Rotary electric machine control device
The rotating electrical machine control device addresses miniaturization challenges by integrating drive units and signal conversion, acquiring drive command values externally, and using a multi-power supply system to ensure compactness and robustness.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- WO · WO
- Patent Type
- Applications
- Current Assignee / Owner
- DENSO CORP
- Filing Date
- 2025-12-10
- Publication Date
- 2026-06-18
Smart Images
Figure JP2025043053_18062026_PF_FP_ABST
Abstract
Description
Rotating Electrical Machine Control Device Cross - Reference to Related Applications 【0001】 This application is based on Patent Application No. 2024 - 217777 filed on December 12, 2024, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. 【0002】 This disclosure relates to a rotating electrical machine control device. 【0003】 Conventionally, a rotating electrical machine control device for controlling the drive of a rotating electrical machine is known. For example, in Patent Document 1, two winding sets, two drive circuits, and two control units are provided. 【0004】 Japanese Patent No. 6769328 【0005】 By providing a plurality of control units as in Patent Document 1, the operability after a failure is improved. On the other hand, components constituting the control unit (for example, a microcomputer) have a relatively large occupied area on the substrate. When a plurality of control units are provided, the substrate becomes larger or the need to provide multiple substrates arises. The object of this disclosure is to provide a rotating electrical machine control device that can be miniaturized. 【0006】 The rotating electrical machine control device of this disclosure controls the drive of a rotating electrical machine having a plurality of winding sets, and includes a plurality of rotating electrical machine drive units and a signal conversion unit. 【0007】 The rotating electrical machine drive unit has a driver circuit provided for each winding set and a driver drive unit that outputs a drive signal based on a drive command value to the driver circuit. The signal conversion unit converts the drive command value transmitted by digital communication from an external device into a format different from the communication format transmitted from the external device and transmits it to the driver drive unit. By adopting a configuration in which the drive command value is acquired from the outside, components related to the calculation of the drive command value can be omitted, contributing to miniaturization. 【0008】The above-mentioned objectives and other objectives, features and advantages of this disclosure will become clearer with reference to the attached drawings and the detailed description below. The drawings are as follows: Figure 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a steer-by-wire system according to the first embodiment; Figure 2 is a block diagram showing a reaction force device according to the first embodiment; Figure 3 is a plan view showing the reaction force motor side of the substrate of the reaction force device according to the first embodiment; Figure 4 is a plan view showing the side opposite the reaction force motor of the substrate of the reaction force device according to the first embodiment; Figure 5 is a block diagram showing a steering device according to the first embodiment; Figure 6 is a plan view showing the steering motor side of the substrate of the steering device according to the first embodiment; Figure 7 is a plan view showing the side opposite the steering motor of the substrate of the steering device according to the first embodiment; Figure 8 is a block diagram showing the reaction force ECU and steering ECU according to the first embodiment; Figure 9 is a time chart illustrating the synchronization of drive signals according to the first embodiment; and Figure 10 is a plan view showing the steering motor side of the steering device according to the second embodiment. Figure 11 is a block diagram showing the reaction force ECU and steering ECU according to the second embodiment; Figure 12 is a block diagram showing the reaction force ECU and steering ECU according to the third embodiment; Figure 13 is a block diagram showing the reaction force ECU and steering ECU according to the fourth embodiment; Figure 14 is a block diagram showing the reaction force ECU and steering ECU according to the fifth embodiment; Figure 15 is a time chart illustrating the transmission of the drive signal according to the fifth embodiment; Figure 16 is a time chart illustrating the transmission of the drive signal according to the fifth embodiment; Figure 17 is a block diagram showing the external ECU and steering ECU according to the sixth embodiment; Figure 18 is a block diagram showing the reaction force ECU and steering ECU according to the seventh embodiment; Figure 19 is a block diagram showing the steering device according to the eighth embodiment; and Figure 20 is a block diagram showing the reaction force ECU and steering ECU according to the ninth embodiment. 【0009】 The rotating electric machine control device according to this disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the following embodiments, substantially identical components will be denoted by the same reference numerals and their descriptions will be omitted. 【0010】(First Embodiment) The first embodiment is shown in Figures 1 to 9. As shown in Figure 1, the steering device 30, which includes a steering ECU 32 as a rotating electric control device, is applied to a steer-by-wire system 90. The steer-by-wire system 90 includes a reaction force device 10, a steering device 30, a steering wheel 91, a steering shaft 92, a pinion gear 96, and a rack shaft 97, etc. 【0011】 The steering wheel 91 is provided at one end of the steering shaft 92. The steering shaft 92 is mechanically separable from the rack shaft 97. In Figure 1, the steering shaft 92 and the rack shaft 97 are completely separated, but a clutch that can be switched between connected and disconnected may be provided between the steering shaft 92 and the rack shaft 97. 