Motor controller for electric power steering system

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] The present invention relates to a motor controller for an electric power steering system which performs a steering assist operation by applying a torque generated by an electric motor to a steering mechanism.

[0004] 2. Description of Related Arts

[0005] Electric power steering systems are conventionally known which are adapted to transmit a torque generated by an electric motor such as a three-phase brushless motor to a steering mechanism to perform a steering assist operation. A motor controller for such an electric power steering system has a construction as shown in FIG. 4.

[0006] The motor controller includes a three-phase alternating current coordinate transformation section 91 for converting a current command value i* (effective value) into vectors in a three-phase alternating current coordinate system, i.e., a U-phase current command value i_ua* and a V-phase current command value i_va*, on the basis of an angle θ_reof a rotor of a motor M. The current command value i* is determined on the basis of a steering torque or the like applied to a steering wheel. The rotor angle θ_reis detected by a rotor angle detecting circuit 92 on the basis of an output signal of a resolver R provided in association with the motor M.

[0007] The U-phase current command value i_ua* and the V-phase current command value i_va* are inputted to subtractors 93uand 93v, respectively. An output of a U-phase current detecting circuit 94ufor detecting a U-phase current i_uaactually flowing through a U-phase of the motor M and an output of a V-phase current detecting circuit 94vfor detecting a V-phase current i_vaactually flowing through a V-phase of the motor M are applied to the subtractors 93uand 93v, respectively. Therefore, a deviation of the U-phase current i_uafrom the U-phase current command value i_ua* and a deviation of the V-phase current i_vafrom the V-phase current command value i_va* are outputted from the subtractors 93uand 93v, respectively.

[0008] The deviations outputted from the subtractors 93uand 93vare respectively applied to a U-phase current PI (proportional integration) controlling section 95uand a V-phase current PI controlling section 95v. Further, the U-phase current PI controlling section 95uand the V-phase current PI controlling section 95vreceive a correction gain determined by a PI gain correcting section 96 on the basis of a rotor angular velocity ω_rewhich is the rate of a change in the rotor angle θ_re. The U-phase current PI controlling section 95uand the V-phase current PI controlling section 95vrespectively determine a U-phase voltage command value V_ua* and a V-phase voltage command value V_va* on the basis of the deviations inputted from the subtractors 93uand 93vand the correction gain inputted from the PI gain correcting section 96.

[0009] The rotor angular velocity ω_reis determined by a rotor angular velocity calculating section 97 on the basis of the rotor angle θ_redetected by the rotor angle detecting circuit 92.

[0010] The U-phase voltage command value V_ua* and the V-phase voltage command value V_va* are inputted to a three-phase PWM (pulse width modulation) section 98. The U-phase voltage command value V_ua* and the V-phase voltage command value V_va* are also inputted to a W-phase voltage command value calculating section 99. The W-phase voltage command value calculating section 99 determines a W-phase voltage command value V_wa* by subtracting the U-phase voltage command value V_ua* and the V-phase voltage command value V_va* from zero, and applies the W-phase voltage command value V_wa* thus calculated to the three-phase PWM section 98. That is, the three-phase PWM section 98 receives the U-phase voltage command value V_ua*, the V-phase voltage command value V_va* and the W-phase voltage command value V_wa* inputted thereto.

[0011] The three-phase PWM section 98 generates PWM signals S_u, S_{vand Sw}which correspond to the U-phase voltage command value V_ua*, the V-phase voltage command value V_va* and the W-phase voltage command value V_wa*, respectively, and outputs the PWM signals S_u, S_v, S_wthus generated to a power circuit P. Thus, the power circuit P applies voltages V_ua, V_vaand V_waaccording to the PWM signals S_u, S_vand S_wto the U-phase, the V-phase and the W-phase, respectively, of the motor M, which in turn generates a torque required for the steering assist.

