Distributed cooperative control of multi-converter systems via networks

Modular converters are employed for ultra-large ship degaussing systems to improve the magnetic stealth capability. However, the degaussing performance could be compromised by the inconsistent current in various modules. Therefore, current synchronization is a crucial issue in the control of distributed multi-converter systems (DMCSs). To meet the high requirement of such an industrial scenario, a distributed cooperative control scheme is conceived for DMCSs in this paper. The consensus and stability of the DMCS are analyzed, in contrast to existing works that only take consensus into account, and the necessary and sufficient conditions are derived with the constructed closed-loop control system. Then, the tailor-made controller design guideline is presented. Different cases of a cyber-physical DMCS in the MATLAB/SimPowerSystems environment are examined to confirm the viability. Furthermore, experiments with a multi-converter prototype system are carried out to confirm the efficiency of the proposed control method. Results from simulations and experiments are in line with the theoretical analysis, validating the efficacy.