【0012】 The reaction force device 10 is a so-called "mechatronics-integrated" type, in which the reaction force ECU 12 is integrally provided on one axial side of the reaction force motor 11. Similarly, the steering device 30 is a so-called "mechatronics-integrated" type, in which the steering ECU 32 is integrally provided on one side of the steering motor 31. By integrating the mechatronics, the reaction force device 10 and the steering device 30 can be efficiently arranged in vehicles where mounting space is limited. At least one of the reaction force device 10 and the steering device 30 may be a mechatronics-separated unit in which the motor and ECU are provided separately. 【0013】 As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the reaction force device 10 includes a reaction force motor 11, a reaction force ECU 12, and a power transmission unit 19. The reaction force motor 11 is, for example, a three-phase brushless motor and has four sets of motor windings 110, 115, 210, and 215. The driving force of the reaction force motor 11 is connected to the steering shaft 92 via the power transmission unit 19, which is composed of gears or the like. The reaction force motor 11 provides the driver with an appropriate steering feel by applying a reaction force to the steering wheel 91 in accordance with the driver's steering input. 【0014】As shown in Figure 2, the reaction force ECU 12 includes microcontrollers 120 and 220, and motor drive units 140, 145, 240, 245, etc. Microcontrollers 120 and 220 each contain a CPU, ROM, RAM, I / O (not shown), and bus lines connecting these components. Each process in microcontrollers 120 and 220 may be software processing by executing a program pre-stored in a physical memory device such as ROM (i.e., a readable non-temporary tangible recording medium) using the CPU, or it may be hardware processing using dedicated electronic circuits. The same applies to microcontrollers 320 and 420 described later. 【0015】 Microcontrollers 120 and 220 have a calculation core that calculates drive command values for controlling the drive of the reaction motor 11 based on detections from a rotation angle sensor 14 (see Figure 3), a current sensor (not shown), and a torque sensor, etc. The calculation core may be provided for each motor drive unit, or it may be shared by multiple motor drive units. Microcontroller 120 calculates drive command values related to the on / off operation of the switching elements constituting the driver circuits 150 and 155, and microcontroller 220 calculates drive command values related to the on / off operation of the switching elements constituting the driver circuits 250 and 255. The drive command value is, for example, a duty cycle command value that commands the duty cycle ratio, which is the ratio of the on time to the off time of the switching element. 【0016】 Furthermore, the microcontroller 120 calculates drive command values related to the on / off operation of the switching elements constituting the driver circuits 450 and 455 of the steering ECU 32 and transmits them to the steering ECU 32. The microcontroller 220 also calculates drive command values related to the on / off operation of the switching elements constituting the driver circuits 450 and 455 of the steering ECU 32 and transmits them to the steering ECU 32. Details will be described later. 【0017】 The microcontrollers 120 and 220 are connected via an isolator 15 (see Figure 4) to enable communication between them. In this embodiment, the microcontrollers 120 and 220 are configured similarly, but their performance and configuration details may differ. 【0018】Microcontroller 120 is powered by power supply IC 131, and microcontroller 220 is powered by power supply IC 231. Power supply ICs 131 and 231 are power management ICs (PMICs) that not only supply power to microcontrollers 120 and 220 but also perform abnormality monitoring. In this embodiment, the components above the dashed line in Figure 2 are powered by power supply 100, and the components below the dashed line are powered by power supply 200. In other words, the reaction force device 10 in this embodiment is a "two-power supply system" powered by two power supplies 100 and 200. 【0019】 In this embodiment, the combination of components powered by power supply 100 is designated as the first system, and the combination of components powered by power supply 200 is designated as the second system. Components related to the first system are numbered in the 100s, and components related to the second system are numbered in the 200s. Components with the same or similar configuration in the first and second systems are numbered so that the last two digits are the same, and explanations are omitted as appropriate. In addition, in the steering ECU 32, components related to the first system are numbered in the 300s, and components related to the second system are numbered in the 400s. 【0020】 Communication units 132 and 232 are used for sending and receiving various types of information. Communication units 132 and 232 are connected to the vehicle communication network 500 (see Figure 1) and acquire vehicle signals from the vehicle communication network 500. Oscillators 133 and 233 are clock sources such as crystal or ceramic oscillators. 【0021】 Motor drive units 140, 145, 240, and 245 are provided corresponding to motor windings 110, 115, 210, and 215, respectively. Motor drive unit 140 has a driver circuit 150 and a pre-driver IC 160, and motor drive unit 145 has a driver circuit 155 and a pre-driver IC 165. Motor drive unit 240 has a driver circuit 250 and a pre-driver IC 260, and motor drive unit 245 has a driver circuit 255 and a pre-driver IC 265. In this embodiment, the motor drive unit 140 has the driver circuit 150 and the pre-driver IC 160 in a single package, but the driver circuit 150 and the pre-driver IC 160 may be provided separately. The same applies to motor drive units 145, 240, and 245. 【0022】The driver circuits 150, 155, 250, and 255 are bridged together with six switching elements (not shown). The switching elements are, for example, MOSFETs, but may also be IGBTs, bipolar transistors, etc. 【0023】 The pre-driver ICs 160, 165, 260, and 265 are provided in correspondence with the driver circuits 150, 155, 250, and 255, respectively. Pre-driver ICs 160 and 165 are provided to communicate digitally with the microcontroller 120, and pre-driver ICs 260 and 265 are provided to communicate digitally with the microcontroller 220. In this embodiment, communication between the microcontroller and the pre-driver ICs is SPI (Serial Peripheral Interface) communication, but other communication formats may be used. Analog communication may also be used. 