[0012] The U-phase current command value i_ua* and the V-phase current command value i_va* are sinusoidally varied in accordance with a change in the rotor angle θ_re. The U-phase current i_uaand the V-phase current i_vaare sinusoidal electric currents which are sinusoidally varied in accordance with the change in the rotor angle θ_re. With a higher rotation speed of the motor M, the changes in the U-phase current i_uaand the V-phase current i_vacannot follow the changes in the U-phase current command value i_ua* and the V-phase current command value i_va*, so that phase offsets may occur between the U-phase current i_uaand the U-phase current command value i_ua* and between the V-phase current i_vaand the V-phase current command value i_va*. If such phase offsets occur, the motor M fails to generate a torque of a proper magnitude, thereby deteriorating the responsiveness of the steering assist and the convergence of the steering wheel. Therefore, the steering feeling may be deteriorated.

[0013] Another problem associated with the conventional motor controller is a difficulty in detecting an abnormality such as an offset which causes an electric current to flow through the motor M even if the current command value i* is zero. That is, the U-phase current i_uaand the V-phase current i_va, which are sinusoidal electric currents, instantaneously become zero (or cross zero) depending on the rotor angle θ_re. For accurate detection of the offset, it is necessary to constantly monitor the rotor angle θ_reso as to acquire the U-phase current i_uaand the V-phase current i_vaat a time point other than a zero-cross point, or to calculate an effective value of the electric current flowing through the motor M on the basis of the acquired U-phase current i_uaand V-phase current i_va.

[0014] It is a first object of the present invention to provide a motor controller for an electric power steering system which ensures an improved steering feeling.

[0015] It is a second object of the invention to provide motor controller for an electric power steering system which features easy detection of an abnormality such as an offset.

[0016] A motor controller according to the present invention is a motor controller (C) for an electric power steering system which performs a steering assist operation by applying a torque generated by an electric motor (M) to a steering mechanism (1), the motor controller comprising: a current command value setting circuit (61, 62) for setting a current command value (i_a*) indicative of an electric current to be applied to the electric motor; a d-q command value setting circuit (66) for setting a d-axis current command value (i_da*) and a q-axis current command value (i_qa*) in a d-q coordinate system on the basis of the current command value set by the current command value setting circuit; and a voltage controlling circuit for controlling a voltage to be applied to the electric motor on the basis of the d-axis current command value and the q-axis current command value set by the d-q command value setting circuit. The parenthesized alphanumeric characters denote corresponding components and the like in the following embodiment, but the embodiment is not intended to be limitative of the present invention.

[0017] In accordance with the invention, the d-axis current command value and the q-axis current command value in the d-q coordinate system are determined on the basis of the current command value set by the current command value setting circuit, and the motor is controlled on the basis of the d-axis current command value and the q-axis current command value thus set. The d-axis current command value and the q-axis current command value defined in the d-q coordinate system are direct current values irrelevant to a rotor angle of the motor. Therefore, there is no possibility that an output torque of the motor is reduced due to a phase offset between the current command value and an electric current actually flowing through the motor, unlike the conventional motor controller adapted to control the motor on the basis of a current command value defined in a three-phase alternating current coordinate system. Accordingly, the responsiveness of the steering assist and the convergence of the steering wheel can be improved for drastic improvement of the steering feeling as compared with the conventional controller.

[0018] The motor controller preferably further comprises: a current detecting circuit (41, 41u, 41v) for detecting three-phase alternating currents actually flowing through the electric motor; and a three-phase AC/d-q coordinate transformation circuit (68) for converting the three-phase alternating currents detected by the current detecting circuit into a d-axis current (i_da) and a q-axis current (i_qa) in the d-q coordinate system. In this case, the voltage controlling circuit is preferably adapted to perform a feedback control on the voltage applied to the electric motor on the basis of the d-axis current command value and the q-axis current command value set by the d-q command value setting circuit, and the d-axis current and the q-axis current outputted from the three-phase AC/d-q coordinate transformation circuit.

