Electric Power Steering (EPS) systems provide a challenging control design problem for system integrators. Because the system directly interacts with the driver’s hands, reducing vibration is a must. But controlling the system’s fundamental mechanical resonance requires loop compensation, such as lead-lag, which can make the system sensitive to higher frequency disturbances (1). This can include cogging and torque ripple from the motor, or commutation noise from the drive electronics. For this reason, it is essential to have a tool flow that supports a coordinated design effort across these technologies.

Figure 2. MotorSolve B-field Analysis of the EPS PMSM Motor

The SystemVision Cloud Team is happy to announce that we’re adding many models to support motor and control systems development. We’ve recently added a new PMSM (Permanent Magnet Synchronous Machine) model, and updated our Induction Motor model. We will be adding Stepper and SRM (Switched Reluctance Motor) models in the very near future. Continuous control algorithm blocks that support field oriented control (FOC), such as Clarke and Park transforms, have also been added. Some of these are shown in the design example below.

In my previous blog, “Mechatronics Engineers … Start Your Motors”, I mentioned that we were working on two additional motor types, a Switched Reluctance Machine (SRM) and a Stepper Motor.