【0024】 The pre-driver ICs 160, 165, 260, and 265 output gate waveforms as drive signals that control the on / off operation of the switching elements constituting the driver circuits 150, 155, 250, and 255, based on drive command values acquired from the microcontrollers 120 and 220. Hereafter, updating the duty cycle of the drive signal based on the drive command value will be referred to as "duty cycle update". The same applies to the drive control of the steering motor 31. 【0025】 The communication lines connecting the pre-driver ICs 160, 165, 260, and 265 to the microcontrollers 120 and 220 are connected by inter-system connection lines 25. An isolator 15 (see Figure 4) is provided on the inter-system connection lines 25. By digitizing the communication between the microcontrollers and pre-driver ICs and providing the inter-system connection lines 25, even if, for example, a malfunction occurs in one processing core, commands can continue to be sent to all pre-driver ICs 160, 165, 260, and 265 from the other functioning processing cores. 【0026】As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the various electronic components constituting the reaction force ECU 12 are mounted on the substrate 13. Figure 3 shows the side facing the reaction force motor 11, and Figure 4 shows the side opposite the reaction force motor 11. Figure 4 shows the arrangement in a transparent state as seen from the reaction force motor 11 side. The same applies to Figure 7, which will be described later. In this embodiment, the electronic components are mounted on a single substrate 13, but multiple substrates may be used. The same applies to the steering ECU 32. 【0027】 As shown in Figure 3, a rotation angle sensor 14, power supply ICs 131 and 231, and motor drive units 140, 145, 240, and 245 are mounted on the side of the substrate 13 facing the reaction motor 11. The rotation angle sensor 14 is mounted in a position opposite to a magnet provided at the end of a shaft (not shown) of the reaction motor 11, and detects the rotation angle of the reaction motor 11. 【0028】 The power supply ICs 131 and 231 are arranged roughly side-by-side on either side of the rotation angle sensor 14. Power supply IC 131 is mounted on one side of the board partition line D, and power supply IC 231 is mounted on the other side of the board partition line D. Board partition line D is a dividing line that separates the first system from the second system. 【0029】 Power terminals 135 and 235 are connected to the outer edge of the circuit board 13, on both sides of the circuit board division line D. Power terminal 135 is connected to power supply 100, and power terminal 235 is connected to power supply 200. Signal terminals 136 and 236 are connected to the outer edge of the circuit board 13, where they straddle the circuit board division line D. 【0030】 The motor drive units 140, 145, 240, and 245 are arranged concentrically at roughly equal intervals. The motor drive unit 140 and the motor drive unit 245, and the motor drive unit 145 and the motor drive unit 240 are arranged symmetrically across the substrate division line D. The radially outer sides of the motor drive units 140, 145, 240, and 245 are connected to the output wires of the corresponding motor windings 110, 115, 210, and 215. 【0031】As shown in Figure 4, microcontrollers 120 and 220, an isolator 15, capacitors 137 and 237 and inductors 138 and 238 that constitute the filter circuit are mounted on the side of the circuit board 13 opposite to the reaction motor 11. The microcontrollers 120 and 220 are located on the circuit board partition line D, on both sides of the isolator 15. Microcontroller 120 is mounted on the signal terminal 136 side of the isolator 15, and microcontroller 220 is mounted on the signal terminal 236 side of the isolator 15. The isolator 15 is mounted on the circuit board partition line D. 【0032】 As shown in Figures 1 and 5, the steering device 30 includes a steering motor 31, a steering ECU 32, and a power transmission unit 39. The steering motor 31 is, for example, a three-phase brushless motor and has four sets of motor windings 310, 315, 410, and 415, which output the torque required for steering according to the rotation angle of the steering wheel 91. The steering motor 31 rotates the pinion gear 96 in forward and reverse directions via the power transmission unit 39, which is composed of gears and belts. The rotational motion of the pinion gear 96 is converted into linear motion of the rack shaft 97 by a rack and pinion. The pair of wheels 98 are steered to an angle corresponding to the displacement of the rack shaft 97. 【0033】 As shown in Figure 5, the steering ECU 32 includes motor drive units 340, 345, 440, 445 and protocol conversion ICs 370, 470, etc. The motor drive units 340, 345, 440, and 445 are provided in correspondence with the motor windings 310, 315, 410, and 415, respectively. 【0034】 Motor drive unit 340 has a driver circuit 350 and a pre-driver IC 360, and motor drive unit 345 has a driver circuit 355 and a pre-driver IC 365. Motor drive unit 440 has a driver circuit 450 and a pre-driver IC 460, and motor drive unit 445 has a driver circuit 455 and a pre-driver IC 465. In this embodiment, the motor drive unit 340 has the driver circuit 350 and the pre-driver IC 360 in a single package, but the driver circuit 350 and the pre-driver IC 360 may be provided separately. The same applies to motor drive units 345, 440, and 445. 【0035】 The driver circuits 350, 355, 450, and 455 are bridged together with six switching elements (not shown). The switching elements are, for example, MOSFETs, but may also be IGBTs, bipolar transistors, etc. 【0036】 The pre-driver ICs 360, 365, 460, and 465 are provided in correspondence with the driver circuits 350, 355, 350, and 355, respectively. Pre-driver ICs 360 and 365 acquire drive command values via digital communication through the protocol conversion IC 370. Pre-driver ICs 460 and 465 acquire drive command values via digital communication through the protocol conversion IC 470. In this embodiment, the communication method that can be used by pre-driver ICs 360, 365, 460, and 465 is SPI, but other communication methods may be used. Analog communication may also be used. 【0037】 Communication units 332 and 432 are provided for transmitting and receiving various signals. Communication units 332 and 432 are connected to the vehicle communication network 500 (see Figure 1) and acquire drive command values for the steering motor 31 from the microcontrollers 120 and 220 via the vehicle communication network 500. 