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In this article, a new dual-permanent magnet spoke-type flux-reversal machine (dual-PM SFRM) for direct-drive applications is proposed. Tangentially magnetized permanent magnets (PMs) sandwiched with iron poles are set in stator slots. To increase the torque density within the geometric restrictions, PMs are introduced in the rotor as well and magnetized radially to form a consequent-pole rotor. Global optimizations are conducted and comparisons are made on torque, torque ripple, and torque/PM volume with the existing single-PM SFRM. It is found that the proposed dual-PM SFRM can produce 22.6% larger torque with an optimal PM volume and a 17.5% larger torque with the same PM volume compared with the single-PM counterpart. Moreover, major magnetic field space harmonics are derived analytically and verified by finite-element analysis (FEA) and the torque components produced by the working harmonics are calculated and compared in terms of different stator/rotor pole number combinations. Comparisons are made on back electromotive force, cogging torque, torque performance, and efficiency between dual-PM SFRM and conventional flux-reversal machine. The influence of different stator configurations, i.e., the slot opening, the iron bridge, and the unequal tooth, on torque performance in the proposed dual-PM SFRM has been studied and highlighted. A prototype has been built and tested to validate the FEA calculations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Consequent-pole (CP) permanent magnet (PM) machines have attracted considerable interest as a means of reducing machine cost through a marked reduction in the volume of PM required to meet a particular torque specification. However, the presence of a large torque ripple that can result from the CPPM structure can hinder their adoption in some applications, especially for the dominant third-order torque ripple. Although several design-specific modifications have been proposed to ameliorate torque ripple, the generalized principles underpinning this behavior have not been fully established. In this article, it will be illustrated that an aggregation of the fluctuations in inductance, back electromotive force, and cogging torque contributes to increased torque ripple. Meanwhile, an asymmetric pole shaping method is proposed to reduce the torque ripple, taking the dominant third-order torque ripple as an example. Both simulated and experimental results of the 12-slot/8-pole prototypes show that compared to the symmetrical pole shaping model and the plain pole model, the proposed asymmetric shaping method is effective in reducing torque ripple. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article proposes and investigates two asymmetric consequent-pole hybrid excited flux reversal machine (AS-CP-HEFRM) topologies, which have same numbers of iron poles and permanent magnets (PMs) with concentrated ac and dc windings on each stator pole and a salient pole rotor. If PM number on one stator pole is larger than 1, PMs are magnetized radially in the same direction on one stator pole, while opposite on adjacent stator poles. The phenomenon of the phase shift between the flux linkages of dc and PM excitations in the AS-CP-HEFRMs is revealed for the first time, which will weaken the regulation of dc excitation field to PM produced field. The elimination condition of the phase shift is derived and verified by finite-element analysis in this article, which can be considered as design guidelines in AS-CP-HEFRMs. Airgap magnetic field space harmonics of AS-CP-HEFRM are also investigated and verified by finite-element analyses. Meanwhile, the relationship between the rotor pole number and the stator pole arc (PM ratio) is derived and verified by global optimization based on genetic algorithm for maximum average torque. The influence of stator/rotor pole number combinations is also studied and compared in terms of torque, torque ripple, and flux regulation capability. The torque components produced by airgap magnetic field space harmonics are calculated and compared. A prototype has been built and tested to validate the finite element calculations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hybrid excited machines, with synergies of permanent magnet (PM) and wound field (WF) excitations, exhibit high torque density as well as controllable flux and are perceived as promising candidate for variable speed application. A novel doubly salient hybrid excited (DSHE) machine with non-overlapped field winding is presented in this paper. It inherits simple structure of conventional doubly salient PM (DSPM) machine and facilitates the regulation of magnetic field by field winding. The electromagnetic performances of the proposed machine with different stator and rotor pole number combinations are investigated by finite element method (FEM), confirming these advantages. Furthermore, the effect of iron bridge on the hybridization between PM and WF excitations is analyzed to obtain a trade-off between high torque density and wide flux regulation range with the frozen permeability method (FPM). It is revealed that the proposed DSHE machine possesses higher power and fault tolerance at flux weakening region compared with the DSPM machine, albeit with sacrificed torque density and efficiency with introduction of field winding. Finally, a prototype is fabricated and tested to validate the theoretical analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current harmonics are ubiquitous in dual three phase (DTP) permanent magnet synchronous machine (PMSM) drives. Due to back electromotive force (EMF) distortion, significant current harmonics are generated in the DTP-PMSM system. The influence of back EMF harmonics is investigated in this paper and a novel switching-table-based direct torque control method to compensate the selected current harmonics caused by the back EMF harmonics is proposed. It shows that by employing different optimal action time durations for voltage vectors in the z1z2 subspace and setting the synthetic voltage vectors to non-zero, the stator flux harmonics