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Axial flux and radial flux cycloidal permanent magnetic gears are characterized by high gear ratios and high torque densities; however, their rotors experience large unbalanced forces, which stress the bearings used in the gear. This paper presents a new cycloidal magnetic gear topology that combines the radial and axial flux topologies. The paper analyzes the forces and torques contributed by the axial and radial magnets in this topology using 3D finite element analysis. It was found that the perpendicular force is necessary to transfer torque to the high-speed shaft and, thus, cannot be cancelled out, but the eccentric component of the magnetic forces can be largely cancelled out, potentially reducing bearing losses and increasing the lifespan of the bearings used in the gear. A proof-of-concept prototype was constructed. Experimental slip torque results matched 3D finite element analysis (FEA) simulations to within 15%, and testing showed that no-load losses were reduced and the slip torque was increased by combining both axial and radial topologies, compared to using an axial configuration alone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the boundary discretization method is used to improve the traditional subdomain model. The improved model can be used to calculate the magnetic field distribution in the region containing non-orthogonal boundary, avoiding the influence of the simplified stator slot or permanent magnet shape on the results in calculating the motor magnetic field using the traditional subdomain model. In addition, the improved subdomain model can also be used to calculate the air-gap flux density when the rotor is eccentric, instead of segmenting the air-gap to an equivalent state without eccentricity. The calculation object of this paper is a surface-mount permanent magnet motor with a rectangular stator slot. The air-gap flux density under no-load and load conditions is calculated, respectively. Since the improved subdomain model does not need to simplify the stator slot shape, the magnetic potential in the stator slot is also calculated. Finally, the air-gap flux density under rotor eccentricity is calculated, and the influence of the calculating parameters on the results of the improved subdomain model is discussed. All the calculated results are compared with those obtained by the finite element method, which verifies the accuracy of the improved calculation model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In an interior permanent magnet synchronous motor (IPMSM) with segmented skewed poles, the armature reaction magnetic field (AR-MF) changes nonlinearly due to the saturation of the rotor magnetic barrier. Meanwhile, this varies under different excitation currents. As a result, it is difficult to be calculated by means of analytical methods. In this paper, the calculation model of AR-MF of IPMSM is first established by vector superposition method, without considering the saturation effect of rotor and the slotting effect of stator. In the second step, the virtual magnetic field of the rotor is introduced to quantitatively calculate the influence of local inhomogeneous saturation on the AR-MF. The latter is derived by combining both the subdomain method and equivalent magnetic circuit method. The complex relative permeance is also introduced to establish the AR-MF accounting for the stator slotting effect. To validate the AR-MF calculation method proposed, an 8-pole 48-slot IPMSM with segmented skewed poles is considered as a case study, showing a comparison by both with finite element (FE) results and the electromagnetic torque measured on a test bench. The model proposed in this paper shows high accuracy and fast computation with respect to FE analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Connection of an LC filter to the output of voltage source inverter (VSI) in squirrel cage induction motor (SQIM) drive converts the pulse-width modulated (PWM) voltages into smooth sinusoidal voltages. However, this connection may lead to closed-loop instability in the rotor flux-oriented (RFO) vector-controlled (VC) SQIM system. The closed-loop stability of the combined SQIM + LC filter (SQLC) system is complex and has not been analyzed properly in the literature. In this paper, a detailed closed-loop stability analysis of the SQLC system has been presented based on stability region (SR) and accordingly the PI gains of VC has been designed. The SR method is adopted to derive the common stability regions for the SQIM system and SQLC system. Thereby, the paper proves that connecting an LC filter in-between the VSI and the SQIM system does not always destabilize the closed-loop system. Further, for an SQLC system, the complete range of current controller gains is obtained at various operating points. The frequency-domain specifications have been used to select a proper stabilizing set and the effect of parametric variation of LC filter on the stabilizing set has also been discussed. The experimental results are provided to validate the analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a fast analytical model for estimating the components of the PM flux density distribution in the air-gap for a number of interior permanent magnet synchronous machines (IPMSMs). Deriving the two-dimensional (2-D) analytical model for IPMSMs is more challenging compared to that of surface-mounted permanent magnet synchronous machines (SPMSMs) due to the inconsistent geometry of the rotor in polar coordinates. IPMSMs are usually modeled by using 0-D or 1-D methods such as the magnetic equivalent circuit (MEC); however, the MEC method is unable to take into account the tangential component of the magnetic flux density vector. In this paper, a 2-D analytical no-load electromagnetic model for five rotor topologies of IPMSMs is proposed. The effects of the stator slots on the radial component of the PM flux density distribution in the air-gap are then included by defining an air-gap function. The effects of the stator slots on the tangential components of the PM flux density distribution in the air-gap are also considered by injecting virtual surface currents (VSCs) or virtual permanent magnets (VPMs). For verification purposes, the analytical results are compared with those of the finite element method (FEM) and the experimental results of one of the cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The excitation system with a multi-phase annular brushless exciter (MPABE) is widely used in large-capacity nuclear power plants. It is of great significance to realize a reliable protection of the exciter for safe operation. Since the MPABE is adopted with rotary armature structure, the rotor winding short-circuit (RWSC) fault is very difficult to be diagnosed directly. However, it is an effective way to realize fault diagnosis through the characteristics reflected in the stator field winding. In this paper, based on the mutual induction relationship between stator current and rotor current, detailed theoretical analysis of the RWSC fault is conducted and the harmonic characteristics of the stator field current are obtained. Then, related experiments and simulations are carried out, verifying the correctness of the theoretical analysis. Finally, a