【0038】 As shown in Figures 6 and 7, the various electronic components constituting the steering ECU 32 are mounted on the circuit board 33. Figure 6 shows the side facing the steering motor 31, and Figure 7 shows the side opposite the steering motor 31. As shown in Figure 6, the rotation angle sensor 34, motor drive units 340, 345, 440, 445, and protocol conversion ICs 370, 470 are mounted on the side of the circuit board 33 facing the steering motor 31. 【0039】As shown in Figure 7, on the side of the circuit board 33 opposite the steering motor 31, an isolator 35, capacitors 337 and 437 and inductors 338 and 348 that constitute the filter circuit are mounted. In the steering ECU 32, the microcontroller is omitted, and protocol conversion ICs 370 and 470 are mounted in place of power supply ICs 131 and 231. Except for these differences, the component layout of the circuit board 33 is generally the same as that of the circuit board 13 of the reaction force ECU 12. The component layout of the circuit board 33 may differ from that of the circuit board 13. In Figures 6 and 7, the power supply terminals are numbered 335 and 435, and the signal terminals are numbered 336 and 436. 【0040】 In the steering ECU 32, the microcontroller and power supply IC, which occupy a relatively large area on the circuit board, are omitted. This increases the flexibility of component placement on the circuit board 33. Furthermore, it enables miniaturization of the circuit board 33. 【0041】 Since the steering ECU 32 omits a microcontroller, it does not calculate the drive command values related to the drive control of the steering motor 31. Therefore, the steering ECU 32 obtains the drive command values related to the drive of the steering motor 31 from the reaction force ECU 12, which is an external ECU, via digital communication. 【0042】 The configuration for communication of drive command values will be explained with reference to Figure 8. Note that the communication between the protocol conversion IC 370 and the motor drive unit 340 is the same as the communication between the protocol conversion IC 370 and the motor drive unit 345, and the communication between the protocol conversion IC 470 and the motor drive unit 440 is the same as the communication between the protocol conversion IC 470 and the motor drive unit 445. Therefore, for the sake of simplicity, the motor drive units 345 and 445 are omitted from Figure 8, and the explanation will focus on the communication between the protocol conversion ICs 370 and 470 and the motor drive units 340 and 440. The same applies to the corresponding drawings such as Figure 11 in the embodiments described later. 【0043】 As shown in Figure 8, the steering ECU 32 transmits information such as the rotation angle detection value and current detection value of the steering motor 31 to the reaction force ECU 12 via the vehicle communication network 500 (see Figure 1). Based on the information obtained from the steering ECU 32, the reaction force ECU 12 calculates the drive command value related to the driving of the steering motor 31 and transmits it to the steering ECU 32. 【0044】 In this embodiment, the communication format between the reaction force ECU 12 and the steering ECU 32 is CAN (Controller Area Network), and the communication format of the motor drive unit 340 of the steering ECU 32 is SPI, so the communication formats are different. The communication format between the reaction force ECU 12 and the steering ECU 32 is not limited to CAN, and any digital communication such as Ethernet is acceptable, and the communication format is not important. 【0045】 The steering ECU 32 has protocol conversion ICs 370 and 470. The protocol conversion IC 370 converts the drive command value of the steering motor 31 transmitted from the microcomputer 120 in the CAN format into the SPI format and transmits it to the motor drive unit 340. The protocol conversion IC 470 converts the drive command value of the steering motor 31 transmitted from the microcomputer 220 in the CAN format into the SPI format and transmits it to the motor drive unit 440. Thereby, the steering motor 31 is controlled using the drive command value acquired from the reaction force ECU 12. 【0046】 FIG. 9 is a time chart for explaining the command reflection timing in the motor drive units 340 and 440. In FIG. 9, the communication between the microcomputer 120 and the motor drive unit 340 is referred to as "system 1", the communication between the microcomputer 220 and the motor drive unit 440 is referred to as "system 2", the common time axis is the horizontal axis, and from the upper part, system 1, system 2, and the synchronization signal are shown. 【0047】 In the motor drive units 340 and 440, there is a possibility that the communication timings for receiving the drive command values from the microcomputers 120 and 220 may be shifted. Therefore, in this embodiment, a synchronization signal is transmitted from one of the motor drive units 340 and 440 (specifically, the pre-driver ICs 360 and 460) to the other. Since the power supply systems of the motor drive units 340 and 440 are different, the synchronization signal is transmitted by means of insulated communication. The insulated communication is communication via the isolator 35 (see FIG. 7). Also, the insulated communication may be wireless communication. For the four motor drive units, when transmitting the synchronization signal from one motor drive unit to another motor drive unit, the communication to the different power supply system sides shall be insulated communication. 【0048】The pre-driver ICs 360 and 460 update the duty cycle based on a common synchronization signal, at the timing of the synchronization signal's L→H transition, based on the acquired drive command value. The duty cycle may also be updated at the timing of the synchronization signal's H→L transition, or at both the L→H and H→L transitions. This ensures that the duty cycle update timing is synchronized even if the timing of receiving the drive command value is different. 【0049】 As described above, the steering ECU 32 controls the drive of the steering motor 31 which has a plurality of motor windings 310, 315, 410, 415, and comprises a plurality of motor drive units 340, 345, 440, 445 and protocol conversion ICs 370, 470. 