caused by the back EMF harmonics can be selectively compensated, as verified by experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, a new type of consequent pole flux reversal permanent magnet (CFRPM) machine, which features more iron poles than PM poles under one stator tooth, is proposed to improve the torque density. The proposed CFRPM machine with 6 slots and 16 poles (6S16P) is compared with a 12S16P FRPM machine and its consequent pole type, as well as a conventional 6S4P surface-mounted PM (SPM) machine. The proposed 6S16P CFRPM shows the highest torque among the four machines, together with the highest torque per PM volume. For a fair comparison with the 12S16P FRPM machine and its consequent pole type, the torque ripple of the proposed 6S16P CFRPM is suppressed by using two-step skewed rotor. After employing 4° two-step skewed rotor, while exhibits comparable torque ripple, the proposed 6S16P CFRPM still has 43% and 22% higher torque compared with the 12S16P FRPM machine and its consequent pole type. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, the flux reversal permanent magnet (FRPM) machine with toroidal windings is presented and analyzed with reference to conventional concentrated windings. First, the influence of rotor pole numbers on FRPM machines with conventional concentrated windings is investigated. It is found that although the 12/13 stator slot/rotor pole FRPM machine has a high back electromotive force, the pitch factor, and magnet flux utilization ratio of concentrated windings are very low. By adopting toroidal windings instead of concentrated windings in the 12/13 FRPM machine, the pitch factor and resulted machine performance can be effectively improved. Finite-element analysis shows that the 12/13 FRPM machine with toroidal windings can produce 79% higher torque than its counterpart with concentrated windings. Then, the critical design parameters and detailed electromagnetic performance of FRPM machines with both winding types are analyzed and compared. It is shown that the machine with toroidal windings has higher torque, efficiency, power factor, and lower torque ripple, making it particularly suitable for low-speed, high-torque, and axial length limited applications. In addition, other feasible stator slot/rotor pole combinations to use toroidal winding are identified, with the aid of equivalent pole-pair number. Finally, two 12/13 FRPM prototypes with toroidal windings and concentrated windings are tested to validate the analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a consequent-pole flux reversal machine (CP-FRM) with biased flux modulation theory, which employs homopolar permanent magnets (PMs) placed between the adjacent stator poles. The machine topology is introduced from the perspective of FRM with a shifted magnet position and CP arrangement, and the performance comparison between the proposed CP-FRM and its original surface-mounted PM (SPM) counterpart is presented to highlight the torque improvement of the CP structure. Then, a simplified permeance model is applied to the CP-FRM to identify the principal effective air-gap field harmonics engaging in the torque productions. It shows that the CP-FRM works based on a biased flux modulation effect due to its asymmetric air-gap field distribution caused by the CP configuration, which unveils its underlying torque improvement mechanism over its SPM-FRM counterpart. In order to obtain the highest torque capability, the key design parameters are analytically optimized by analyzing the winding configuration, which aids the establishment of a general design guideline for the CP-FRM. The analytical and FE results are validated by experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel parallel hybrid excited (HE) machine with wide flux regulation range is proposed in this paper. The flux paths of permanent magnet (PM) and field winding are separated to avoid irreversible demagnetization and achieve improved flux regulation capability. Since the field winding and armature winding are located in the same stator slots, open-winding drive circuit can be employed to feed biased ac excitation in one set of winding and solve the spatial confliction of conventional hybrid excited machine. Finite element (FE) method is utilized to analyze the electromagnetic performances of the proposed HE machine, in comparison with the original HE machine. It is revealed that the proposed HE machine exhibits lower PM excited back-electromotive force (EMF), which is beneficial to high speed fault tolerant operation. Besides, the torque density can be higher with flux enhancing, albeit with reduced PM usage. Finally, a prototype is manufactured and tested to validate the FE predictions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a novel modular stator hybrid-excited synchronous machine with stator slot permanent magnets (PMs). By regulating the field current, the magnetic field, and consequently the back electromotive force, as well as the average torque can be controlled. The existence of stator slot PMs alleviates the magnetic saturation and improves the flux regulation ratio. The frozen permeability method is employed to investigate the torque contributions by different magnetic sources. Possible stator and rotor pole combinations are illustrated, and the corresponding electromagnetic performances are evaluated with the finite-element method. It is revealed that 12-stator pole machines with 11- and 13-rotor poles exhibit superior average torque and lower torque ripple due to even-order harmonics elimination. Finally, a prototype with modular stator segments is manufactured to validate the analyses and simulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to comprehensively analyze the influence of number of permanent magnet (PM) pieces on electromagnetic performance of flux reversal permanent magnet (FRPM) machines. First, the unified analytical model of FRPM machines having different numbers of PM pieces is established, from which the optimal number of PM pieces and the corresponding rotor pole number can be identified. It shows that by employing the optimal number of PM pieces instead of the conventional two on each stator tooth, additional back-EMF component can be generated which is beneficial to boost the machine performance. Then, the influence of critical design parameters including stator slot opening ratio, split ratio, and stator slot number is investigated, providing a guidance to the design of FRPM machines aiming at maximum output torque. In addition, both finite element analyses and experimental tests are conducted to verify the analytical analyses. For 6-slot-stator FRPM machines, experimental results show that more than 40% higher output torque can be achieved in the machine with optimal number of PM pieces when compared to the conventional one. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new type of three-phase stator hybrid excited machine with permanent magnets (PMs) located at the slot openings of field winding slots is presented in this paper. It has the advantage of good flux regulation capability due to the field excitation. The machines with different stator/rotor pole combinations, i.e., 6-stator pole and 7-/8-/10-/11-/13-/14-rotor poles, have been comparatively investigated in terms of the open-circuit and on-load characteristics, as well as the influence of dc current and the unbalanced magnetic forces. The 2-D finite element analysis (FEA) has been employed for analysis and optimization of the machines together with experimental validation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of performance difference among various kinds of flux reversal permanent magnet (FRPM) machines having different permanent magnet (PM) arrangements. Four PM arrangement types are, first, identified by the number and relative polarities of PMs on the stator teeth, and their influence on the equivalent pole-pair number of the armature winding and working harmonics of the air-gap field is revealed. Then, the torque variation against the rotor pole number of each PM arrangement is analyzed. The electromagnetic performance of four PM arrangements with a 14-pole rotor is compared in detail. It shows that the FRPM machine, in which four PM pieces are mounted on each stator tooth and two adjacent magnets on different stator teeth are of opposite polarities, offers the highest torque density and the highest efficiency, which make it promising in low-speed high-torque applications. In addition, four prototype machines are manufactured and tested to validate the findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes two novel partitioned stator (PS) memory machines based on flux-reversal and switched-flux topologies, respectively. The proposed machines geometrically feature two separate stators with armature winding and hybrid PM excitations, i.e., NdFeB and low coercive force PMs. The proposed PS machines can offer increased available inner stator space for hybrid PM, which is beneficial to the torque improvement. The machine topologies are introduced first in terms of possible PM types with parallel magnetic circuits. The design considerations for hybrid PM are analytically analyzed. Then, the electromagnetic characteristics of the two proposed machines are comprehensively compared by using finite element (FE) method. The commercially available Toyota Prius 2010 machine is referenced as a benchmark for comparison with the optimal PS machine having identical overall dimension in potential context of traction applications. Finally, The FE analyses are validated by experiments on a small-scaled demonstration machine. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper proposes a double superposition method to quickly and accurately predict the cogging torque and unbalanced magnetic force (UMF) of permanent magnet machines with axial-varying rotor eccentricities. The original axial-varying eccentric machine is cut into several uniform slices along the axial direction and each slice is considered to be axially uniform, i.e., axial even. For each axial-even eccentric machine slice, the circumferential superposition method can be used to predict the cogging torque and UMF of this slice. Finally, the cogging torque and UMF of the original axial-varying eccentric machine can be obtained by using an axial superposition technique which combines the cogging torque and UMF of each slice with different eccentricity magnitudes together. The 3-D finite-element analysis is adopted to validate the efficacy of the proposed method and the merit of high accuracy and computational efficiency is also identified by comparing the results predicted from these two methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A method for enhancing torque capability of a dual three-phase permanent magnet synchronous machine (PMSM) based on conventional dual three-phase drive system by injecting the fifth and seventh current harmonics without any hardware re-configuration is proposed in this paper. Compared with the third current harmonic injection, which is commonly used to enhance the torque capability of dual three-phase machine, the two isolated neutral points of each set of single three-phase windings do not need to be reconnected to the middle point of dc-link capacitors or an additional power switching bridge to provide flowing path for zero-sequence current. Further, no additional current sensors are required to obtain the feedback of zero-sequence current to regulate it effectively. For a prototype dual three-phase PMSM, the average torque increases approximately by 9% at the cost of 0.56% increase in the 12th harmonic torque ripple. The effectiveness of the torque capability enhancement is confirmed by experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel partitioned stator (PS) hybrid excited (HE) switched flux (SF) (PS-HESF) machine is proposed in this paper. In the PS-HESF machine, the permanent magnets (PMs) and field windings are allocated on one stator while the armature windings are placed on the other. The iron-piece-rotor is sandwiched between the two stators. Consequently, compared with the conventional HESF machine having PMs, field windings as well as armature windings all on one stator, the available space of the novel machine is greatly boosted and therefore the performance is enhanced. Based on 2-D finite-element analysis, the electromagnetic performance of the PS-HESF machine is evaluated and the results reveal that it can exhibit not only better flux regulation capability but also higher torque than the conventional HESF machine. Moreover, the influences of the key design parameters on the hybridization ratio in the PS-HESF machines are investigated. A prototype machine is manufactured and tested to validate the predictions. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Due to asymmetric three-phase system and influence of inverter nonlinearity, large torque, and stator flux harmonics would exist in the space vector modulation-based direct torque controlled (DTC-SVM) three-phase permanent magnet synchronous machines (PMSMs). A general expression for electromagnetic torque is derived for DTC of asymmetric three-phase PMSMs considering the influence of inverter nonlinearity. To mitigate the influence of the undesired harmonics, a compensation method is developed by enhancing the standard proportional-integral (PI)-regulator in the torque and flux loops with appropriate resonant controllers. Since the 2nd- and 6th-order harmonics are the most dominant components, two resonant controllers tuning at the 2nd and 6th of stator angular frequency, respectively, are utilized. The proposed method can achieve good steady-state performance in terms of low torque and flux ripples, while keeping the merits of the conventional DTC-SVM strategy such as good dynamic torque response and machine parameter independence. The experimental results validate the effectiveness of the proposed strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The partitioned stator switched-flux permanent magnet (PM) (SFPM) (PS-SFPM) machine is a novel stator-PM machine in which PMs and armature windings are separately placed in two different stators. Compared with the conventional SFPM machine with a single stator in which both PMs and armature windings are located, the PS-SFPM machine can generate higher torque density due to the utilization of the machine's inner space. In this paper, the magnetic gearing effect in the PS-SFPM machine is investigated in terms of air-gap field harmonics based on a simple magnetomotive force (MMF)-permeance model. It is found that the PS-SFPM machine is one type of magnetically-geared machine, in which the modulations of rotor iron pieces to the open-circuit PM and armature reaction fields are similar to those found in the magnetic gear and the conventional magnetically geared machine. The pole-pair numbers and rotating speeds of the air-gap field harmonics obtained by the MMF-permeance model are verified by finite element (FE) analysis. More than 93% of the average electromagnetic torque is contributed by the main air-gap field harmonics having pole-pair numbers (2i - 1)\boldsymbol p PM and \rm| N\rm{r} \,\pm \, (2i-1)pPM| ( i = 1,2,3) in a PS-SFPM machine with pPM-pole-pair PMs and Nr-rotor-pole. A prototype machine is fabricated and tested to verify the FE analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A partitioned stator hybrid excited machine is proposed, in which the permanent magnets and field windings are alternately placed on an inner stator separated from the outer stator having armature windings. This machine inherits the features of brushless machines and benefits from better space utilization. The operating principle and the effects of slot/pole combinations are investigated in detail. Further, based on 2-D finite-element analysis, the electromagnetic performances of the proposed machines, including back-electromotive force, cogging torque, flux regulation range, torque capability, power factor and torque–speed curve, are evaluated. The results reveal that the proposed machines can exhibit wide flux regulation range as well as good torque density. The prototype is manufactured and tested to validate the predictions. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A dual-stator hybrid-excited switched-flux (DS-HESF) machine, which is based on the conventional SF permanent magnet machine but employs a secondary stator to accommodate the field windings, is proposed in this paper. The DS-HESF machine inherits the robust rotor and benefits from a better space utilization. The topology and operating principle of the proposed machine are introduced in detail. Based on the 2-D finite-element analysis, the comparison between the DS-HESF machines having different rotor pole numbers is carried out, accompanied with a conventional HESF machine as a baseline. The results reveal that the DS-HESF machines exhibit not only higher torque density but also a better flux regulation capability. The prototype is manufactured and tested to validate the predictions. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper presents a partitioned stator switched flux memory machine (PS-SFMM) with triple magnets to enable expedient flux control with reduced converter power rating. Meanwhile, the torque/magnet cost ratio of the machine has been significantly improved without much compromise of the torque capability. Three kinds of permanent magnets (PMs), NdFeB, SmCo, and AlNiCo, are hybridized, and hence the irreversible demagnetization of vulnerable AlNiCo PMs can be well prevented by SmCo magnets. The machine configurations with dual PM (DPM) and triple PM (TPM) are described first. Thereafter, the performance improvement mechanism is unveiled and addressed in the perspective of hysteresis curves as well as simplified magnetic circuits. In addition, the electromagnetic characteristics of the proposed machine with triple-magnet design are investigated and compared with those having DPMs. Finally, two PS-SFMM prototypes with DPM and TPM are manufactured and tested to verify the theoretical analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A new flux reversal permanent magnet (FRPM) linear machine known as the partitioned stator FRPM (PS-FRPM) linear machine is proposed. The structure and the operation principle of the machine are described, and the major design parameters are optimized for maximum thrust force. A periodic model is also used in the analysis in order to highlight the significant effect of the longitudinal end effect on the machine performance, particularly in terms of unbalanced magnetic circuit and cogging force. Furthermore, the proposed machine is compared with the conventional FRPM linear machine. It is concluded that higher thrust force, less cogging force, and consequently less thrust force ripple can be obtained by the proposed machine. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Permanent magnet (PM) tubular machines have been applied to many applications, since they offer high force density with no end winding and no net attractive force between the mover and the stator. In this paper, two novel PM tubular machines named partitioned stator interior PM (PS-IPM) and partitioned stator surface-mounted PM (PS-SPM) tubular machines are proposed. Both the proposed machines are optimized for maximum thrust force, and their electromagnetic performance has been compared. It is found that the PS-IPM tubular machine has higher thrust force capability and better magnet utilization compared with the PS-SPM tubular machine. However, due to lower cogging force, the PS-SPM tubular machine has fewer thrust force ripples. Furthermore, the effect of the cross-coupling magnetic saturation on PM flux linkage, and the $d$ -axis and $q$ -axis inductances for both the proposed machines is investigated. It is demonstrated that the PM flux linkage and the $d$ -axis and $q$ -axis inductances are affected by the cross-coupling magnetic saturation. Moreover, the force–velocity characteristics of the proposed machines are calculated and compared. It is observed that both the machines have good constant power operation capability. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper, partitioned stator flux reversal permanent magnet (PS-FRPM) machines having different stator/rotor pole combinations with consequent-pole PM (CPM) stator are proposed and analyzed. Compared with the conventional 12-stator-pole PS-FRPM machines having 10-, 11-, 13-, and 14-rotor-pole rotors and surface-mounted PM (SPM) stator, the PM volume in the proposed PS-FRPM machines with CPM stator can be saved by 28.33%, 30%, 30%, and 33.33%, respectively, while the torque density are similar, i.e., 98.59%, 96.69%, 95.50%, and 97.15%, respectively. Besides, the proposed PS-FRPM machines with CPM stator can exhibit only <1% smaller efficiency compared with the existing PS-FRPM machines with SPM inner stator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a quantitative comparative study on the two novel memory machines (MMs) with two sets of different magnets on the stator, which are derived from the switched flux (SF) and the variable reluctance (VR) topologies, respectively. The machine topologies, the operating principles, and the design considerations are described. The hybrid magnet sizing is analytically optimized with the aid from a simplified magnetic circuit. Then, the major parametric optimization is conducted on the two machines sharing identical outer diameter and stack length, as well as the copper loss constraint. The electromagnetic performance of the two optimally designed models is analyzed and comprehensively compared, which confirms the advantage of the SF topology for MMs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes how to use the addition of rotor position offsets as perturbation signals for the parameter estimation of permanent-magnet synchronous machines (PMSMs), which can be used for the condition monitoring of rotor permanent magnet and stator winding. During the proposed estimation, two small position offsets are intentionally added into the drive system, and the resulting voltage variation will be recorded for the estimation of rotor flux linkage. With the aid from estimated rotor flux linkage, the stator winding resistance can be subsequently estimated at steady state. This method is experimentally verified on two prototype PMSMs (150 W and 3 kW, respectively) and shows good performance in monitoring the variation of rotor flux linkage and winding resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper proposes a multiparameter estimation scheme for permanent-magnet (PM) synchronous machines (PMSMs) under variable-speed control, of which the estimation model is full rank and has taken into account the estimation and compensation of voltage-source-inverter nonlinearity. During the proposed estimation, the PMSM will work under variable speed control, and two sets of machine data corresponding to two sets of different rotor speeds will be recorded and used for the calculation of the proposed estimation model. It shows that the proposed estimation model can be solved by using a conventional quantum genetic algorithm and can ensure the identifiability of all needed parameters owing to its inherent full rank feature. The performance test of the proposed estimation is then conducted on an interior PMSM, and it shows that parameters such as rotor PM flux linkage and winding resistance can be accurately estimated without the aid from nominal parameter values of PMSM. Therefore, the proposed method can be used for the condition monitoring of stator winding and rotor PMs. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper systematically presents the development of novel stator electrically field excited synchronous machines having salient pole rotors without any coils or magnets. This kind of new machine does not use slip-rings/brushes required in the conventional rotor wound field machines and combines the synergies of wound field machines, permanent magnet (PM) machines, switched reluctance, and synchronous reluctance machines. This paper describes the machine topologies, winding configurations, electromagnetic performance, and torque/power density, as well as acoustic noise and vibration, together with a comparison with the Toyota Prius interior PM machine in terms of torque/power speed characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to simplify manufacture processes and improve fault-tolerant capabilities, modular electrical machines, especially the ones with segmented stators, are increasingly employed. However, flux gaps between segments are often inevitable. In this paper, to take advantage of these flux gaps to enhance the machine performance, novel modular permanent magnet machines with different slot/pole combinations have been proposed. The influence of these flux gaps on the electromagnetic performance of modular PM machines, such as winding factor, open-circuit air-gap flux densities, back-EMFs, cogging torque, on-load torque, inductances, magnetic saturation and copper losses, are comprehensively investigated and general rules have been established. It is found that for modular machines having slot number higher than pole number, the flux gaps between stator segments degrade the electromagnetic performance due to the lower winding factor and the flux defocusing effect. However, for modular machines having slot number lower than pole number, the electromagnetic performances can be significantly improved using proper flux gap width due to the higher winding factor and the flux focusing effect. The finite element results are validated by experiments using two prototype modular machines. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The paper investigates the influence of slot/pole number combination and winding configuration on the electromagnetic performance, such as flux density, back-EMF and electromagnetic torque, of permanent magnet machines having static or rotating rotor eccentricities. It shows that the eccentricity does not affect the back-EMF and electromagnetic torque of rotational symmetrical machines whose configuration repeats every certain amount of angle. However, it significantly distorts the back-EMF and torque waveforms of rotational asymmetric machines. Further, the static eccentricity does not change the harmonic contents of back-EMF, but results in unbalanced three phase back-EMF. Hence, the temporal order of the main torque ripple due to the static eccentricity is equal to the pole number. On the other hand, the rotating eccentricity results in more back-EMF harmonics of orders equal to the PM magnetisation order plus/minus one. Therefore, the temporal order of the main torque ripple due to the rotating eccentricity is equal to the triplen number closest to the pole number. The prediction is validated by the experiment. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In order to improve the electromagnetic performance and ease the manufacture process, particularly stator winding, it is often preferable to employ a modular stator, e.g., individual stator tooth/back-iron segments, or separate stator tooth segments and back-iron segments. However, due to manufacture limits, there always exhibit additional air gaps between the stator teeth and back-iron segments. In practice, such gaps are likely to be nonuniform due to manufacture tolerances. This paper investigates the influence of uniform and nonuniform additional gaps on the cogging torque of permanent-magnet machines having either unskewed or step-skewed rotors. It is found that the presence of these gaps increases the cogging torque magnitude due to increased flux leakage through the tooth tips, while the uneven gaps can cause a significant increase in both the peak and periodicity of cogging torque waveform, which causes the skew method ineffective, as confirmed by both finite-element analyses and experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The paper presents an analytical model for predicting the open-circuit magnet eddy-current loss due to slotting in surface-mounted permanent-magnet machines based on the exact subdomain field model. The spatial and temporal characteristics of field harmonics due to slotting and corresponding eddy-current harmonics in the magnet are analyzed in both stator and rotor reference frames. The contribution of interaction between eddy-current harmonics having the same frequency but different spatial order to magnet loss is revealed for the first time by an analytical model. The magnet loss can be under- or overestimated if the interaction is neglected. The developed model is capable of providing both high accuracy and insights of loss generation. The influence of the slot and pole number combination, slot-opening to slot-pitch ratio, pole-arc to pole-pitch ratio, circumferential segmentation, and rotational symmetry order on the open-circuit magnet is investigated using the developed model. The finite-element results validate high accuracy of the developed analytical model. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Surface mounted permanent magnet Vernier (SPM-V) machines, because of their high torque density and multi-pole structure, are promising candidates for low-speed direct-drive applications. To achieve high torque density, the SPM-V machines are generally designed with high gear ratios. Therefore, their operating frequencies can be much higher than those of the conventional SPM machines. This potentially increases the alternating current (AC) winding losses, especially those with form-wound coils proposed for high-power applications. This article investigates the AC losses (including skin effect, proximity effect, rotor PM induced, and circulating current losses) in form-wound stator coils of a 3 MW direct-drive SPM-V machine with different slot/pole number combinations. The study reveals that the SPM-V machines have significantly higher AC winding losses than their conventional SPM counterparts for similar operating conditions. To reduce the AC winding losses in SPM-V machines, a novel flux shunt concept is proposed along with other conventional techniques such as increasing the number of turns/coil (with terminal voltage being kept constant) and parallel strands/turn, providing extra clearance at slot opening. With the loss reduction techniques implemented, the SPM-V machines can achieve comparable efficiency but much higher torque density than their conventional counterparts. Moreover, the proposed flux shunt was also found to be very effective in reducing the potential risk of permanent