diagnosis method based on the transient harmonic characteristics of the stator field current is proposed and its sensitivity is also analyzed. The diagnosis method proposed in this paper is simple and feasible, which helps to improve the safety and reliability of the MPABE system in nuclear power plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A variable reluctance electric machine with a two-degree of freedom rotor motion characterized by rotation around the center of the rotor and orbiting around the center of the stator is studied. One motivation for adopting such rotor motion would be to allow torque generation through both the radial and tangential components of the electromagnetic forces created in the airgap, as opposed to common rotary machines in which torque is a byproduct of only the tangential component of the airgap electromagnetic forces. Furthermore, the rotor motion provides a built-in gearing action similar to that of a cycloidal drive, which allows natural torque multiplication and the tight integration of the electromagnetic and mechanical systems. The two-degree of freedom rotor motion also results in a counter-intuitive inertia characteristic of this machine concept which is elaborated in this paper for the first time. Due to the reluctance nature of the torque, and because of the distinctive rotor motion profile which resembles the motion of a cycloid, the studied machine is called a cycloidal reluctance (CR) electric machine (CRM). In this paper, the principle of operation of the CRM is explained, and its performance is compared to a counterpart switched reluctance machine (SRM). A prototype is built, and the theoretical torque calculations are validated by experimental measurements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The application of Hall-based BLDC motors ranges from automotive accessory components such as oil and water pumps to high speed compressors. This paper proposes a new twelve-step unsymmetrical 160° commutation strategy using a single Hall-effect sensor method for brushless DC (BLDC) motor drives. The signal from the Hall-effect sensor is used to generate a number of pseudo Hall signals via a proposed speed-position estimator. The pseudo signals are then employed to control switching logic of a voltage source inverter (VSI). The effectiveness of the single Hall sensor method is examined on the unconventional 160° strategy, and on conventional 120°, 150° and 180° strategies with promising results. The paper presents a detailed comparison of the twelve-step unsymmetrical 160° commutation strategy with six-step voltage space vector that is used in conventional 120° and 180° strategies, and twelve-step symmetrical voltage space vector that is used in 150° strategy. Simulation results are validated via experimental measurements on a laboratory set-up using a real time dSPACE control environment, a representative BLDC motor prototype, a VSI and associated control components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a dynamic thermal model which predicts the winding temperature of electrical machines at steady-state and transient conditions where windings are used in integrated battery chargers (IBCs) for DC charging in a stationary position. Using winding in high current charging process causes rising winding temperature which affects insulation life. Switched reluctance machines are a proper choice for using in electric vehicles (EVs) because of their advantages such as simple and sturdy structures. IBCs can reduce volume and weight of EVs and total cost is diminished because of integration. The analytical thermal model proposed in this paper can calculates the winding temperature in balanced and unbalanced currents injection because of the phase inductance in each rotor angle is distinct, so current excitation in each phase should be different for obtaining zero total torque and keeping rotor in a stationary position, also a reduced-order model is proposed with minor impact on the accuracy of the model. Special attention has been paid to monitor the winding temperature with considering the motor lifetime in DC charging mode, this view has not been addressed in IBCs before. The proposed model is then validated against experimental results and 3D finite element method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has been lately shown that, traditional diagnostic approaches for rotor electrical faults detection in induction motors can be dangerously misleading. That is due to many different fault cases that mask the fault signatures thus leading to false negative alarms, or a plethora of harmless conditions that generate signatures similar to the faulty ones leading to false positive alarms. Aiming for reliable fault detection, a new trend has appeared, that of the analysis of the stator current at start-up of the motor. This method proves to be reliable in many cases, however there are still cases where it can lead to false positive alarms especially when applied on motors by diagnostic engineers for the first time. Aiming for a more reliable approach, a new method is proposed in this paper. The proposed novel method consists of the analysis of the zero-sequence current under transient motor operation and specifically the start-up. The paper's findings demonstrate the method's reliability and superiority over the analysis of a single current. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a fault-tolerant control of a symmetrical six-phase induction generator based on a variable structure strategy is experimentally tested and compared with a classical proportional-integral controller. For this, we use a linear feedback sliding mode controller with switched feedback gains in such a way to control the inner current loops of this machine. One main drawback of the classical three-phase induction generator is that it is no longer possible to generate electrical power if only one phase is lost on the stator side. To overcome this issue, we will use a squirrel cage six-phase induction machine that can still operate when at least three phases remain on the stator side. This article proposes to use a variable structure control in order to cope with unbalanced currents and also maintain the generation of power when a loss of the stator's phases occurs. The proposed controller shows its robustness and good regulation performance in healthy and faulty modes. The simulation and experimental tests were carried out with a 24 kW induction machine that represents 1/100 of the electrical power of a real wind turbine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reflecting potential non-linearities of converter-based systems, especially frequency and sequence couplings, is an ongoing challenge for linearized multi-frequency models. Besides, design details are required to develop such models, which either are the intellectual property of manufacturers or require experimental tests. The generic multi-frequency modelling method has been proposed to fill this gap; however, it is only developed for converter-connected systems, e.g., Type 4 Wind Turbines (WT). This paper proposes to extend the application of the generic multi-frequency modelling method for Type 3 WTs. In this way, a theory for patterns of the couplings in Type 3 WTs is proposed. Accordingly, a