【0050】 The motor drive units 340, 345, 440, and 445 each have driver circuits 350, 355, 450, and 455 provided for each motor winding 310, 315, 410, and 415, and pre-driver ICs 360, 365, 460, and 465 that output drive signals based on drive command values to the driver circuits 350, 355, 450, and 455. 【0051】 The protocol conversion ICs 370 and 470 convert the drive command values transmitted digitally from the reaction force ECU 12 into a different communication format (e.g., SPI) than the one transmitted from the reaction force ECU 12 (e.g., CAN), and transmit them to the pre-driver ICs 360, 365, 460, and 465. 【0052】 By configuring the system to acquire drive command values from an external source, the steering ECU 32 can omit components (such as a microcontroller) related to the calculation of drive command values. This microcontroller-less configuration increases the flexibility of the circuit board 33's layout, which in turn allows for miniaturization of the circuit board 33. 【0053】Multiple pre-driver ICs 360, 365, 460, and 465 synchronize their timing to output drive signals to driver circuits 350, 355, 450, and 455. Specifically, one pre-driver IC (e.g., pre-driver IC 360) sends a synchronization signal to another pre-driver IC (e.g., pre-driver IC 460), and the duty cycle is updated based on this common synchronization signal. This allows for synchronized control of driver circuits 350, 355, 450, and 455. 【0054】 The steering ECU 32 is supplied with power from multiple power sources 100 and 200. Power source 100 is provided with motor windings 310 and 315, motor drive units 340 and 345, and a protocol conversion IC 370. Power source 200 is provided with motor windings 410 and 415, motor drive units 440 and 445, and a protocol conversion IC 470. By using a multi-power system configuration (in this embodiment, a two-power system configuration), the steering motor 31 can continue to be driven even if a malfunction occurs in one of the power systems, thereby increasing robustness against power loss. 【0055】 Communication between pre-driver ICs 360 and 460, which are provided for different power supplies, is isolated communication. In this embodiment, a synchronization signal is transmitted via communication through the isolator 15. This allows for proper communication between different power supply systems while maintaining a potential difference. 【0056】 (Second Embodiment) A second embodiment is shown in Figures 10 and 11. In this embodiment, a protocol conversion IC 370 is provided for each motor drive unit 346, 347 and is located in the same package as the motor drive units 346, 347. A protocol conversion IC 470 is provided for each motor drive unit 446, 447 and is located in the same package as the motor drive units 446, 447. Motor drive units 346, 347, 446, and 447 are the same as motor drive units 340, 345, 440, and 445, except that they contain the protocol conversion ICs 370 and 470. Note that in Figure 11, the motor drive units 347 and 447 are not shown. 【0057】In this embodiment, the protocol conversion IC 370 is provided in the same package as the motor drive units 346 and 347, and the protocol conversion IC 470 is provided in the same package as the motor drive units 446 and 447. This reduces the number of components mounted on the circuit board 33, and consequently enables miniaturization of the circuit board 33. It also provides the same effects as in the above embodiment. 【0058】 (Third Embodiment) A third embodiment is shown in Figure 12. In Figure 12, an example is shown in which the protocol conversion IC is provided separately from the motor drive unit, similar to the first embodiment, but the protocol conversion IC may be provided inside the motor drive unit, as in the second embodiment. The same applies to the fourth and subsequent embodiments. 【0059】 In this embodiment, multiple protocol conversion ICs 370 and 470 synchronize their timing to transmit drive command values to pre-driver ICs 360 and 460. Specifically, by transmitting a synchronization signal from one protocol conversion IC 370 or 470 to the other, the timing of transmission of drive command values from the protocol conversion ICs 370 and 470 to the motor drive units 340 and 440 is synchronized. The transmission and reception of the synchronization signal are performed using isolated communication. This allows for synchronized control of the driver circuits 350, 355, 450, and 455. It also achieves the same effects as in the above embodiment. 【0060】 (Fourth Embodiment) A fourth embodiment is shown in Figure 13. In this embodiment, the communication standard between the reaction force ECU 12 and the steering ECU 32 is, for example, TSN (Time Sensitive Network), which is an extension of Ethernet. The reaction force ECU 12 has a real-time clock (not shown). The drive command value is transmitted from the microcontrollers 120 and 220 via TSN as information that can be synchronized by multiple motor drive units 340 and 440. The information can also be time-synchronized using a communication format other than TSN. 【0061】The protocol conversion ICs 371 and 471 convert the data format of the drive command value from TSN to SPI. This allows the motor drive units 340 and 440 to use drive command values acquired in different communication formats. Furthermore, since the drive command value is acquired as time-synchronizable information, the motor drive units 340 and 440 can be driven in synchronization by control from the reaction force ECU 12. This also provides the same effects as in the above embodiment. 【0062】 (Fifth Embodiment) The fifth embodiment is shown in Figures 14 to 16. In this embodiment, the reaction force ECU 12 has one microcontroller 320 and is configured as a single system. The protocol conversion ICs 370 and 470 acquire drive command values from the same microcontroller 320. Alternatively, the reaction force ECU 12 may have multiple microcontrollers, and one of them may be configured to transmit drive command values to the steering ECU 32 as an "external ECU". 【0063】 In Figure 15, the horizontal axis represents the common time axis, and from top to bottom, it shows the calculation of the drive command value by the microcontroller 320 of the reaction force ECU 12, communication between the microcontroller 320 and the protocol conversion IC 370, and communication between the microcontroller 320 and the protocol conversion IC 470. In Figure 15, the communication between the microcontroller 320 and the protocol conversion IC 370 is referred to as "System 1," and the communication between the microcontroller 320 and the protocol conversion IC 470 is referred to as "System 2." The same applies to Figure 16. 