[0019] The voltage controlling circuit preferably comprises: a d-axis deviation calculating circuit (67d) for determining a deviation of the d-axis current outputted from the three-phase AC/d-q coordinate transformation circuit with respect to the d-axis current command value set by the d-q command value setting circuit; a d-axis voltage command value setting circuit (69d, 71d) for setting a d-axis voltage command value (V_da*) in the d-q coordinate system on the basis of the deviation determined by the d-axis deviation calculating circuit; a q-axis deviation calculating circuit (67q) for determining a deviation of the q-axis current outputted from the three-phase AC/d-q coordinate transformation circuit with respect to the q-axis current command value set by the d-q command value setting circuit; and a q-axis voltage command value setting circuit (69q, 71q) for setting a q-axis voltage command value (V_qa*) in the d-q coordinate system on the basis of the deviation determined by the q-axis deviation calculating circuit.

[0020] The motor controller may further comprise a velocity electromotive voltage calculating circuit (70) for determining a velocity electromotive voltage occurring in the electric motor. In this case, the d-axis voltage command value setting circuit and the q-axis voltage command value setting circuit are preferably adapted to determine the d-axis voltage command value and the q-axis voltage command value in consideration of the velocity electromotive voltage determined by the velocity electromotive calculating circuit. Thus, the reduction in the output of the electric motor can be prevented which may otherwise occur due to the velocity electromotive voltage, whereby the steering feeling can further be improved.

[0021] The motor controller preferably further comprises an abnormality judging circuit (74) for judging whether or not any abnormality occurs in a control system on the basis of the d-axis current and the q-axis current outputted from the three-phase AC/d-q coordinate transformation circuit.

[0022] With this arrangement, the abnormality judging circuit judges whether or not any abnormality occurs on the basis of the d-axis current and the q-axis current outputted from the three-phase AC/d-q coordinate transformation circuit. Since the d-axis current and the q-axis current are direct currents which are irrelevant to the rotor angle, the abnormality judging circuit can acquire the d-axis current and the q-axis current irrelevantly to the rotor angle, and judge whether or not any abnormality is present on the basis of the d-axis current and the q-axis current thus acquired. Thus, the process for the abnormality detection can be simplified with no need for constant monitoring of the rotor angle.

[0023] The foregoing and other objects, features and effects of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments with reference to the attached drawings.

[0024] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the construction of an electric power steering system according to one embodiment of the present invention;

[0025] FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining the function and construction of a controller (motor controller);

[0026] FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a d-q coordinate system; and

[0027] FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the major construction of a motor controller for a conventional power steering system.

[0028] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the electrical construction of an electric power steering system according to one embodiment of the present invention with a sectional view of a steering mechanism. The steering mechanism 1 includes a rack 11 disposed along the width of a vehicle, a pinion shaft 12 having a pinion portion provided at a distal end thereof in a meshing engagement with the rack 11 within a gear box 17, tie rods 13 rotatably connected to opposite ends of the rack 11, and knuckle arms 14 rotatably connected to ends of the tie rods 13. The knuckle arms 14 are provided rotatably about king pins 15, and steerable vehicle wheels 16 are attached to the knuckle arms 14.

[0029] A proximal portion of the pinion shaft 12 is connected to a steering shaft via a universal joint, and a steering wheel is fixed to one end of the steering shaft. With this arrangement, turning of the steering wheel displaces the rack 11 along its length to rotate the knuckle arms 14 around the king pins 15, whereby the orientation of the steerable vehicle wheels 16 is changed.

[0030] The electric power steering system 2 has a three-phase brushless motor M provided, for example, in association with the midportion of the rack 11. The motor M has a case 21 fixed to the vehicle, a rotor 22 provided around the rack 11 in the case 21, and a stator 23 surrounding the rotor 22.

[0031] A ball nut 31 is coupled to one end of the rotor 22. The ball nut 31 is threadingly engaged with a thread shaft 32 provided in the midportion of the rack 11 via a plurality of balls. Thus, the ball nut 31 and the thread shaft 32 constitute a ball thread mechanism 30. Bearings 33, 34 are interposed between the ball nut 31 and the case 21 of the motor M, and a bearing 35 is interposed between the case 21 and the other end of the rotor 22. With this arrangement, a torque is applied to the rotor 22 when the motor M is energized, and the applied torque is transmitted to the ball nut 31 coupled to the rotor 22. The torque transmitted to the ball nut 31 is converted into a driving force for moving the rack 11 along the width of the vehicle by the ball thread mechanism 30. Thus, the torque generated by the motor M is applied to the steering mechanism 1.

