A fault tolerant space vector modulation strategy for matrix converters

The topology of the Matrix Converter (MC) is promising because of its intrinsic advantages. Nevertheless, the MC is not as robust as other converters and therefore, under certain fault situations, the converter may be damaged. Certain applications of the MC, such as aeronautics, submarines, etc. require fault tolerant strategies that guarantee the continuous operation of the system under fault conditions. This article examines, in the first place, the behavior of the MC when it is protected by the clamp circuit and one of its switches is in open circuit due to a fault. In order to improve the fault tolerance of the MC, three SVM modulation variations are proposed. On the one hand, two of these variations guarantee the safety of the converter, but the THD of the synthesized voltages and currents is high. On the other hand, the third strategy enhances these and ensures the control of a PMSM in a fault situation.