【0064】 As shown in Figure 15, the microcontroller 320 calculates the drive command value from time x11, sends the drive command value to the protocol conversion IC 370 from time x12, and sends the drive command value to the protocol conversion IC 470 from time x13, and so on, sending the drive command value sequentially for each system. 【0065】 Furthermore, as shown in Figure 16, the microcontroller 320 may calculate the drive command value from time x21 and transmit the drive command value to the protocol conversion ICs 370 and 470 together from time x22. This configuration also produces the same effects as the embodiment described above. 【0066】(Sixth Embodiment) The sixth embodiment is shown in Figure 17. In Figure 17, the description of signal synchronization is omitted, and any synchronization method from any embodiment may be used. The same applies to the seventh embodiment. In this embodiment, drive command values are obtained from external ECUs 51 and 52, which are different external devices, for each power supply system. For example, external ECU 51 is a reaction force ECU, and external ECU 52 is a brake ECU. The external device may be any device capable of transmitting and receiving information, such as a higher-level ECU that controls the entire vehicle. Furthermore, even if the housing is shared, if the components constituting the ECU are mounted on different circuit boards and are independent systems, they may be considered "different ECUs". This increases the independence of each power supply system and improves robustness against power failure. It also provides the same effects as the above embodiments. 【0067】 (Seventh Embodiment) The seventh embodiment is shown in Figure 18. In this embodiment, the steering ECU 32 has motor drive units 340, 440 and protocol conversion ICs 370, 470, as well as abnormality monitoring ICs 380, 480. The abnormality monitoring ICs 380, 480 are relatively small and capable of abnormality monitoring and stopping the drive, but do not perform motor drive control. 【0068】 Since the steering ECU 32 in this embodiment has a microcontroller-less structure, it cannot perform abnormality monitoring by a microcontroller. Therefore, abnormality monitoring ICs 380 and 480 are provided to monitor abnormalities in the steering device 30 (not shown in Figure 18). For example, if an overheating abnormality is detected in the switching elements or motor windings constituting the driver circuit, where the temperature exceeds a predetermined level, the abnormality monitoring ICs 380 and 480 will turn off the switching elements. Alternatively, they may turn off a power relay (not shown). Furthermore, the abnormality monitoring ICs 380 and 480 detect signal abnormalities in the protocol conversion ICs 370 and 470. 【0069】The steering ECU 32 further includes abnormality monitoring ICs 380 and 480 that monitor abnormalities in at least one of the motor drive units 340 and 440 and the protocol conversion ICs 370 and 470. This allows for monitoring of abnormalities in the steering ECU 32 and taking appropriate action according to the abnormality, even in a microcontroller-less configuration. It also provides the same effects as the above embodiment. 【0070】 (Eighth Embodiment) The eighth embodiment is shown in Figure 19. The steering ECU 61 of this embodiment includes a microcontroller 320, motor drive units 340, 345, 440, 445, and a protocol conversion IC 470, etc. The steering ECU 61 differs from the steering ECU 32 of the above embodiment mainly in that the microcontroller 320 is provided in place of the protocol conversion IC 370 of the first system, while the configuration of the second system, etc., is the same as that of the steering ECU 32. 【0071】 The microcontroller 320 controls the drive of the steering motor 31 based on detected values from the rotation angle sensor 34, a current sensor (not shown), and a torque sensor, and calculates drive command values that control the on / off operation of the switching elements constituting the driver circuits 350 and 355. 【0072】 The microcontroller 320 is powered by the power supply IC 331, which is a power management IC. The microcontroller 320 is connected to the vehicle communication network 500 via the communication unit 322 and acquires vehicle signals. The oscillator 333 is a clock source, such as a crystal or ceramic oscillator. 【0073】 The component layout on the circuit board 33 (see Figures 6 and 7) can be anything, but for example, the power supply IC 331 can be placed in place of the protocol conversion unit 370 in Figure 6, and the microcontroller 320 can be mounted on the back side of the power supply IC 331. 【0074】Returning to Figure 19, the first system is equipped with a microcontroller 320, which drives the driver circuits 350 and 355 using the drive command values calculated by the microcontroller 320. The configuration of the second system is the same as in the first embodiment, and does not have a microcontroller. Instead, it obtains drive command values from the reaction force ECU 12 via a protocol conversion IC 470 and drives the driver circuits 450 and 455 using the drive command values obtained from an external source. Signal synchronization between the first system and the second system may be time-synchronized between the microcontroller 320 and the protocol conversion IC 470, or, as in the first embodiment, time-synchronized between the pre-driver ICs. 【0075】 In the steering ECU 61 of this embodiment, some of the drive command values related to the multiple driver circuits are calculated by a microcontroller inside the device, and some are obtained from an external device. This configuration also produces the same effects as the above embodiment. 【0076】 (Ninth Embodiment) The ninth embodiment is shown in Figure 20. In the first embodiment and the like, the steering ECU 32 does not have a microcontroller and obtains drive command values from the reaction force ECU 12. In this embodiment, the steering ECU 62 has microcontrollers 320 and 420. Microcontroller 320 calculates drive command values for driver circuits 350 and 355 (not shown in Figure 20), and microcontroller 420 calculates drive command values for driver circuits 450 and 455 (not shown in Figure 20). 