[0032] The motor M is feedback-controlled by a controller C. More specifically, the controller C receives an output signal of a motor current detecting circuit 41 for detecting electric currents (U-phase current i_ua, V-phase current i_va) flowing through the motor M and an output signal of a vehicle speed sensor 42 for detecting a vehicle speed V. Further, the controller C receives an output signal of a torque sensor 43 for detecting a steering torque T via a phase compensation circuit 44. The phase compensation circuit 44 serves to advance the phase of the output signal of the torque sensor 43 for stabilization of the control system.

[0033] The controller C further receives an output signal of a rotor angle detecting circuit 45 for determining a rotor angle θ_reon the basis of an output signal of a resolver R. The rotor angle θ_reis an angle of the rotor (magnetic field) with respect to the position of a U-phase armature coil of the motor M. The controller C determines a current command value for the motor M on the basis of the output signals of the vehicle sensor 42 and the phase compensation circuit 44, and determines a voltage command value on the basis of the current command value and the output signal of the motor current detecting circuit 41 to apply the voltage command value to a motor driver 50. Thus, a proper voltage is applied to the motor M from the motor driver 50, whereby the motor M generates a torque necessary and sufficient for the steering assist.

[0034] FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining the function and construction of the controller C. The controller C comprises a microprocessor including, for example, a CPU, a RAM and a ROM. Functional circuits enclosed by a two-dot-and-dash line in FIG. 2 are realized by causing the CPU to execute programs stored in the ROM.

[0035] The controller C includes a target current calculating section 61 for calculating a target current value on the basis of the output signal V of the vehicle speed sensor 42 and the output signal of the phase compensation circuit 44. The target current value outputted from the target current calculating section 61 is inputted to an adder 62 and a command current direction judging section 63. The command current direction judging section 63 judges the sign of the target current value inputted from the target current calculating section 61, and the result of the judgment is applied to a convergence correcting section 64. The target current value has a positive sign when an assist force for a rightward steering operation (a rightward torque) is to be generated by the motor M, and has a negative sign when an assist force for a leftward steering operation (a leftward torque) is to be generated by the motor M.

[0036] The output signal V of the vehicle speed sensor 42 and an output signal of a rotor angular velocity calculating section 65 for calculating a rotor angular velocity ω_reon the basis of the rotor angle θ_redetected by the rotor angle detecting circuit 45 are inputted to the convergence correcting section 64. On the basis of these input signals, the convergence correcting section 64 calculates a convergence correction value for improvement of the convergence of the steering wheel, and applies the convergence correction value to the adder 62. The adder 62 adds the convergence correction value inputted from the convergence correcting section 64 to the target current value inputted from the target current calculating section 61 thereby to provide a current command value I_a* indicative of the amplitude of electric currents (sinusoidal electric currents) to be applied to the U-phase, V-phase and W-phase of the motor M.

[0037] The current command value I_a* provided by the adder 62 is applied to a q-axis current command value calculating section 66. The q-axis current command value calculating section 66 determines a q-axis current command value i_qa* in the d-q coordinate system on the basis of the current command value I_a*.

[0038] The d-q coordinate system is a rotational orthogonal coordinate system having a d-axis and a q-axis which are rotative in synchronism with the rotor (permanent magnet) of the motor M. As shown in FIG. 3, the d-axis extends in the direction of a magnetic flux to be produced by the rotor, and the q-axis extends in the direction of the torque to be generated by the motor M.

