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This is the story of the novel model predictive control (MPC) solution for ABB’s largest drive, the Megadrive LCI. LCI stands for load commutated inverter, a type of current source converter which powers large machineries in many industries such as marine, mining or oil & gas. Starting from a small software project at ABB Corporate Research, this novel control solution turned out to become the first time ever MPC was employed in a 48 MW commercial drive. Subsequently it was commissioned at Kollsnes, a key facility of the natural gas delivery chain, in order to increase the plant’s availability. In this presentation I will talk about the magic behind this success story, the so-called Embedded MPC algorithms, and my objective will be to demonstrate the possibilities when power meets computation.
Dr. Thomas Besselmann (ABB Corporate Research)
Senior Scientist
Thomas J. Besselmann received the B.Sc. degree in general engineering science and the Dipl.-Ing. degree in mechatronics from Hamburg University of Technology, Hamburg, Germany, and the Ph.D. degree from the Automatic Control Laboratory, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland, in 2003, 2005, and 2010, respectively. Currently, he is a Senior Scientist with the Control and Optimization Group, ABB Corporate Research, Baden-Dättwil, Switzerland. His research interests include high-speed control methods for constrained systems, in particular model predictive control, and their application to automotive and power electronics systems.