A space vector PWM scheme for multilevel inverters based on two-level space vector PWM

Abstract

Multilevel inverters are increasingly being used in high-power medium voltage applications due to their superior performance compared to two-level inverters. Among various modulation techniques for a multilevel inverter, the space vector pulsewidth modulation (SVPWM) is widely used. However, the implementation of the SVPWM for a multilevel inverter is complicated. The complexity is due to the difficulty in determining the location of the reference vector, the calculation of on-times, and the determination and selection of switching states. This paper proposes a general SVPWM algorithm for multilevel inverters based on standard two-level SVPWM. Since the proposed multilevel SVPWM method uses two-level modulation to calculate the on-times, the computation of on-times for an n-level inverter becomes easier. The proposed method uses a simple mapping to achieve the SVPWM for a multilevel inverter. A general n-level implementation is explained, and experimental results are given for three-level and five-level inverters. © 2006 IEEE.