[0039] A transformation matrix [c] for converting the three-phase alternating current coordinates into the d-q coordinates is as follows: $\begin{array}{cc}\left[c\right]=\sqrt{\frac{2}{3}}\left[\begin{array}{ccc}\cos {\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}& \cos \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{2\pi }{3}\right)& \cos \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{4\pi }{3}\right)\\ -\sin {\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}& -\sin \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{2\pi }{3}\right)& -\sin \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{4\pi }{3}\right)\end{array}\right]& \left(1\right)\end{array}$

[0040] Provided that a U-phase current command value, a V-phase current command value and a W-phase current command value obtained through a three-phase division process of the current command value I_a* is i_ua*, i_va* and i_wa*, respectively, the d-axis current command value i_da* and the q-axis current command value i_qa* in the d-q coordinate system are expressed by the following equation (2): $\begin{array}{cc}\begin{array}{c}\left[\begin{array}{c}{i}_{\mathrm{da}}^{*}\\ i_{\mathrm{qa}}^{*}\end{array}\right]=\left[c\right]\left[\begin{array}{c}{i}_{\mathrm{ua}}^{*}\\ i_{\mathrm{va}}^{*}\\ i_{\mathrm{wa}}^{*}\end{array}\right]\\ =\sqrt{\frac{2}{3}}\left[\begin{array}{ccc}\cos {\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}& \cos \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{2\pi }{3}\right)& \cos \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{4\pi }{3}\right)\\ -\sin {\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}& -\sin \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{2\pi }{3}\right)& -\sin \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{4\pi }{3}\right)\end{array}\right]\left[\begin{array}{c}{i}_{\mathrm{ua}}^{*}\\ i_{\mathrm{va}}^{*}\\ i_{\mathrm{wa}}^{*}\end{array}\right]\end{array}& \left(2\right)\end{array}$

[0041] The U-phase current command value i_ua*, the V-phase current command value i_va* and W-phase current command value i_wa* are respectively expressed by the following equations (3), (4) and (5). $\begin{array}{cc}{i}_{\mathrm{ua}}^{*}=I_a^{*}\sin {\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}& \left(3\right)\\ i_{\mathrm{va}}^{*}=I_a^{*}\sin \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{2\pi }{3}\right)& \left(4\right)\\ i_{\mathrm{wa}}^{*}=I_a^{*}\sin \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{4\pi }{3}\right)& \left(5\right)\end{array}$

[0042] These equations (3), (4) and (5) are substituted into the equation (2), followed by simplification. Then, the d-axis current command value i_da* and the q-axis current command value i_qa* are expressed by the following equation (6): $\begin{array}{cc}\left[\begin{array}{c}{i}_{\mathrm{da}}^{*}\\ i_{\mathrm{qa}}^{*}\end{array}\right]=\left[-\stackrel{0}{\sqrt{\frac{3}{2}}}{I}_a^{*}\right]& \left(6\right)\end{array}$

[0043] Therefore, the q-axis current command value calculating section 66 calculates the q-axis current command value i_qa* from the following equation (7): $\begin{array}{cc}{i}_{\mathrm{qa}}^{*}=-\sqrt{\frac{3}{2}}{I}_a^{*}& \left(7\right)\end{array}$

[0044] The q-axis current command value i_qa* calculated by the q-axis current command value calculating section 66 is inputted to the subtractor 67q. The subtractor 67qalso receives a q-axis current i_qaobtained through the three-phase AC/d-q coordinate transformation of the U-phase current i_uaand the V-phase current i_vadetected by the motor current detecting circuit 41. More specifically, the motor current detecting circuit 41 includes a U-phase current detecting circuit 41ufor detecting the U-phase current i_uaactually flowing through the U-phase of the motor M, and a V-phase current detecting circuit 41vfor detecting the V-phase current i_vaactually flowing through the V-phase of the motor M. The output signals of the U-phase current detecting circuit 41uand the V-phase current detecting circuit 41vare inputted to the three-phase AC/d-q coordinate transformation section 68, which converts the U-phase current i_uaand the V-phase current i_vainto values based on the d-q coordinate system in accordance with the following equation (8): $\begin{array}{c}\left[\begin{array}{c}{i}_{\mathrm{da}}\\ i_{\mathrm{qa}}\end{array}\right]=\left[c\right]\left[\begin{array}{c}{i}_{\mathrm{ua}}\\ i_{\mathrm{va}}\\ i_{\mathrm{wa}}\end{array}\right]\\ =\sqrt{\frac{2}{3}}\left[\begin{array}{ccc}\cos {\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}& \cos \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{2\pi }{3}\right)& \cos \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{4\pi }{3}\right)\\ -\sin {\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}& -\sin \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{2\pi }{3}\right)& -\sin \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{4\pi }{3}\right)\end{array}\right]\left[\begin{array}{c}{i}_{\mathrm{ua}}\\ i_{\mathrm{va}}\\ i_{\mathrm{wa}}\end{array}\right]\end{array}$