group of emissions and couplings are Rotor-Speed-Dependent (RSD). The RSD emissions and couplings are particular characteristics of Type 3 WTs, which should be addressed in the generic multi-frequency models. The proposed theory is verified by unique-worldwide experimental perturbation tests on a 2 MVA Type 3 WT using a 7 MVA grid emulator. Accordingly, a limited number of RSD couplings and emissions are observed in the test results, mainly in low frequencies (below 1 kHz). Therefore, addressing the RSD couplings is practical and important to extend the generic multi-frequency modelling for Type 3 WTs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The vibration characteristics of stator system of the interior permanent magnet synchronous motor for EV are deeply studied in this paper, the effectiveness of reducing the vibration by optimizing the vibro-inertance (acceleration admittance) of the stator system is validated. Firstly, the theory of the vibro-inertance matrix of stator system with single-point excitation and multi-point response is proposed, and the mathematical theory model of vibro-inertance matrix of prototype motor stator system is established. Secondly, a new method of 3D finite element method (FEM) be used to simulate and analysis the vibro-inertance's characteristics for the prototype's stator system. Then, the correctness of the theory and the FEM simulation is verified by the prototype source-path-contribution (SPC) experiment. And it is found that near some non-natural frequencies with large vibro-inertance amplitudes, although the amplitude of operating force is relatively small at these frequencies, the prototype still produces large vibrations. Finally, three methods for optimizing the vibro-inertance matrix of the stator system are further studied. These methods can effectively shift the inertance frequency band of the stator system and change the average value of the inertance's amplitude of the motor stator system in different frequency bands, thereby changing the vibration characteristics of the whole motor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A hybrid analytical and lumped-parameter thermal model is proposed in this paper to estimate the transient and steady-state two- and three-dimensional (2/3-D) spatial magnet temperature distributions for an interior permanent magnet synchronous machine (IPMSM). On the basis of a lumped-parameter thermal model (LPTM), the magnet analytical thermal models (ATMs) are synergized to establish the hybrid thermal model. By utilizing the transient or steady-state boundary conditions calculated by the LPTM, the ATMs are obtained by solving the heat conduction equations to estimate the spatial magnet temperature distributions in the 2-D horizontal-vertical and axial-vertical planes, which can also be extended to the 3-D temperature distribution by utilizing the multi-slice method. Meanwhile, the non-uniform magnet eddy current loss is also considered. Finally, both electromagnetic-thermal coupled finite element analysis method and experiments are used for verification based on a totally enclosed IPMSM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the influence of stator/rotor pole number combinations and permanent magnet (PM) numbers on electromagnetic performance of consequent-pole hybrid excited flux reversal machines (CP-HEFRMs), which have different numbers of PM poles and iron poles and concentrated AC and DC windings on the stator and a salient pole rotor. PMs in the slots of one stator pole are magnetized radially in the same direction, while opposite on adjacent stator poles. Magnetic field paths of DC, PM, and hybrid excitations are investigated. The phenomenon of flux cancellation, i.e., PM and DC MMFs in CP-HEFRMs are of opposite polarities in the flux-enhancing operating mode, is revealed and verified, for the first time, as the key feature that makes CP-HEFRMs different from other hybrid excited machines. Consequently, the saturation in stator pole and yoke can be mitigated and hence the overload capability of DC excitation is enhanced, which is verified by finite element analysis (FEA). Global optimizations are utilized to obtain the optimal rotor and stator pole number combinations and PM numbers for each stator pole. Torque, torque ripple, inductance, unbalanced magnetic force, and flux regulation capability are compared for different PM numbers and rotor pole numbers. Comparisons are made on consequent-pole and non-consequent-pole topologies in terms of torque capacity, flux regulation capability, and PM consumption to further illustrate the advantages of consequent-pole topology. A prototype machine is built and tested to validate the analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the influence of cogging torque and unbalanced radial magnetic forces on vibrations and acoustic noise properties in concentric magnetic gears. The study involves three physical demonstrators, each with unique properties that make them interesting study cases. The first magnetic gear have pronounced cogging torque due to the pole and segment combination. In the second magnetic gear very low cogging torque is obtained by choosing an odd number of segments, but at the expense of unbalanced radial magnetic forces. The fact that these two magnetic gears are designed to identical specifications and into the same system makes this study unique, as this yields a direct and very clear comparison of the influence of cogging torque and unbalance radial forces. The third gear is designed with a pole and segment combination that has a good balance between minimizing cogging torque and avoiding unbalanced radial forces. Acoustic and vibrational signatures are presented and the characteristics are discussed in each case. It is shown that both cogging torque and unbalanced radial forces in concentric magnetic gears dominate both acoustic and vibrational properties and it is shown how it makes the magnetic gears very sensitive to the eigenfrequencies of the system. Even though cogging torque and unbalanced radial forces are dominant, it is also shown how other excitation mechanisms such as eccentricity, segment passing frequency and pole passing frequency are clearly visible in the acoustic and vibrational signatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a hybrid approach is proposed to detect the broken rotor bar and rotor mixed eccentricity faults of three-phase squirrel cage induction motors based on one phase of the stator current signal. The hybrid method is based on a combination of discrete wavelet transform (DWT), Teager–Kaiser energy operator (TKEO) and power spectral density (PSD). At the first stage, DWT is applied on the stator current signal; then TKEO is applied on some of the DWT detail coefficients and finally PSD is used to extract the required feature to detect the aforementioned faults. The proposed method is tested on an experimental test-rig having a 1.5 kW induction motor under various load conditions and three different power supplies: 1) directly supplied by power grid; 2) supplied by a drive system based on scalar control technique; and 3) supplied by a drive system based on direct torque control (DTC) technique. The results show the efficacy of the proposed method in accurate detection of the broken rotor bar and