【0077】 The reaction force ECU 65 has a microcontroller-less configuration and obtains drive command values from the steering ECU 62, which is an external device. The reaction force ECU 65 has protocol conversion ICs 170 and 270. The protocol conversion ICs 170 and 270 convert the drive command values of the reaction force motor 11 (not shown in Figure 20), which are transmitted in CAN format from the steering ECU 62, into SPI format and transmit them to the motor drive units 140, 145, 240, and 245 (some not shown in Figure 20). 【0078】The steering ECU 62 and reaction force ECU 65 shown in Figure 20 can be seen as having the reversed configuration of the reaction force ECU 12 and steering ECU 32 shown in Figure 8. The configuration of the steering ECU 62 is generally the same as that of the reaction force ECU 12 shown in Figure 2, and the configuration of the reaction force ECU 65 is generally the same as that of the steering ECU 32 shown in Figure 5. The same applies to the arrangement of components on the substrate, although a different arrangement from the above embodiment may be used. This increases the degree of freedom in the arrangement of components on the substrate of the reaction force ECU 65, making it possible to miniaturize the substrate. 【0079】 In this embodiment, the first embodiment was used as an example to describe how the reaction force ECU 65 is configured without a microcontroller and acquires drive command values from the steering ECU 62 which has microcontrollers 320 and 420. However, in the second to fifth embodiments and the seventh embodiment, the reaction force ECU may also be configured without a microcontroller and acquire drive command values from the steering ECU which has a microcontroller. Furthermore, as in the sixth embodiment, the reaction force ECU 65 may be configured to acquire drive command values from an external ECU other than the steering ECU 62. Moreover, as in the eighth embodiment, the reaction force ECU may be configured to have a microcontroller in some systems and a microcontroller-less system to acquire drive command values from an external device. Even with these configurations, the same effects as in the above embodiments can be achieved. 【0080】 In the first to eighth embodiments, the reaction force ECU 12 or external ECUs 51, 52 correspond to "external devices", the steering motor 31 to "rotating electric machine", the steering ECUs 32, 61 to "rotating electric machine control devices", the motor windings 310, 315, 410, 415 to "winding assemblies", the motor drive units 340, 345-347, 440, 445-447 to "rotating electric machine drive units", the driver circuits 350, 355, 450, 455 to "driver circuits", the pre-driver ICs 360, 365, 460, 465 to "driver drive units", the protocol conversion ICs 370, 371, 470, 471 to "signal conversion units", and the abnormality monitoring ICs 380, 480 to "abnormality monitoring units". 【0081】In the ninth embodiment, the steering ECU 62 corresponds to the "external device", the reaction force ECU 65 to the "rotating electric machine control device", the reaction force motor 11 to the "rotating electric machine", the motor windings 110, 115, 210, 215 to the "winding assembly", the motor drive units 140, 145, 240, 245 to the "rotating electric machine drive unit", the driver circuits 150, 155, 250, 255 to the "driver circuit", the pre-driver ICs 160, 165, 260, 265 to the "driver drive unit", and the protocol conversion ICs 170, 270 to the "signal conversion unit". 【0082】 (Other Embodiments) In the above embodiment, the rotating electric motor control device is configured with two power supply systems. In other embodiments, the number of power supply systems may be one or three or more. Also, in the above embodiment, the reaction motor has four winding sets, and a motor drive unit is provided corresponding to each, resulting in a four-system configuration. In other embodiments, the number of winding sets may be two or more, and may be two, three, five or more. Furthermore, the number of motor windings and the number of driver circuits may differ, for example, by providing multiple driver circuits for one motor winding set. Similarly, the number of microcontrollers, protocol conversion units, and pre-driver ICs may differ from those in the above embodiment. 【0083】 In the above embodiment, the rotating electric machine is a motor. In other embodiments, the rotating electric machine may be a so-called motor-generator or generator that also functions as a generator. In the above embodiment, the rotating electric machine control device is applied to a steer-by-wire system. In other embodiments, the rotating electric machine control device may be applied to in-vehicle devices other than steer-by-wire systems (e.g., electric power steering systems), or to devices other than in-vehicle devices. 【0084】(Disclosure of Technical Ideas) This specification discloses several technical ideas as described in the following paragraphs. Some paragraphs are written in a multiple dependent form, where subsequent paragraphs optionally refer to preceding paragraphs. Furthermore, some paragraphs are written in a multiple dependent form, where they refer to other multiple dependent forms. These paragraphs written in multiple dependent forms define several technical ideas. Regarding the reference numerals in parentheses, the numerals corresponding to embodiments in the first half of the specification are listed first, and the numerals corresponding to the ninth embodiment are listed second. 