[0045] (i_wa=i_ua−i_vais substituted therein, followed by simplification) $\begin{array}{cc}=\sqrt{2}\left[\begin{array}{cc}-\sin \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{2\pi }{3}\right)& \sin {\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}\\ -\cos \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{2\pi }{3}\right)& \cos {\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}\end{array}\right]\left[\begin{array}{c}{i}_{\mathrm{ua}}\\ i_{\mathrm{va}}\end{array}\right]& \left(8\right)\end{array}$

[0046] Then, the three-phase AC/d-q coordinate transformation section 68 applies the q-axis current i_qaobtained through the three-phase AC/d-q transformation to the subtractor 67q. Therefore, the subtractor 67qoutputs a deviation of the q-axis current i_qafrom the q-axis current command value i_qa*.

[0047] As can be understood from the above equation (6), it is preferred to set the d-axis current command value i_da* to zero irrespective of the current command value I_a*. Therefore, the d-axis current command value i_da* is always set to zero, and the d-axis current command value “i_da*=0” is inputted to the subtractor 67d. The d-axis current i_daobtained through the three-phase AC/d-q coordinate transformation of the U-phase current i_uaand the V-phase current i_vain accordance with the above equation (8) by the three-phase AC/d-q coordinate transformation section 68 is inputted to the subtractor 67d. Thus, the subtractor 67doutputs a deviation of the d-axis current i_dafrom the d-axis current command value i_da*.

[0048] The deviations outputted from the subtractors 67d, 67qare respectively applied to a d-axis current PI (proportional integration) controlling section 69dand a q-axis current PI controlling section 69q. The PI controlling sections 69d, 69qperform a PI computation on the basis of the deviations inputted from the subtractors 67d, 67qto determine a d-axis voltage base value V′_da* and a q-axis voltage base value V′_qa*.

[0049] It is known that a circuit equation based on the d-q coordinate system for the motor M is expressed by the following equation (9): $\begin{array}{cc}\left[\begin{array}{c}{V}_{\mathrm{da}}\\ V_{\mathrm{qa}}\end{array}\right]=\left[\begin{array}{cc}{R}_a+{\mathrm{PL}}_a& -{\omega }_{\mathrm{re}}{L}_a\\ {\omega }_{\mathrm{re}}{L}_a& R_a+{\mathrm{PL}}_a\end{array}\right]\left[\begin{array}{c}{i}_{\mathrm{da}}\\ i_{\mathrm{qa}}\end{array}\right]+\left[\begin{array}{c}0\\ {\omega }_{\mathrm{re}}{\Phi }_{\mathrm{fa}}\end{array}\right]& \left(9\right)\end{array}$

[0050] wherein V_dais a d-axis voltage, V_qais a q-axis voltage, R_ais the resistance of the armature coil, P is a differential operator (d/dt), L_ais the self-inductance of the armature coil, and Φ_fais the maximum number of interlinkage fluxes of the armature coil in the d-q coordinate system.

[0051] By expanding and simplifying the equation (9), the following equations (10) and (11) are obtained.

[0052] V_da=(Ra+PL_a)i_da−ω_reL_ai_qa  (10)

[0053] V_qa=(Ra+PL_a)i_qa+ω_re(L_ai_da+Φ_fa)  (11)

[0054] The second term “−ω_reL_ai_qa” in the equation (10) and the second term “ω_re(L_ai_da+Φ_fa)” in the equation (11) are velocity electromotive voltages to be generated by the magnetic flux produced by the rotor and the magnetic flux produced by the current flowing through the armature coil. As can be understood from the above equations (10) and (11), the velocity electromotive voltages “−ω_reL_ai_qa” and “ω_re(L_ai_da+Φ_fa)” influence the d-axis voltage V_daand the q-axis voltage V_qa. Therefore, where the motor M is controlled on the basis of the d-axis voltage base value V′_da* and the q-axis voltage base value V′_qa*, the d-axis current i_daand the q-axis current i_qaobtained through the three-phase AC/d-q coordinate transformation of the output of the motor current detecting circuit 41 do not properly match with the d-axis current command value i_da* and the q-axis current command value i_qa* respectively.