magnet (PM) irreversible demagnetization, a key issue for SPM-V machines at high power ratings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A subdomain model considering the influence of tooth-tips is developed for predicting the armature reaction field in surface-mounted permanent-magnet machines having either non-overlapping or overlapping windings. In the developed model, the field domain is divided into three types of subdomains, viz. air gap including magnet, slot openings, and slots. The expression of the vector potential distribution in each subdomain is obtained by the variable separation method, and the field solution is obtained by applying the boundary and interface conditions. Compared with the conventional subdomain model, the subdomain model considering the tooth-tips predicts similar flux density in the air gap and magnets, but exhibits much higher accuracy for the flux density in the slot openings and slots. The finite-element results validate the analytical prediction. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The split ratio, i.e., the ratio of stator bore radius to stator outer radius, is an important design parameter for permanent-magnet (PM) linear machines, as it significantly influences the thrust force capability and efficiency. The optimal split ratio for maximum thrust force is investigated analytically for both surface-mounted PM (SPM) and interior PM (IPM) E-core linear oscillating actuators. It utilizes simple lumped magnetic circuit models and accounts for the magnetic saturation, the curvature effect, the fringing effect, and the armature reaction effect which may greatly affect the accuracy of the analytical model for the optimal split ratio. The optimal split ratio for both SPM and IPM prototype actuators is found to be around 0.55. The developed analytical models are validated by both finite-element analyses and measurements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A simple analytical method is developed for determining the optimal combination of stator pole and rotor pole numbers for a multi-tooth flux-switching permanent magnet (FSPM) machine, and the optimal design of the stator teeth for maximum torque. In addition, the rotor pole width and the split ratio are optimized by finite element analysis. The optimized multi-tooth FSPM machine exhibits a significantly higher torque capability and requires a significantly lower volume of magnet material than a conventional FSPM machine. The performance of the proposed multi-tooth FSPM machine is validated experimentally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article investigates the influence of stator slot number on electromagnetic performance of two-pole high speed permanent magnet (HSPM) slotted motors with toroidal (TO) windings. Four two-pole slotted motors with different slot numbers, i.e., 3, 6, 9, and 12, are globally optimised for maximum torque, and their electromagnetic performance are compared, including winding factor, air-gap flux density, back electromotive force, cogging torque, electromagnetic torque, winding inductances, unbalanced magnetic force (UMF), and various loss components. It shows that the six-slot/two-pole HSPM motor with TO windings is eminently suitable for high speed application due to no UMF and easy to realise a modular structure. In addition, TO and tooth-coil windings are compared in the three-slot/two-pole motors, and the results confirm that TO windings are not suitable for use in the three-slot/two-pole HSPM slotted motor due to large airgap field harmonics. Finally, a six-slot/two-pole prototype motor is manufactured and tested to validate the finite element predictions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the partitioned stator (PS) structure is extended to variable-flux memory machines, forming two newly emerged PS switched-flux memory machines (PS-SFMMs) with series and parallel hybrid magnet configurations. From the perspective of geometry, both two PS-SFMMs share identical outer stator and rotor segments, while two different types of permanent magnet (PM) arrangements are employed in the inner stationary part. Thus, the developed machines can inherent the geometric separation of the armature winding and PM excitations from the PS design, thus achieving acceptable torque capability, and excellent air-gap flux control. A comparative study between PS-SFMMs with series and parallel structures is established. First, the topologies and operating principle are introduced, respectively. In addition, the design tradeoffs and PM sizing of the two PS machines are revealed and optimized with a simplified magnetic circuit model. Then, the electromagnetic characteristics of PS-SFMMs with different magnetic circuits are investigated and compared with the finite-element (FE) method. The FE results are validated by the experiments on a parallel prototype. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes an analytical method that combines the superposition concept and the subdomain method to predict the cogging torque of permanent magnet (PM) machines with a rotor eccentricity. The original eccentric machine is first divided into several sections along the air-gap circumferential direction. Then, the equivalent air-gap lengths of all sections will be determined and individually used to build up a series of concentric models representing each section. By the superposition method, the air-gap flux density of the original eccentric machine can be synthesized from that of every concentric model predicted through the subdomain method. Consequently, the cogging torque can be predicted by the integral of Maxwell stress tensor based on the synthesized air-gap flux density. To prove the efficacy of the proposed method, two fractional-slot PM machines with different slot/pole number combinations are taken as examples, together with the validation of a finite-element analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Novel synchronous machines with doubly salient structure and permanent magnets (PMs) in stator yoke have been developed in this paper. The stator is constituted by T-shaped lamination segments