rotor mixed eccentricity faults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interturn field windings faults are quite common in synchronous machines, particularly in turbogenerators. The synchronous machine can operate with a certain interturn fault severity level. This paper presents a new field winding interturn fault severity estimation method based on machine learning regression algorithms. The theoretical excitation current is estimated by artificial intelligent. For this purpose, it is necessary the use of numerous healthy operational data to train the algorithm. Afterward, the algorithm estimates the field current, which is compared to the real current measured. The fault severity level is calculated from this comparison. The use of machine learning implies an improvement on the sensitivity to previous method based on the estimation of the theoretical excitation current by traditional synchronous machines models as Potier or ASA. The measurement errors increase the minimum fault severity level that can be detected. The proposed algorithm has been verified with more than 1800 experimental results in a special laboratory synchronous machine, obtaining a better estimation on the fault severity level than traditional methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lumped-parameter thermal models (LPTMs) have been widely used to estimate critical temperatures in permanent magnet synchronous machines (PMSMs). However, in some cases, they may be incapable of predicting the hotspots and even cause temperature misestimation. In this paper, the synergized lumped-parameter and sub-domain thermal models are proposed for surface-mounted PMSMs to track the hotspots in the most vulnerable components, i.e., active/end-windings and rotor magnet. Firstly, the “T-type” elementary network based LPTM is developed to predict the average temperatures in main components and the boundary conditions. Secondly, the boundary conditions are applied to three sub-domain thermal models for the active/end-windings and the rotor magnet to predict the respective hotspots and to further correct the misestimated average temperatures. Finally, the proposed synergized thermal model is verified by the experiments on a prototype surface-mounted PMSM under various load conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, an interior permanent magnet (IPM) machine is presented and optimized for heavy-duty vehicle direct-drive applications. Since efficiency decrease and serious heating come along with excessive core loss under flux weakening control, a rotor topology with the combination of the eccentricity structure and magnetic barriers is proposed. The key is to achieve the comprehensive optimization of the proposed rotor topology to satisfy the different requirements under diverse operating points. Then, a multi-objective automatic parallel optimization method is applied, which simultaneously analyzes multi-condition operation without weight coefficients defined artificially. The 3D Pareto solution set is generated by using nature inspired evolutionary algorithm based on the high-precision metal-modals of optimal prognosis, which reduce the needed computation cost significantly. Moreover, the back electromotive force total harmonic distortion, torque and core loss of the optimal machine are analyzed at corresponding operating points. Finally, the finite-element results are validated by experiments based on a prototype machine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To meet the new international efficiency (IE) standards, line-start (LS) synchronous reluctance motors (SyRMs) are now being considered. Conventional star and delta windings are usually employed in LS SyRMs. However, combined star-delta winding has higher winding factor and lower magneto-motive force (mmf) harmonics compared to conventional star and delta windings. Hence, in this paper, LS SyRM and LS ferrite assisted SyRM with star and star-delta winding are analyzed and their performance indices are compared. A winding function analysis is used for the design of star and star-delta windings. Further, the effect of zero sequence current on the performance of the motors under comparison is presented in detail. Star and star-delta winding prototype LS SyRMs with and without ferrite magnets in the rotor are fabricated. Experimental studies are carried-out on these prototypes and the results are presented which are in close agreement with the simulation results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electromagnetic structure of the resolvers makes them excellent for difficult applications. Among them, axial flux resolvers show better performance against mechanical faults. However, a complicated resolver-to-digital converter (RDC) overshadows the whole system's reliability. Both of the conventional software and hardware decoding methods suffer from deficiencies, such as difficulty to implement, poor performance against electromagnetic noise, expensive equipment, etc. To overcome these challenges any easy-to-implement software-based RDC is suggested in this paper that is used for rotational forth-and-back motions. In fact, instead of the conventional arc-tangent method to extract the position information from sine (SIN) and cosine (COS) signals, three transfer functions are proposed to estimate the position. Tylor's series are used to linearize the transfer functions over the zero position and a transfer function with minimum linearization error over the whole region is selected as opt one. The design process of axial flux resolvers is presented as well. 3-D time-stepping finite element method (FEM) is used to verify the success of the proposed analytical calculations. Finally, prototypes of the different configurations are tested for experimental measurements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transverse flux PM generator (TFPMG) is a capable option for direct-drive wind turbine (DDWT) applications due to its high-power characteristics at low speeds. NdFeB-based TFPMGs may suffer from a higher total cost and lower thermal capabilities compared to the ferrite-based TFPMGs. Not yet covered in the existing literature, in this paper a transverse flux ferrite PM generator (TFFPMG) is proposed, designed, and modeled, which can also resolve the unipolar flux generation and even-order harmonics in the flux linkage of the conventional TFPMGs that occurred in conventional TFPMGs through its innovative two-segment trapezoidal shape magnet structure. Due to the 3-D flux path nature in the proposed TFFPMG, either 3-D finite element analysis (FEA) or 3-D magnetic equivalent circuit (MEC) modeling should be used. As a computationally efficient modeling method, a nonlinear 3-D MEC is established to model the entire structure of the TFFPMG while the core saturation and nonlinear permeances are also fully considered to improve the modeling accuracy. The electromagnetic performance of the proposed TFFPMG modeled by 3-D MEC in various loading conditions is validated by both 3-D FEA and experimental results using a 2.5 kW TFFPMG. A close agreement between 3-D MEC modeling predictions, 3-D FEA, and test results confirms the reliability of the MEC modeling for the proposed TFFPMG. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a dual-rotor slotless axial-flux permanent magnet (AFPM) motor with equidirectional toroidal winding (ED-TW) is proposed and compared with the AFPM motor with traditional toroidal winding (T-TW) with the same dimensions, number of coils and poles. Different from the T-TW, only the positive sides of coils of the ED-TW are left on one side of the stator core, the return sides of the coils are all removed to the other side of the stator core. Firstly, the structure and operation principle of the two motors are introduced and analyzed. To clarify the features of the ED-TW, the synthetic electromotive force (EMF) vector and armature reaction field of the ED-TW and T-TW are studied. Secondly, the main size equations of the AFPM motors with toroidal windings are presented. Subsequently, the electromagnetic characteristics of the AFPM motors with ED-TW and T-TW are analyzed and compared based on the three-dimensional finite element method (3D-FEM). The comparison results indicate that the AFPM motor with ED-TW has superiority in torque density and efficiency. Finally, a prototype of the AFPM motor with ED-TW is manufactured and tested, which validates the feasibility of the proposed motor and the correctness of the analysis of the 3D-FEM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Consequent-pole (CP) permanent magnet (PM) configuration suffers asymmetric electromagnetic characteristics although it saves PM usage. The CP-based stator-PM synchronous machines are investigated in this paper, with particular reference to symmetrical issues. The electromagnetic performances of the CP-based stator-PM synchronous machines are firstly evaluated. Afterwards, the rule of even order harmonics cancellation is presented for different slot/pole number combinations and winding layouts, based on which symmetrical phase flux-linkages can be obtained although the unbalanced magnetic flux naturally occurs. Moreover, based on the three-dimensional finite element analysis, the unipolar end leakage-flux caused by the asymmetric magnetic field is identified, and the risk of the shaft magnetization is revealed. Finally, a pair of prototype machines are fabricated and measured to validate the analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The convective heat transfer characteristics of end-winding for a 10 kW external rotor PMSM with open end cap are studied in this paper. A coupling iterative method of CFD and thermal network (TN) is proposed to solve the motor temperatures and convective heat transfer coefficients (CHTC). The variation laws of the CHTCs and heat dissipation proportions of 10 kW motor walls with speed are analyzed. The heat dissipation capacities of the end-winding for motors with open and closed end cap are compared. Based on the CFD results, a fitting formula of end-winding CHTC for external rotor motor with open end cap is constructed, in which the Nusselt number is calculated by the dimensionless parameters composed of the geometric features of the open end cap. The validities of the proposed coupling iterative method and the fitting formula are verified by the temperature rise experiment of the 10 kW prototype. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper proposes a rotor speed observer for sensorless voltage and frequency control of a standalone doubly fed induction generator (DFIG) system. The proposed speed estimator is designed based on the sliding mode observer (SMO) technique, which makes the estimation algorithm robust under parametric variations and external disturbances. The position of the rotor is computed directly by the integration of the estimated speed by the designed observer. The proposed observer requires the measurements of stator voltage and current to estimate the speed. The design procedure of the observer does not require the mechanical parameters of the DFIG, which makes the observer design independent of the mechanical parameters. Lyapunov stability criteria are used to formulate the sliding gains for the observer. Simulation and experimental results are demonstrated to show the efficacy of the designed observer in terms of accuracy and convergence rate under different steady-state and dynamic conditions. The estimated rotor speed and position are utilized for controlling the magnitude of the stator voltage of a standalone DFIG system, which validates the performance of the observer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an analytical approach to determine the air-gap magnetic field and the winding inductance in the brushless doubly-fed reluctance machine (BDFRM) with flux barriers. By dividing one flux guide layer into several segments, a calculus method based on magnetic circuit analysis is developed and specific analytical expression of the air-gap flux density is rigorously derived. Then, the included angle between fundamental components with the same pole pairs is also discussed. Based on the air-gap flux density distribution, the inductance expressions between different windings are also presented. Three kinds of finite element analysis models are established and studied. As a result, the accuracy of the analytical model can be verified by simulations and experimental data from an existing BDFRM prototype. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presentsan investigation of a 3D-magnetic flux permanent magnet synchronous motor (3D-MF PMSM) used for electric vehicle applications. The investigated 3D-MF PMSM consists of an integrated radial-flux and axial-flux structure. It has two radial-flux air-gaps and two axial-flux air-gaps, as well as a toroidal winding wound stator. The integrated structure helps to concentrate all the flux within the motor to maximize torque production. Moreover, there are no end-windings in this motor and all the stator windings effectively are used in torque production. A comprehensive performance evaluation, in terms of the back-electromotive force, average output torque, cogging torque, torque ripple, flux-weakening capability, etc., of the investigated 3D-MF PMSM is conducted. An interior PMSM is purposely included as a benchmark for comparison. The results show that compared to the benchmark interior PMSM, the original 3D-MF PMSM exhibits significantly improved torque density, higher power factor, and higher efficiency, but suffers from serious cogging torque and torque ripple. Accordingly, a skewed arrangement is introduced to the 3D-MF PMSM. As a result, the cogging torque and torque ripple are significantly reduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Asymmetric interior permanent magnet (AIPM) rotor topologies can achieve torque enhancement in IPM synchronous machines without the increase of PM usage due to utilizing magnetic-field-shifting (MFS) effect by reducing the current angle difference between maximum PM and reluctance torque components. This paper investigates the influence of armature reaction on MFS effect in AIPM machines. A general model of IPM machines considering MFS effect is analytically developed and the AIPM and IPM machines using the same stator, rotor diameter and total PM amount are comparatively studied. It shows that the armature reaction affects the MFS effect in both AIPM and IPM machines and the influence is more significant in AIPM machine. The relationships between MFS effects in PM flux-linkage