型以新颖的基于空间矢量的调制方案触发，并馈送了矢量控制的PMSM，以确定该逆变器-电机电气驱动系统对轻型电动汽车的功效在减少损耗，改善直流母线利用率，减少转矩脉动和改善动态响应方面的应用。