【0085】(Technical Concept 1) A rotary electric machine control device for controlling the drive of a rotary electric machine (31, 11) having a plurality of winding sets (310, 315, 410, 415, 110, 115, 210, 215), comprising a plurality of rotary electric machine drive units (340, 345, 440, 445, 140, 240) each having a driver circuit (350, 355-357, 450, 455-457, 150, 155, 250, 255) provided for each winding set, and a driver drive unit (360, 365, 460, 465, 160, 165, 260, 265) that outputs a drive signal based on a drive command value to the driver circuit, A rotating electric machine control device comprising: signal conversion units (370, 371, 470, 471, 170, 270) that convert the drive command values transmitted digitally from an external device (12, 51, 52, 62) into a format different from the communication format transmitted from the external device and transmit it to the driver drive unit. (Technical Concept 2) The rotating electric machine control device according to Technical Concept 1, wherein the communication between the signal conversion unit and the driver drive unit is digital communication. (Technical Concept 3) The rotating electric machine control device according to Technical Concept 1 or 2, wherein the plurality of driver drive units output the drive signals to the driver circuit in a time-synchronized manner. (Technical Concept 4) The rotating electric machine control device according to Technical Concept 1 or 2, wherein the plurality of signal conversion units transmit the drive command values to the driver drive unit in a time-synchronized manner. (Technical Concept 5) The rotating electric machine control device according to Technical Concept 1 or 2, wherein the drive command values are transmitted from the external device as time-synchronizable information to the plurality of rotating electric machine drive units. (Technical Concept 6) The rotary electric machine control device according to any one of Technical Concepts 1 to 5, wherein the signal conversion unit is provided in the same package as the rotary electric machine drive unit (346, 347, 446, 447). (Technical Concept 7) The rotary electric machine control device according to any one of Technical Concepts 1 to 6, further comprising an abnormality monitoring unit (380, 480) for monitoring abnormalities in at least one of the rotary electric machine drive unit and the signal conversion unit.(Technical Concept 8) A rotating electric machine control device according to any one of Technical Concepts 1 to 7, wherein power is supplied from multiple power sources (100, 200), and the winding assembly, the rotating electric machine drive unit, and the signal conversion unit are provided in correspondence with each of the power sources. (Technical Concept 9) A rotating electric machine control device according to Technical Concept 8, wherein communication between the driver drive units or the signal conversion units provided in correspondence with different power sources is isolated communication. 【0086】 The control unit and its method described herein may be implemented by a dedicated computer provided by configuring a processor and memory programmed to perform one or more functions embodied by a computer program. Alternatively, the control unit and its method described herein may be implemented by a dedicated computer provided by configuring a processor by one or more dedicated hardware logic circuits. Alternatively, the control unit and its method described herein may be implemented by one or more dedicated computers configured by a combination of a processor and memory programmed to perform one or more functions and a processor configured by one or more hardware logic circuits. Furthermore, the computer program may be stored as instructions executed by the computer on a computer-readable non-transitional tangible recording medium. The foregoing, this disclosure is not limited in any way to the embodiments described above, and can be implemented in various forms without departing from the spirit thereof. 【0087】 This disclosure is described in accordance with embodiments. However, this disclosure is not limited to such embodiments and structures. This disclosure also includes various modifications and variations within the scope of equivalents. Furthermore, various combinations and forms, as well as other combinations and forms that include only one, more, or fewer of those elements, fall within the scope and idea of this disclosure.
Claims
1. A rotary electric machine control device for controlling the drive of a rotary electric machine (31, 11) having a plurality of winding sets (310, 315, 410, 415, 110, 115, 210, 215), comprising a plurality of rotary electric machine drive units (340, 345, 440, 445, 140, 240) each having a driver circuit (350, 355-357, 450, 455-457, 150, 155, 250, 255) provided for each winding set, and a driver drive unit (360, 365, 460, 465, 160, 165, 260, 265) that outputs a drive signal based on a drive command value to the driver circuit, A rotating electric machine control device comprising: signal conversion units (370, 371, 470, 471, 170, 270) that convert the drive command values transmitted by digital communication from external devices (12, 51, 52, 62) into a format different from the communication format transmitted from the external devices and transmit it to the driver drive unit; 2. The rotary electric machine control device according to claim 1, wherein the communication between the signal conversion unit and the driver drive unit is digital communication.
3. The rotary electric machine control device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the plurality of driver drive units output the drive signals to the driver circuit in a synchronized manner.
4. The rotary electric machine control device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the plurality of signal conversion units transmit the drive command value to the driver drive unit in a synchronized manner.
5. The rotary electric machine control device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the drive command value is transmitted from the external device as information that can be synchronized in time by a plurality of the rotary electric machine drive units.
6. The rotary electric machine control device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the signal conversion unit is provided in the same package as the rotary electric machine drive unit (346, 347, 446, 447).
7. The rotating electric machine control device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising an abnormality monitoring unit (380, 480) for monitoring abnormalities in at least one of the rotating electric machine drive unit and the signal conversion unit.
8. The rotary electric machine control device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein power is supplied from a plurality of power sources (100, 200), and the winding assembly, the rotary electric machine drive unit, and the signal conversion unit are provided in correspondence with each of the power sources.
9. The rotating electric machine control device according to claim 8, wherein communication between the driver drive units or the signal conversion units, which are provided to correspond to different power supplies, is isolated communication.