[0055] In this embodiment, a non-interference control is performed on the basis of the rotor angular velocity ω_reoutputted from the rotor angular velocity calculating section 65 and the d-axis current i_daand the q-axis current i_qaoutputted from the three-phase AC/d-q coordinate transformation section 68 to eliminate the influence of the velocity electromotive voltages “−ω_reL_ai_qa” and “ω_re(L_ai_da+Φ_fa)”.

[0056] More specifically, the rotor angular velocity ω_reoutputted from the rotor angular velocity calculating section 65 and the d-axis current i_daand the q-axis current i_qaoutputted from the three-phase AC/d-q coordinate transformation section 68 are inputted to a non-interference controlling section 70, which in turn calculates the velocity electromotive voltages “−ω_reL_ai_qa” and “ω_re(L_ai_da+Φ_fa)”. The velocity electromotive voltages “−ω_reL_ai_qa” and “ω_re(L_ai_da+Φ_fa)” are respectively added to the d-axis voltage base value V′_da* and the q-axis voltage base value V′_qa* by the adders 71dand 71q, and the calculation results are respectively employed as a d-axis voltage command value V_da* and a q-axis voltage command value V_qa*.

[0057] The d-axis voltage command value V_da* and the q-axis voltage command value V_qa* are inputted to a d-q/three-phase AC coordinate transformation section 72. The d-q/three-phase AC coordinate transformation section 72 also receives the rotor angle θ_redetected by the rotor angle detecting circuit 45, and converts the d-axis voltage command value V_da* and the q-axis voltage command value V_qa* into command values V_ua*, V_va* based on the three-phase AC coordinate system in accordance with the following equation (12). The resulting U-phase voltage command value V_ua* and V-phase voltage command value V_va* are inputted to a three-phase PWM section 51 provided in the motor driver 50. $\begin{array}{cc}\begin{array}{c}\left[\begin{array}{c}{V}_{\mathrm{va}}^{*}\\ V_{\mathrm{ua}}^{*}\\ V_{\mathrm{wa}}^{*}\end{array}\right]={\left[c\right]}^{-1}\left[\begin{array}{c}{V}_{\mathrm{da}}^{*}\\ V_{\mathrm{qa}}^{*}\end{array}\right]\\ =\sqrt{\frac{2}{3}}\left[\begin{array}{cc}\cos {\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}& -\sin {\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}\\ \cos \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{2\pi }{3}\right)& -\sin \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{2\pi }{3}\right)\\ \cos \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{4\pi }{3}\right)& -\sin \left({\theta }_{\mathrm{re}}-\frac{4\pi }{3}\right)\end{array}\right]\left[\begin{array}{c}{V}_{\mathrm{da}}\\ V_{\mathrm{qa}}\end{array}\right]\end{array}& \left(12\right)\end{array}$

[0058] However, a W-phase voltage command value V_wa* is not calculated by the d-q/three-phase AC coordinate transformation section 72, but calculated by a W-phase voltage command value calculating section 73 on the basis of the U-phase voltage command value V_ua* and the V-phase voltage command value V_va* calculated by the d-q/three-phase AC coordinate transformation section 72. More specifically, the W-phase voltage command value calculating section 73 receives the U-phase voltage command value V_ua* and the V-phase voltage command value V_va* from the d-q/three-phase AC coordinate transformation section 72, and determines the W-phase voltage command value V_wa* by subtracting the U-phase voltage command value V_ua* and the V-phase voltage command value V_va* from zero.

[0059] A reason why the W-phase voltage command value V_wa* is calculated not by the d-q/three-phase AC coordinate transformation section 72 but by the W-phase voltage command value calculating section 73 is to prevent the CPU from being burdened with the calculation according to the equation (12). Therefore, if the computation speed of the CPU is sufficiently high, the W-phase voltage command value V_wa* may be calculated by the d-q/three-phase AC coordinate transformation section 72.