and inductance characteristics and current angles for maximum PM and reluctance torque components are revealed. It confirms that the change of current angles of torque components is due to the MFS effect in PM flux-linkage and inductance characteristics in both AIPM and IPM machines. Besides, the developed machine model considering MFS effect is verified by finite element analysis. Finally, a small-scale AIPM machine prototype is fabricated and measured to validate the finite element analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a finite-control-set model predictive direct torque control (FCS-MPDTC) method is proposed to reduce the torque ripple of a segmented switched reluctance motor (SSRM) at the low-speed stage. Firstly, the prediction dynamic model is established, and the phase torque can be predicted by detecting phase current and rotor position signals. Then, the principle of power converter and selection of voltage vectors are introduced and presented. Considering torque ripple reduction, flux tracking performance and copper losses reduction, the cost function with phase torque, the amplitude of flux linkage and phase current, is established to select optimal voltage vector to control the power converter. In addition, the torque sharing function (TSF) is employed to distribute total torque to phase torque for further torque ripple reduction. Finally, the direct torque control (DTC) is selected as the comparison method, performance of MPDTC is verified by simulation and experiment results. It can be found that the proposed MPDTC can achieve lower torque ripple and copper losses, and high robustness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the variable speed applications of a recently developed generator named Brushless Induction Excited Synchronous Generator (BINSYG) for offshore wind power applications. The machine is basically a Synchronous generator (SG) with its excitation fed from a three-phase Induction Machine (IM). Both the machines are embedded in the same machine frame and share the same magnetic core. The SG feeds power to the dc grid via a five-level Unidirectional Dual Flying Capacitor Active Neutral Point Converter. The converter is controlled such that the Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) of the current flowing through the stator of SG is below 5% and at unity power factor at SG terminal. The excitation developed by IM-type exciter is adjusted using a new control strategy that is proposed for Voltage Source Inverter, such that BINSYG can operate at wide speed range necessary for Wind Energy Systems (WES). The complete system is controlled without using ac voltage sensors and speed encoders. The proposed WES with its control algorithm is first modelled in MATLAB/Simulink. Further, rapid control prototyping verification in the form of real-time results using OPAL-RT is presented for a small scale (5.5 kVA) BINSYG feeding power to a 750 V dc grid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a dual-hysteresis band control method for multi-drive systems based on a nine-switch inverter. The drive system contains two independent three-phase induction motors fed by a nine-switch inverter. Independent control of torque, speed, and stator current of two load stages is achieved. The proposed strategy offers a reliable control operation of both induction machines under individual load profiles. Instead of using independent sets of three-phase voltage source converters, the nine-switch inverter is used to drive separate machines. Thus, the volume and size of the power stage are noticeably reduced due to the use of fewer semiconductors. The theoretical concept and design steps of the proposed method are presented. The performance of the closed-loop independent motor control scheme is experimentally validated using a 3.2 kW lab-scaled nine-switch inverter prototype and Altera Cyclone IV Field-programmable gate array. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To solve theproblems of an insufficient braking moment for the eddy current retarder at high speed, a small braking moment and slow response of the hydraulic retarder at low speed, and a low power density of the existing electromagnetic hydraulic retarder(EHR), a novel radially distributed electromagnetic-hydraulic retarder(R-EHR) was proposed. The R-EHR fully absorbs the advantages of the braking characteristics of hydraulic retarders and eddy current retarders. The cooling fluid is used to realize the braking of the hydraulic part. At the same time, it acts on the heating surfaces to improve the torque of the electromagnetic part. In this paper, finite element models of the flow field and electromagnetic field are established to predict braking performance. The braking performance of the R-EHR is obtained by bench test, the error between the simulation and experimental data is compared, and the experimental data are analyzed. The results show that the proportion of electromagnetic braking torque in the novel R-EHR is more reasonable. The braking torque increased by 26% and the power density increased by 37.5% at 2000 RPM compared to that of the EHR. The R-EHR can control the braking torque only by adjusting the current, thus simplifying the control system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A comparative study of new partitioned stator hybrid excitation axial flux switching permanent magnet (HEAFSPM) motors with different partitioned excitation stator topologies for in-wheel traction applications is presented in this paper. The realization approaches of the partitioned stator HEAFSPM motor are discussed, and the motor topology with windings and permanent magnets (PMs) separately setting on different stators is selected in view of the advantageous structure for thermal management. On this basis, two partitioned excitation stator topologies including C-type tooth core and T-type tooth core stator configuration are proposed, and the air-gap flux modulation and flux regulation principle of the motors are analyzed. In addition, the design method of the partitioned stator HEAFSPM motor considering the effect of hybrid excitation sources is provided, and the two motors with different tooth cores are designed respectively. Meanwhile, for a fair comparison, the multiple objectives optimization method coupled with the sensitivity analysis is employed to optimize the two motors. The electromagnetic performances, anti-demagnetization capability, and flux regulation performance of the two motors are all investigated in detail. Finally, two prototype motors are fabricated and tested. Both the theoretical analysis and experimental results verify the effectiveness and reasonability of the motor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Special attention has been paid to two-phase switched reluctance motors (SRMs) as they have fewer power electronics components compared to three- or multi-phase ones. However, their main drawbacks are the lack of starting torque and a predetermined direction of rotation. This paper proposes a new self-starting technique for two-phase SRMs, which has superiorities over the previous approaches. In the proposed topology, the flux paths are shorter, and thus the required magnetomotive force is smaller, which reduces losses. The design procedure is explained. Two- and