Patents Examined by Erick D Glass
  • Patent number: 11152877
    Abstract: A method for determining an error in the angular position measurement of a timepiece motor having one or more phases, including: detecting (3) each instant (14) when the value of one of the back electromotive forces is zero, storing (4) a time corresponding to each detected instant, measuring (5) several time intervals between two instants (14) detected in the same revolution of the motor, comparing (6) the measured time intervals to reference time intervals to deduce the reference intervals to which they correspond, and determining (7) an angular position measurement error if the measured intervals do not correspond to the expected reference intervals. The invention also relates to a method for correcting the angular position measurement. Also, a determination and correction system for implementing the methods and a timepiece including such a system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2021
    Assignee: The Swatch Group Research and Development Ltd
    Inventor: David Hoover
  • Patent number: 11152875
    Abstract: A multigroup, multiphase rotary electric machine control device including: a control target calculator to calculate an initial current command value of each phase based on a torque command value; a correction coefficient calculator to calculate a per-group correction coefficient corresponding to each group from a spatial mode M (M is 0 or a positive integer) of an electromagnetic force caused by magnetic flux density variation with respect to a rotational periodicity at the time of rotation of the multigroup, multiphase rotary electric machine; and a current command value corrector to calculate a current command value of the each phase, which is corrected based on the initial current command value and the per-group correction coefficient.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 11, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2021
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshihiro Miyama, Moriyuki Hazeyama, Kodai Okazaki
  • Patent number: 11146201
    Abstract: A current value determination device provided with: a capacitor current computation unit for computing the capacitor current of a capacitor included in a high-voltage circuit that drives a motor, on the basis of the input voltage of an inverter included in the high-voltage circuit and the revolution speed of the motor; and a capacitor current determination unit for determining the value of capacitor current on the basis of the input voltage of the inverter, the revolution speed of the motor, the capacitor current computed by the capacitor current computation unit, and a prescribed model for determination.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 15, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 12, 2021
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES THERMAL SYSTEMS, LTD.
    Inventors: Makoto Hattori, Takayuki Takashige, Kyohei Watanabe
  • Patent number: 11142075
    Abstract: Provided are embodiments for a braking system, where the system includes a controller, a motor coupled to an H-bridge network, a DC link coupled to the motor, and an electrical braking system electrically coupled to the motor. The electrical braking system includes a sense circuit configured to sense a condition of the DC link, a brake resistor coupled to the DC link, a drive circuit coupled to the sense circuit, and a transformer for regeneration. Also, provided are embodiments of a method for operating an efficient regenerative resonance electrical braking system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 7, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 12, 2021
    Assignee: HAMILTON SUNDSTRAND CORPORATION
    Inventor: Rajkumar Sengodan
  • Patent number: 11146205
    Abstract: A multi-phase electric motor includes a stator winding. The multi-phase electric motor is controlled by regulating a current flowing in the multi-phase electric motor in response to an applied voltage. An overload condition of the multi-phase electric motor is detected by monitoring a thermal increase of the value of a stator resistance of the stator winding of the multi-phase electric motor during a steady state condition of said multi-phase electric motor in which the current flowing in the motor has constant phase, and the motor is operating at constant load with constant speed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 23, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 12, 2021
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics S.r.l.
    Inventors: Andrea Spampinato, Gianluigi Forte
  • Patent number: 11139765
    Abstract: A method of controlling a motor that generates an output current from an input voltage command. The method receives, from the motor, the output current that includes a direct-axis portion and a quadrature-axis portion, the output current being received as feedback current. The method determines a compensated voltage command by applying, to the feedback current, first gain factors and an inverse of second gain factors. The first gain factors decouple the d-axis portion and the q-axis portion of the compensated voltage command. The inverse of the second gain factors allow the compensated voltage command to be filtered in a manner that preserves decoupling between the d-axis and q-axis. The method determines the input voltage command for the motor by applying the second gain factors to the compensated voltage command to cause the motor to generate the output current with reduced influence of variations of operating parameters of the motor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 5, 2021
    Assignee: Steering Solutions IP Holding Corporation
    Inventors: Varsha Govindu, Julie A. Kleinau, Prerit Pramod
  • Patent number: 11133762
    Abstract: A drive system includes a current detection unit that detects a current flowing to a main synchronous motor, and a current detection unit that detects a current flowing to a secondary synchronous motor. The drive system includes a magnetic pole position estimation unit that estimates the magnetic pole position of the rotor of the main synchronous motor, and a magnetic pole position estimation unit that estimates the magnetic pole position of the rotor of the secondary synchronous motor. The drive system includes a current control unit that outputs a voltage command, and a secondary torque current pulsating component extraction unit that extracts a pulsating component. The drive system includes a subtracter that determines an angle difference, and a magnetic flux current command determination unit that determines a magnetic flux current command.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 28, 2021