[0060] Like the U-phase voltage command value V_ua* and the V-phase voltage command value V_va*, the W-phase voltage command value V_wa* calculated by the W-phase voltage command value calculating section 73 is applied to the three-phase PWM section 51. The three-phase PWM section 51 generates PWM signals S_u, S_vand S_wwhich correspond to the U-phase voltage command value V_ua*, the V-phase voltage command value V_va* and the W-phase voltage command value V_wa*, respectively, and the generated PWM signals S_u, S_v, S_ware outputted to a power circuit 52. Thus, the power circuit 52 applies voltages V_ua, V_vaand V_waaccording to the PWM signals S_u, S_vand S_wto the U-phase, the V-phase and the W-phase, respectively, of the motor M, whereby the motor M generates a torque required for the steering assist.

[0061] In accordance with this embodiment, the d-axis current command value i_da* and the q-axis current command value i_qa* in the d-q coordinate system are determined on the basis of the current command value I_a* set in accordance with the vehicle speed V, the steering torque T and the like, and the motor M is controlled on the basis of the d-axis current command value i_da* and the q-axis current command value i_qa* thus determined. The d-axis current command value i_da* and the q-axis current command value i_qa* are irrelevant to the rotor angle θ_reas can be understood from the above equation (6). Accordingly, there is no possibility that the output torque of the motor M is reduced due to a phase offset between the current command value and the electric current actually flowing through the motor M, unlike the conventional controller adapted to control the motor M on the basis of the current command value in the three-phase AC coordinate system. Therefore, the responsiveness of the steering assist and the convergence of the steering wheel can be improved for drastic improvement of the steering feeling as compared with the conventional controller.

[0062] In accordance with this embodiment, the velocity electromotive voltage generated in the motor M by the magnetic flux produced by the rotor and the magnetic flux produced by the electric current flowing through the armature coil is calculated, and the d-axis voltage command value V_da* and the q-axis voltage command value V_qa* are determined in consideration of the velocity electromotive voltage thus calculated (non-interference control). Therefore, the reduction in the output of the motor M can be prevented which may otherwise occur due to the velocity electromotive voltage, whereby the steering feeling can further be improved.

[0063] In this embodiment, the motor controller further comprises an abnormality judging section 74 for determining whether or not any abnormality such as an offset occurs. The abnormality judging section 74 is adapted to determine whether or not any abnormality occurs on the basis of the d-axis current i_daand the q-axis current i_qaoutputted from the three-phase AC/d-q coordinate transformation section 68. Provided that the U-phase current i_ua, the V-phase current i_vaand the W-phase current i_waeach have an amplitude I_a, the d-axis current i_daand the q-axis current i_qaare expressed by the following expression (13), which indicates that the d-axis current i_daand the q-axis current i_qaare irrelevant to the rotor angle θ_re. Therefore, the abnormality judging section 74 acquires the d-axis current i_daand the q-axis current i_qairrespective of the rotor angle θ_re, and determines whether or not any abnormality is present on the basis of the acquired d-axis current i_daand q-axis current i_qa. In addition, there is no need to calculate the effective value of the electric current flowing through the motor M. $\begin{array}{cc}\left[\begin{array}{c}{i}_{\mathrm{da}}\\ i_{\mathrm{qa}}\end{array}\right]=\left[-\stackrel{0}{\sqrt{\frac{3}{2}}}{I}_a\right]& \left(13\right)\end{array}$

[0064] While one embodiment of the present invention has thus been described, the invention can be embodied in any other ways. The aforesaid embodiment employs the PI control, but a PID (proportional integration differential) control may be employed instead of the PI control.

[0065] While the present invention has been described in detail by way of the embodiment thereof, it should be understood that the foregoing disclosure is merely illustrative of the technical principles of the present invention but not limitative of the same. The spirit and scope of the present invention are to be limited only by the appended claims.

[0066] This application corresponds to Japanese Patent Application No. 11-374269 filed to the Japanese Patent Office on Dec. 28, 1999, the disclosure thereof being incorporated herein by reference.