System and method for converting AC power to DC power using sensorless field oriented control

1. A method comprising:

producing an alternating current (AC) power using a generator;

measuring an AC current produced by the generator;

estimating a rotor position of the generator using a sliding mode observer, without directly measuring the rotor position;

calculating a control value for adjusting a rectifier, the control value is calculated using the estimated rotor position and the measured AC current;

rectifying the AC power according to the control value to produce a direct current (DC) power; and

measuring a DC output voltage produced by the rectifier,

wherein estimating the rotor position of the generator using a sliding mode observer further comprises:

computing a duty cycle of each leg of the AC power produced by the generator;

estimating an AC voltage produced by the generator using the computed duty cycles and the measured DC output voltage produced by the rectifier;

estimating a back electromotive force (EMF) using the sliding mode observer that uses the estimated AC voltages; and

estimating the rotor position using the estimated back EMF.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising estimating the rotor speed.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein adjusting the rectifier further comprises adjusting the duty cycle on each leg of the rectifier using pulse width modulation (PWM).

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein rectifying the AC power further comprises: adjusting a gain using an adaptive gain algorithm based on the speed of the shaft of the generator.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the generator is a three phase generator.

6. A method comprising:

producing an alternating current (AC) power using a generator;

measuring an AC current produced by the generator;

estimating a rotor position of the generator using a sliding mode observer, without directly measuring the rotor position;

calculating a control value for adjusting a rectifier, the control value is calculated using the estimated rotor position and the measured AC current; and

rectifying the AC power according to the control value to produce a direct current (DC) power,

wherein calculating the control value for adjusting the rectifier further comprises:

transforming the measured AC current into a two-dimensional stationary reference using a Clarke Transform;

transforming the two-dimensional stationary axis into a rotating reference using a Park Transform that uses the rotor position; and

transforming the rotating reference using an Inverse Park Transform, the output of which goes to a Space Vector Pulse Width Modulation (SVPWM) switch.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the rotating reference is a direct-quadrature frame.

8. The method of claim 6 wherein rectifying the AC power further comprises adjusting a duty cycle using pulse width modulation (PWM) to optimize power output and reduce error.

9. A system for generating direct current (DC) power, comprising:

an alternating current (AC) generator for producing AC power characterized by an AC current and an AC voltage;

an ammeter that measures the AC current produced by the generator;

a rectifier that coverts the AC power into DC power; and

a field oriented controller that adjusts the rectifier to operate efficiently, wherein the field oriented controller comprises a memory device including instructions that, when executed cause the field oriented controller to:

estimate a rotor position of the generator using a sliding mode observer that does not directly measure the rotor position;

provide an adjustment to the rectifier that is based on the estimated rotor position and the measured AC current; and

a voltmeter that measures a DC output voltage produced by the rectifier; and

wherein the instructions that estimate the rotor position of the generator further comprise instructions that cause the field oriented controller to:

compute a duty cycle of each leg of the AC power produced by the generator;

estimate an AC voltage produced by the generator using the computed duty cycles and the measured DC output voltage produced by the rectifier;

estimate a back electromotive force (EMF) using the sliding mode observer that uses the estimated AC voltages; and

estimate the rotor position using the estimated back EMF.

10. The system of claim 9 wherein the instructions further comprise instructions that cause the field oriented controller to estimate the rotor speed.

11. The system of claim 9 wherein the instructions that provide an adjustment to the rectifier further comprise instructions that cause the field oriented controller to adjust the duty cycle on each leg of the rectifier using pulse width modulation (PWM).