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Kenji Takahashi, Tsukasa Masumura, Akihiro Tsumura, Yasuhiko Wada, Akane Hongyo
  • Patent number: 11121659
    Abstract: Provided is an evaluation device that determines the necessity of a notch filter inserted in a control system that controls an electric motor by closed loop control. The evaluation device includes: a characteristic acquisition parts for changing a parameter associated with a characteristic of the notch filter from a first value, which is a prescribed value, to a second value, and acquiring a change in a frequency response characteristic of the electric motor when the notch filter is applied; and a determination parts for determining the necessity of the notch filter based on the change in the frequency response characteristic that has been acquired.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 14, 2021
    Assignee: OMRON Corporation
    Inventors: Yasushi Ono, Mamoru Egi
  • Patent number: 11104374
    Abstract: A motor control device including: a voltage command value calculation unit configured to calculate a voltage command value of voltage applied to a motor, based on a q-axis current command value and a d-axis current command value; a driving circuit configured to output driving power to the motor, based on the voltage command value; a d-axis current command value calculation unit configured to calculate the d-axis current command value limiting the voltage command value to a maximum voltage applicable to the driving circuit or less by field-weakening control; a d-axis current command value limitation unit configured to limit the d-axis current command value; and a q-axis current command value limitation unit configured to limit the q-axis current command value lest the voltage command value exceed the maximum voltage due to limitation of the d-axis current command value by the d-axis current command value limitation unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 31, 2021
    Assignee: NSK LTD.
    Inventor: Yasutoshi Miki
  • Patent number: 11088647
    Abstract: A control method includes setting, when a space phase difference of in-phase coils of the respective groups is represented by ?, a time phase difference of electric currents to be supplied to the in-phase coils of the respective groups is represented by ?, and a time phase difference of carrier frequencies with which the three-phase inverters are PWM-controlled, respectively, is represented by ?, values of ? and ? so that any one or both of the following relationships are satisfied: ?=±(?+2?), and ?=±(???)/2, based on a result of comparison between a current amplitude of a primary component and a current amplitude of a secondary component of a carrier harmonic current, to control the dynamoelectric machine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 23, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 10, 2021
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshihiro Miyama, Haruyuki Kometani
  • Patent number: 11084525
    Abstract: Provided is an electric power steering control device capable of improving steering feeling. When the voltage of a battery is within the range of usual voltage, a gain target value is set to a usual value, and when the voltage of the battery is outside the range thereof, the gain target value is set to a value below the usual value. Then, it is determined whether or not a set gain at recovery of the voltage of the battery from outside the range of the usual voltage to within the range thereof is larger than a prescribed threshold. When determined to be larger than the prescribed threshold, the gain is set to immediately increase up to the gain target value, whereas when determined to be equal to or less than the prescribed threshold, the gain is set to gradually increase up to the gain target value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 10, 2021
    Assignee: NSK LTD.
    Inventors: Tsutomu Shibata, Takamitsu Koukami
  • Patent number: 11088645
    Abstract: Two systems of individually-provided arithmetic units in a control device of a multi-phase rotating machine perform control calculation for a control of electric current flowing from power converters to the multi-phase windings. The arithmetic units of the respective systems communicate information via inter-system communication at least in one direction, and perform current control calculation of the electric current flowing in the multi-phase windings of a subject system in a cycle shorter than a communication cycle of the inter-system communication, and calculate a decoupling control amount of the electric current flowing in the multi-phase windings of the subject system, for a decoupling control of a voltage generated in the multi-phase windings of the subject system by the electric current flowing in the multi-phase windings of an other system by using an estimated current that is calculated based on a current instruction value of the subject system or of the other system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 26, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 10, 2021
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventor: Takashi Suzuki
  • Patent number: 11088642
    Abstract: An electric winding exchanger system increases torque or speed performance of multi-phase electric motors and electric drive modules. The system includes an electronic control unit, a back electromotive force (EMF) boosting circuit, a plurality of high-voltage terminals, an electric motor, and a motor control unit. The electronic control unit receives and processes commands from the motor control unit. The back EMF boosting circuit adjusts the winding arrangements of the electric motor in order to change the state of the electric motor. The plurality of high-voltage terminals transfers high voltage electrical energy from the back EMF boosting circuit to the electric motor and vice versa. The motor control unit allows a user to input commands in order to activate increased torque or speed performance for the electric motor. The electric motor is preferably a multi-phase electric motor of an electric or hybrid vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 17, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 10, 2021
    Assignee: SCNEWTON INC.
