Programing a LabVIEW Application to Configure & Communicate with High Frequency Drives

The global need to develop eco-friendly replacements of combustion power systems is rapidly increasing. Constructed at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, a Testbed facility is in operations to investigate the potential of Electrified Aircraft Propulsion (EAP) systems and off terrain vehicles. Focusing on the Aerospace industry, searching for lower noise levels and more fuel-efficient hybrid-turbines. The test facility required a software application to communicate with two high-frequency drives that can handle an extensive range of parameters setting, dynamic testing, and data collection. This study focuses on this software application, breaking down the critical components of how the system operates and the method for developing this particular LabView application. Concluding that the methods used to build applications were a success, validated by sensor data to confirm the drive settings. The end product offers a reliably simple interface, where users could easily swap hardware with only making little changes to the application.

Author
Brandon Colon
School
San Antonio College
Department
Computer Engineering
Research Advisor
Dr. Kiruba Haran
Department of Research Advisor
Electrical & Computer Engineering
Year of Publication
2019