Asynchronous Motor Drive Using an Inverter with Adjustable DC-Link Voltage

Articles in Press

Document Type : Research paper

Authors

Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Urmia University, Urmia, Iran.

Abstract

With a fixed DC-link voltage, the high-frequency harmonic content of an inverter’s output voltage and current increases significantly compared to the fundamental component. In electric motor drives, however, the output voltage magnitude varies over a wide range depending on the speed command, which can range from zero to the rated speed. As a result, when the motor operates at speeds well below the rated value, the fundamental component of the output voltage is low, leading to a high total harmonic distortion (THD). To address this issue, this study proposes an inverter with an adjustable DC-link voltage for asynchronous motor drives. The inverter switches between two predefined DC-link voltage levels: a higher voltage for high-speed operation and a lower voltage (half of the full DC voltage) for low-speed operation. Consequently, in the lower speed range—approximately up to half of the rated speed—the THD of the output voltage and current is significantly reduced. In addition, the harmonic modeling of the motor and power loss analysis of the drive system are presented. The proposed approach, unlike other similar concepts, is simple and feasible for implementation in real-world applications. Simulation results obtained using MATLAB/Simulink confirm the effectiveness of the proposed method in reducing harmonic content in asynchronous motor drives.

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References

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Journal of Operation and Automation in Power Engineering

Articles in Press, Corrected Proof
Available Online from 18 July 2026

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History

  • Receive Date: 14 February 2025
  • Revise Date: 23 October 2025
  • Accept Date: 09 November 2025
  • First Publish Date: 18 July 2026

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