    Inventor: Ali Sarikhani
  • Patent number: 11081998
    Abstract: To provide a controller of rotary electric machine which can control voltage of each set of the winding appropriately within a range less than or equal to the DC power voltage, to the rotary electric machine which has plural sets of windings. A controller of rotary electric machine calculates, for each set, a required DC voltage which is a minimum DC power voltage required for applying a voltage according to the voltage command value to the winding, based on the voltage command value; calculates one common required DC voltage which is common to all sets, based on all sets of the required DC voltages; changes the common voltage control value so that the common required DC voltage-approaches the DC power voltage; and changes each set of the current command value based on the common voltage control value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 10, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 3, 2021
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Tomohiro Seki, Ryo Nakamura, Yuya Hisano, Masahiro Iezawa
  • Patent number: 11081995
    Abstract: A motor control device includes a plurality of systems capable of controlling current supply to a motor. Each microcomputer of first and second systems is configured to communicate information of the own system and the other system by inter-computer communication and has an independent ground potential. A power supply current flowing between a power supply and a power converter is assumed to be positive and negative in a power running state and a regeneration state. Each microcomputer monitors the power supply current of each system by the inter-computer communication, and executes a power supply current balancing process of limiting a current command value or a voltage command value of at least one of the two systems thereby to decrease a power supply current difference between the two systems when the power supply current difference between the two systems exceeds a target value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 13, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 3, 2021
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hiroyasu Otake, Nobuyori Nakajima, Go Endoh
  • Patent number: 11071441
    Abstract: A first input coupling and a second input coupling are coupled to rotatably drive an output coupling at the same time. In one embodiment, the output coupling rotates a robotic surgery endoscope about a longitudinal axis of the output coupling. A first motor drives the first input coupling while being assisted by a second motor that is driving the second input coupling. A first compensator produces a first motor input based on a position error and in accordance with a position control law, and a second compensator produces a second motor input based on the position error and in accordance with an impedance control law. In another embodiment, the second compensator receives a measured torque of the first motor. Other embodiments are also described and claimed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 27, 2021
    Assignee: VERB SURGICAL INC.
    Inventors: Haoran Yu, Renbin Zhou, Sina Nia Kosari, Andrea Bajo
  • Patent number: 11070156
    Abstract: A power system includes: a first power circuit, having a first battery; a second power circuit, having a second battery, wherein a used voltage range of the second battery with respect to a closed circuit voltage overlaps with the first battery, and a static voltage of the second battery is lower than the first battery; a voltage converter, converting a voltage between the power circuits; a power converter, converting power between the first power circuit and a driving motor; and a management ECU and a motor ECU, operating the power converter based on required power. The management ECU and the motor ECU calculates limit power with respect to output power of the first battery based on an internal state of the second battery, and operates the power converter so that the output power of the first battery does not exceed the limit power.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 20, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 20, 2021
    Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hirokazu Oguma, Naoto Tagaya
  • Patent number: 11063547
    Abstract: PWM control of first and second inverters that control a double-winding type rotating electric machine is performed with mode switching between asynchronous PWM and synchronous PWM. A first-group triangular wave used for the PWM control of the first inverter is switched from the asynchronous PWM to the synchronous PWM in first timing at which carrier phases of an asynchronous PWM triangular wave and a synchronous triangular wave are matched with each other. A second-group of triangular wave used for the PWM control of the second inverter is switched from the asynchronous PWM to the synchronous PWM in second timing at which the carrier phases of the asynchronous PWM triangular wave and the synchronous triangular wave are matched with each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 13, 2021
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION
    Inventor: Ryo Miyashita
  • Patent number: 11056993
    Abstract: A control device includes an inverter, a sensor, a controller, and a filter. The inverter supplies power to an electric motor based on a control on the electric motor. The sensor detects a current supplied from the inverter to the electric motor. The controller executes current vector control by calculating a feedback command value and a feedforward compensation value based on a torque command value, the feedback command value being indicative of a voltage value for decreasing deviation in a supply current to the electric motor, the feedforward compensation value being a value for compensating the feedback command value. The filter performs a filtering process on the feedback command value to pass a low-frequency component of the feedback command value. When the control is switched to voltage phase control, the controller initializes the voltage phase control based on the feedforward compensation value and an output from the filter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2021
    Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Sho Ohno, Hiromichi Kawamura
  • Patent number: 11034247
    Abstract: A vehicle propulsion system includes a propulsion electrical storage device (PESD), a first switching device, an ancillary electrical storage device (AESD), a second switching device, and a controller. The PESD powers a traction motor of a vehicle via a propulsion circuit. The AESD is a different type of electrical storage device than the PESD and powers the traction motor via an ancillary circuit. The first switching device is electrically connected to the propulsion circuit, and the second switching device is electrically connected to the ancillary circuit. The controller switches or maintains the second switching device in a closed, conducting state during an elevated demand period for the AESD to power to the traction motor. The controller switches the second switching device to an open, non-conducting state prior to switching the first switching device to the closed state for the PESD to power the traction motor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 26, 2020
    Date of Patent: June 15, 2021
    Assignee: TRANSPORTATION IP HOLDINGS, LLC
    Inventor: Joel Terence Montione