Purpose
This study aims to drive the induction machine system with a low switching frequency.
Design/methodology/approach
An unconventional inverter control strategy – field-oriented predictive control (FOPC) – is presented. The strategy limits current distortion by setting a boundary circle. The voltage vector, which could keep current trajectories in boundary, is selected to obtain a low switching frequency.
Findings
A dual simulation step technique is developed to investigate the influence of sampling frequency on current distortion control and switching frequency. Current control distortion can be improved, i.e. reduced, by increasing the sampling frequency; however, the switching frequency will also increase. Such a law is discovered by the dual simulation step technique and finally verified by experiments.
Originality/value
A new predictive control method, FOPC, is derived from the rotor filed coordinate machine model and presented in this paper. FOPC circumvents derivative calculations, and thus avoids high-frequency noise amplification.