Development and Evaluation of a Power Hardware-in-the-Loop (PHIL) Emulator Testbench for Aerospace Applications

As aerospace industries are progressing towards the More Electric Aircraft (MEA) concept, the need for complex electrical system testing is urgently increasing. Power Hardware-in-the-Loop (PHIL) allows for a variety of electrical system tests without changing hardware, thereby reducing the development time and cost, enabling concurrent development and fault modes testing. In this paper, the development of a PHIL emulator testbench using EGSTON Power Electronics COMPISO System Unit CSU200-1GAMP6 and external motor drive inverter is explained and challenges in the implementation are evaluated. An 18-pulse autotransformer rectifier unit (ATRU), a three-phase active front end (AFE), and an induction machine were emulated and evaluated. Furthermore, the induction machine was emulated under several operation scenarios and compared to tests with the same motor drive and an actual induction machine, showing excellent steady-state and transient emulation capabilities.