A Reliable Direct Drive for the Steering Wheel Column of Buses

This final reports the fault analysis of precision docking system and safety design of the safety critical elements for precision docking system. The report includes three Parts, including:Part I provides a description of the Precision Docking System and reports analysis for fault diagnosis and safety design of automated steering controller and Electronic Control Unit (ECU) for steering actuator. It also reports a demonstration PATH conducted during the National Intelligent Vehicle Initiative demonstration organized by the US Department of Transportation Joint Program Office.Part II report an analysis and design for a reliable direct drive for the steering wheel column of buses.Part III reports power system reliability.The report below is the Part II report: A Reliable Direct Drive for the Steering Wheel Column of Buses. It evaluates the feasibility of using a direct drive for the steering wheel column of buses and heavy trucks. Permanent magnet technology is proposed for the motor design, due to its proven advantages for medium- to low-power servo applications. A redundant set of windings is introduced in the motor, together with a fault-detection/isolation system, to provide fault tolerance and increase the actuator's reliability.The report is organized as follows: first, the design of the motor is described. Next, the power electronics and control strategy are analyzed. Finally, fault-detection and fault-isolation techniques are presented.