sandwiched with circumferentially magnetized PMs with alternate polarity, while the rotor is identical to that of switched reluctance machines (SRMs). The stator pole number is multiples of six, which is the number of stator poles in a unit machine. Similar to variable flux reluctance machines (VFRMs), the rotor pole numbers in the novel machines are not restricted to those in SRMs. When the stator and rotor pole numbers differ by one (or the number of multiples), the novel synchronous machines show sinusoidal bipolar phase flux linkage and back electromotive force (EMF), which make the machines suitable for brushless ac operation. Moreover, two prototype machines with six-pole stator and five-pole, seven-pole rotors are designed and optimized by 2-D finite element analysis. It shows that, compared with VFRMs, the novel machines can produce \(\sim 70\) % higher torque density with the same copper loss and machine size. Meanwhile, the proposed machines have negligible reluctance torque due to very low saliency ratio. Experimental results of back EFM, cogging torque, and average torque on the prototypes are provided to validate the analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article investigates some novel modular consequent pole PM machines (CPMs) with E-core and C-core stators. Different slot-pole number combinations including 12-slot/10-pole (Ns>2p) and 12-slot/14-pole (Ns<2p) have been investigated. Their static and dynamic electromagnetic performances have been investigated, e.g. the phase back-EMF, on-load torque, torque-speed curves, power factor-speed curves and also efficiency maps are compared. It is found that the existence of flux gaps (FGs) can improve the average torque of the 12-slot/14-pole E-core modular CPMs while the C-core structure can be a better candidate where relatively low torque ripple is desirable. Moreover, by selecting proper FG width, the 12-slot/14-pole E-core modular CPMs can achieve better flux-weakening capability and higher efficiency while the 12-slot/10-pole C-core modular CPMs can have higher power factors over the whole speed range. The finite element simulation results have been validated by a series of experiments using 12-slot/14-pole modular CPMs with both C-core and E-core stators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Linear flat switched flux permanent magnet (SFPM) brushless machines have significant potential for many applications including transportation, automobile and aerospace. Novel E-core and C-core linear SFPM machines are proposed and optimized by individual parameter optimization, when the copper loss and volume is fixed, in this paper by finite element (FE) analysis. Then, the results of the individual parameter optimizations are examined by a global optimization with genetic algorithm. Furthermore, the magnet thickness of all the machines and the middle teeth of the E-core machines are analyzed individually. Finally, the electromagnetic performance of the novel machines are analyzed and compared with the conventional machine. It shows that both E-core and C-core machines require significantly smaller magnet volume since only about half the number of permanent magnets is required. Furthermore, the C-core machines have the largest back-EMF and force density due to the largest slot area, and the E-core machines are suitable for fault-tolerant operations while the 6/11 mover/stator pole E-core SFPM machine has the smallest cogging force. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper, the influences of design parameters on the on-load demagnetization behavior of a switched flux hybrid magnet memory machine (SF-HMMM) are evaluated, which aims to provide a useful design guideline to avoid this performance degradation. The machine topology and on-load demagnetization phenomenon are described, respectively. Furthermore, some key design parameters are selected to optimize to elevate the operating point of the low coercive force (LCF) permanent magnets (PMs). Then, some geometric modifications are suggested to alleviate the on-load demagnetization effects. Finally, an SF-HMMM prototype is fabricated and tested to experimentally verify the finite-element analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the interaction of the zero sequence component into both permanent magnet (PM) shape and phase current to improve the output torque in dual three-phase surface-mounted PM (SPM) machines. The optimal zero sequence components are analytically derived and validated by finite element (FE) analyses. It is found that the optimal zero sequence components into both PM shape and current waveform are dependent on the fundamental and zero sequence harmonic winding factors. For the dual three-phase SPM machines having rotors without shaping, Sine shape, Sine shape with the zero sequence components, the electromagnetic performances including the back electromotive force (EMF) waveform, cogging torque, average torque, and torque ripple are compared. It is demonstrated that the average torque with the optimal zero sequence component in PM shaping and current waveform can be improved by >30% while the torque ripple remains similar to that of the one with Sine shaping. Finally, the experiments are given to verify both the analytical and FE analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a method for analytically analyzing the magnetic field and predicting the cogging force and torque of a linear and rotary permanent magnet actuator (LRPMA). The tubular mover of the LRPMA is transferred into a planar one by using a proposed magnetic field curvature factor and a relative permeance function for the stator slotting so as to simplify the magnetic field calculation. Magnetic field distributions of the LRPMA when the stator slotting is neglected are analytically analyzed using the magnetic scalar potential, and validated by 3-D finite-element method. The linear cogging force and rotary cogging torque of slotted LRPMA are subsequently predicted by the Maxwell stress tensor method and verified by the experimental results on the prototype. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]