12. The system of claim 9 , wherein the AC generator is a three phase generator.

13. The system of claim 9 , wherein the memory device including instructions is a computer readable medium.

14. A system for generating direct current (DC) power, comprising:

an alternating current (AC) generator for producing AC power characterized by an AC current and an AC voltage;

an ammeter that measures the AC current produced by the generator;

a rectifier that coverts the AC power into DC power; and

a field oriented controller that adjusts the rectifier to operate efficiently, wherein the field oriented controller comprises a memory device including instructions that, when executed cause the field oriented controller to:

estimate a rotor position of the generator using a sliding mode observer that does not directly measure the rotor position; and

provide an adjustment to the rectifier that is based on the estimated rotor position and the measured AC current, wherein the instructions that provide an adjustment to the rectifier further comprise instructions that cause the field oriented controller to:

transform the measured AC current into a two-dimensional stationary reference using a Clarke Transform;

transform the two-dimensional stationary reference into a rotating reference using a Park Transform that uses the rotor position; and

transform the rotating reference using an Inverse Park Transform, the output of which goes to a Space Vector Pulse Width Modulation (SVPWM) switch.

15. The system of claim 14 wherein the rotating reference is a direct-quadrature frame.

16. The system of claim 14 wherein the instructions that provide an adjustment to the rectifier further comprise instructions that cause the field oriented controller to adjust a duty cycle using pulse width modulation to optimize power output and reduce error.

17. A system for generating direct current (DC) power, comprising:

an alternating current (AC) generator for producing AC power characterized by an AC current and an AC voltage;

an ammeter that measures the AC current produced by the generator;

a rectifier that coverts the AC power into DC power;

a field oriented controller that adjusts the rectifier to operate efficiently, wherein the field oriented controller comprises logic that causes the field oriented controller to:

estimate a rotor position of the generator using a sliding mode observer that does not directly measure the rotor position; and

provide an adjustment to the rectifier that is based on the estimated rotor position and the measured AC current; and

a voltmeter that measures a DC output voltage produced by the rectifier,

wherein the logic that causes the field oriented controller to estimate the rotor position of the generator further comprises logic that causes the field oriented controller to:

compute a duty cycle of each leg of the AC power produced by the generator;

estimate an AC voltage produced by the generator using the computed duty cycles and the measured DC output voltage produced by the rectifier;

measure a DC output voltage produced by the rectifier;

estimate a back electromotive force (EMF) using the sliding mode observer that uses the estimated AC voltages; and

estimate the rotor position using the estimated back EMF.

18. The system of claim 17 wherein the logic further comprises logic that causes the field oriented controller to estimate the rotor speed.

19. The system of claim 17 wherein the logic that provides an adjustment to the rectifier further comprises logic that causes the field oriented controller to adjust the duty cycle on each leg of the rectifier with a pulse width modulation (PWM).

20. The system of claim 17 , wherein the AC generator is a three phase generator.

21. The system of claim 17 , wherein the logic is a circuit.

22. The system of claim 17 , wherein the logic is a set of instructions executable by a processor, the set of instructions is stored in a memory that is accessible by the processor.

23. A system for generating direct current (DC) power, comprising:

an alternating current (AC) generator for producing AC power characterized by an AC current and an AC voltage;

an ammeter that measures the AC current produced by the generator;

a rectifier that coverts the AC power into DC power; and

a field oriented controller that adjusts the rectifier to operate efficiently, wherein the field oriented controller comprises logic that causes the field oriented controller to:

estimate a rotor position of the generator using a sliding mode observer that does not directly measure the rotor position; and

provide an adjustment to the rectifier that is based on the estimated rotor position and the measured AC current,

wherein the logic that provides an adjustment to the rectifier further comprises logic that causes the field oriented controller to:

transform the measured AC current into a two-dimensional stationary reference using a Clarke Transform;

transform the two-dimensional stationary reference into a rotating reference using a Park Transform that uses the rotor position; and

transform the rotating reference using an Inverse Park Transform, the output of which goes to a Space Vector Pulse Width Modulation (SVPWM) switch.

24. The system of claim 23 wherein the rotating reference is a direct-quadrature frame.

25. The system of claim 23 wherein the logic that provides an adjustment to the rectifier further comprises logic that causes the field oriented controller to adjust a duty cycle using pulse width modulation (PWM) to optimize power output and reduce error.