Eccentricity fault detection in brushless doubly fed induction machines

A new fault diagnosis method for detecting the rotor eccentricity faults including static, dynamic and mixed eccentricity is proposed for brushless doubly-fed induction machines (BDFIMs). BDFIMs are attractive alternatives for the conventional doubly-fed induction generator (DFIG) for offshore wind power generation; therefore, paying attention to their fault detection is essential. Existing fault detection methods for conventional induction machines cannot be directly applied to the BDFIM due to its special rotor structure and stator winding configurations as well as complex magnetic field patterns. This article proposes a novel fault detection method based on motor current signal analysis to determine stator current harmonics, induced by the nested-loop rotor slot harmonics (NRSHs), as fault indices. The analysis is performed under healthy conditions and with different types of rotor eccentricity. Finally, a sensitivity analysis is carried out to confirm the practicability of the proposed technique with various fault intensities and load conditions. Analytical winding function approach, finite element analysis and experimental tests on a prototype D180 BDFIM are used in this study to validate the proposed fault detection technique.