Hardware-in-the-loop-based SVPWM control of a PMSG-based wind energy conversion system

Abstract

Simulation-based validation of Space Vector Pulse Width Modulation (SVPWM) algorithms often fails to capture numerical, timing, and communication limitations encountered during deployment on embedded hardware. This study proposes a low-cost serial-communication-coupled embedded validation framework to assess the SVPWM switching-state computation of the machine-side converter in a Permanent Magnet Synchronous Generator (PMSG)-based horizontal-axis wind turbine energy conversion system. The aerodynamic model of the wind turbine, the electrical dynamics of the PMSG, the bidirectional converter, the speed control loop, and the d-q current control loops were developed using MATLAB/Simulink. In contrast, the computationally critical SVPWM functions, including sector identification, hold time calculation, and switching state generation, were implemented on an Arduino UNO microcontroller. The framework employs serial communication between the simulation environment and embedded controller, providing a practical intermediate validation stage. It is intended as a preliminary embedded validation platform rather than a cycle-by-cycle PWM-synchronous real-time hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) system. Comparative analysis demonstrates that the Arduino-executed SVPWM algorithm successfully reproduces the dominant transient and steady-state characteristics observed in the ideal Simulink implementation. Generator-speed, d-q current, and d-q voltage responses exhibit close agreement, while the remaining discrepancies are minor and attributable to finite-precision arithmetic, serial data exchange, embedded execution delays, and communication latency. The proposed framework effectively bridges the gap between simulation-only verification and advanced real-time implementation by enabling practical assessment of embedded SVPWM computation under realistic operating constraints. The framework offers an accessible and cost-effective approach for preliminary validation of embedded SVPWM implementations in PMSG-based wind energy systems, reducing development risk before transitioning to high-fidelity real-time HIL platforms or full-scale power-hardware experiments.