Sensorless Control of a PMSM Motor for Scroll Compressor Application

This thesis was developed following a traineeship conducted at the Valeo R&D department in Prague. Valeo is a global automotive supplier specializing in the development of driving assistance, powertrain, thermal, and visibility systems. The site in Prague focuses on the development of thermal and driving assistance systems. Specifically, my work involved the development of the control law for compressors used in electric vehicle (EV) air conditioning. The aim of this work is to present a motor control model designed for this specific application. The physical mechanisms and working principles of both the motor and the compressor will be explained to better understand the role and importance of a well-controlled system. Furthermore, the logic behind the motor control will be analyzed and presented alongside a Simulink model based on the original architecture used at Valeo [7]. During the traineeship, the company’s proprietary control model was utilized and refined to ensure the compressor operated correctly and efficiently. This industrial model was used to simulate the motor and compare the results with empirical data obtained from both motor and compressor test benches. However, the Simulink model developed specifically for this thesis incorporates only core strategic concepts from the Valeo model, allowing the control logic to be presented and discussed without violating confidentiality. This academic model has been proven to operate consistently with the industrial one, and it is ultimately used to test and validate the compressor load torque generator derived from the frequency-domain data analysis.