three-dimensional finite element method (FEM) is employed in the analysis. Also, the motor is prototyped, and two test setups for torque-angle measurement and control study are used. The dynamic behavior of the motor is studied applying single-pulse control and current hysteresis control strategies. The experimental results confirm the results obtained by FEM. Both simulation and experiment results confirm that the proposed topology offers higher efficiency, higher mean torque, and better dynamic behavior compared to two conventional SRMs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, consideration from the viewpoint of the dq-axis current vector locus is reported on the clues for improving the output of wound-field motor utilizing space harmonic for field excitation. It is experimentally verified by visualizing the vector locus on the dq coordinates. First, voltage equation will be explained, and then the offline parameter estimation will be discussed. Then, visualization of the voltage-limit ellipse and vector locus will reveal clues for performance improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A modified configuration for Permanent Magnet Assisted Synchronous Reluctance Motors (PMaSyRM) is studied in this paper. Conventionally, the PM materials are inserted in the flux barriers region of the rotor. Consequently, the PMs sizing parameters will be restricted to the available space that may limit the efficient use of PMs benefits. In this study, a portion of the rotor structure is replaced with an Interior PM (IPM) rotor so that an axially segmented integration of IPM and SyRM is obtained. Thus, the PMs design is performed specifically in the IPM segment independent of the SyRM scheme, while the SyRM segment remains PM-less. The main motivation of this concept is to improve the contribution of the PM material in the total torque as well as utilizing the special property of the proposed rotor configuration for pulsating torque reduction. A computationally cost-effective algorithm is proposed for the optimal design of IPM-SyRM motor by which a low-power design is carried out for a lightweight electric vehicle. The results for torque profile characteristics, PM volume, power-factor, and efficiency are compared with a conventional PMaSyRM that has been optimally designed as the reference case. Finally, a prototype is constructed to verify the theoretical analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a novel six-phase outer rotor induction motor equipped with pseudo-concentrated windings is introduced as a robust, reliable, and low-cost solution. Multiple aspects of the proposed motor structure have been investigated such as a design algorithm and an analytical modeling based on the modified winding function considering the skew effect. The effect of using variable number of turns for the coils has been examined on the pseudo-concentrated windings. An appropriate optimization problem has been also defined to maximize the power factor and efficiency and to minimize the output torque ripple. The designed motor has been fabricated to verify the accuracy of the design procedure with an analytical model and a finite element analysis. Experimental results show superior performances for the designed motor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rotor fault is a condition that may occur in induction motors due to high forces and stresses on rotor bars or end rings. When this occurs, the machine may lead to a forced outage in production lines. Several methods have been proposed in the literature for the detection of rotor faults; however, they cannot work under variable frequency conditions, and they are very sensitive to mechanical load oscillations. This paper presents a novel frequency normalization methodology for reliable rotor defect diagnosis in variable-frequency drive-fed systems. The normalization is implemented by demodulating the stator current signal with a time-variant factor. As a result, the fundamental component of the stator current is normalized in a constant frequency value, whereas avoiding spectral leakage and frequency smearing. This enables the transient stator current signature analysis to accurately locate targeted fault signatures. The effectiveness of the proposed frequency normalization approach is demonstrated by analyzing the stator current of motors under non-stationary conditions. Experimental results show that the proposed methodology can detect and distinguish between load oscillations and rotor fault signatures for avoiding false rotor fault alarms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a new position sensorless method for switched reluctance motor (SRM) drive control based on a sliding mode observer using nonlinear Fourier flux linkage model. First, to obtain an accurate mathematical model of SRM for establishment of sliding mode position observer (SMPO), an analytical method based on Fourier polynomial function is introduced to regress the nonlinear relationship between flux linkage, position and current. Then, a new SMPO is designed in detail to estimate the rotor position, including the establishment of SRM model of sliding mode observer, and analysis of estimation error and convergence conditions of SMPO. Finally, position sensorless control of SRM drive based on SMPO is carried out in terms of accuracy and robustness in simulation. Experiments are also given on a dynamic testing platform to verify the effectiveness of the proposed position sensorless scheme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The torque ripple of a switched reluctance motor (SRM) should be taken into account, as it can have negative effects on a connected gearbox and/or load. In this paper a concept and two realization methods for the reduction of the torque ripple are presented. An optimized alignment of the active elements of the stator leads to a reduction of this torque ripple. The first method proposed here is a four-fold segmented motor, which can reduce the torque ripple by 37.3 %. This can be achieved by segmentation in combination with a clever arrangement of active elements. However, this increases the number of necessary inverters, which increases redundancy and therefore leads to more security. A second method of achieving an equal reduction can be obtained by using a “double stator” motor. In this configuration both stators can be powered together. With this concept, the number of converters is halved compared to the first mentioned solution. This saves electronic components and thus reduces the effort. All results referred to in this article are obtained by simulation, or measured on a prototype. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a circulating-current-excited switched reluctance generator system with the diode rectifier is comparatively studied with a field-current-separated switched reluctance generator. By using a DC power source connected in series with the winding to provide the circulating current, a controllable excitation field is established in the proposed generator. To highlight the influence of this DC voltage source, the injected field current of the field-current-separated generator is kept the same as the circulating current of the circulating-current-excited generator. Then, both advantages and disadvantages of the generators are summarized. The circulating-current-excited switched reluctance generator system inherits both the advantages of good reliability of the separated-winding generator by using the diode rectifier and low copper loss of the integrated-winding machine by combining the AC and DC current in one set of windings. Furthermore, two more practically conventional field-current-separated generators are also compared with the proposed generator in terms of the external characteristics. These two conventional generators have different winding configurations. At last, the analysis is verified by experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motor current signature analysis (MCSA) has been widely used for fault diagnosis of induction motors (IMs) because of its non-invasiveness and comparatively low cost. However, the spectral leakage of the fundamental supply frequency can obscure the fault characteristic component when IMs operating at no-load or low-load conditions. In this paper, a broken rotor bar (BRB) fault diagnosis approach based on the third-order energy operator (TOEO) demodulated current signals is presented. The TOEO approach performs effectively in reducing the negative impact of the fundamental supply frequency spectral leakage and enhancing the BRB fault features. Theoretical and experimental results show that the TOEO approach can excellently reveal the fault characteristic frequency, instead of the sideband frequencies. Besides, the results are compared with the Teager-Kaiser energy operator (TKEO). The capability of the presented approach has several advantages over the TKEO, especially when the IMs are fed by an inverter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a novel analytical model which combines subdomain method and magnetic equivalent circuit (MEC) method to predict the no-load performance of V-shape interior permanent magnet (IPM) motors with any slot-pole combination considering the nonlinearity of magnetic bridges (MBs). The V-shape magnets are equivalent to the form of distribution along radial and tangential directions, and the motor is divided into two corresponding structures to facilitate the establishment of subdomains. To consider the saturation of MBs, the MEC method are employed to obtain the permeability of MBs to establish the boundary conditions. The no-load magnetic field of slotless motor can be obtained by solving the equations established by boundary conditions, and the conformal mapping is used to consider the effect of slotting. The proposed model can be used to calculate the no-load magnetic field, back electromotive force, and cogging torque of IPM motor. The results are verified by finite element analysis (FEA) and experiments, which confirms the validity of the model for facilitating the motor design and optimization. Compared with FEA, the proposed method has the advantages of faster modeling, shorter time consuming and meanwhile achieves the approximate accuracy. In addition, U-shape motors with MBs can also be analyzed by this model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a new sensorless control strategy with the fault-tolerant ability for switched reluctance motors (SRMs). Nowadays, many rotor position detection methods are utilized, but most of them increase the system cost due to the additional hardware or complex calculations. To address this problem, various methods of using phase inductance to estimate the rotor position and speed have been proposed. However, the traditional inductance detection method will cause signal distortion due to the presence of interference signals and the unbalanced phase inductance. In particular, the turn-ON angle is advanced. To further improve the stability of the control system, the interference signals are eliminated via establishing the reference time of the inductance characteristic point and the error band in this work. When the position signal disappears, the inductance characteristic points of adjacent phases will be adopted for signal compensation to realize fault-tolerant control. Finally, an SRM drive system is used to verify the effectiveness of the proposed control strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Position estimation error caused by the cross-saturation effect seriously affects the performance of signal injection based sensorless control, especially for the surface permanent-magnet synchronous motor (SPMSM) with load. In this paper, a position estimation error compensation method is proposed to improve the accuracy and stability of sensorless control for a dual three-phaseSPMSM. Based on the space vector signal injection, the initial position is obtained by the demodulation of high-frequency current response. By analyzing the relationship between the stator flux and stator current, the optimal compensation angle can be achieved. The position estimation error can be dynamically compensated under load conditions with the combination of initial position and compensation angle. Due to the convergence of compensation angle, the compensation process has weak dependence on prior knowledge of the motor. Simulation and experimental results are presented to validate the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flux linkage estimation based on the voltage model has been widely employed in surface-mounted permanent magnet synchronous machine (SPMSM) sensorless drives due to its simple implementation. To deal with dc-offset and dc-drift problems, the pure integrator is modified as a programmable low pass filter (LPF)in practice. However, the estimation accuracy of the rotor position is affected by the adopted filter. Although the position deviation is compensated in steady-state based on the frequency characteristics of the filter, the compensation effect deteriorates during a dynamic process which severely degrades the sensorless control performance. In order to effectively tackle this problem, a novel compensation strategy based on the linear extended state observer (LESO) is proposed in this paper. With the constructed LESO in the estimated synchronous rotating reference frame, the position estimation error can be detected and compensated both in the steady and dynamic state. Moreover, the observer is enhanced to improve the estimation accuracy in linear acceleration and deceleration. Finally, the feasibility of the proposed method is verified under various operating conditions with a 5.5 kW SPMSM drive system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposed a hybrid subdomain model (HSM) for calculating the magnetic field distribution of interior permanent-magnet (IPM) machine accounting for slotting effect, rotor saliency, and iron nonlinearity. In the constant permeability region, i.e., slots, slot-opening, and air-gap, three subdomains are introduced to represent their magnetic field. By applying the subdomains interface conditions and nonlinear boundary conditions, the analytical air-gap field solution can be obtained based on the governing Laplace and Poisson equation. For the iron region, the magnetic reluctance network (MRN) is proposed to account for rotor saliency iron and nonlinearity. The magnetic voltage source is introduced to represent the permanent-magnet (PM) while the air-gap flux source is used to replace the air-gap reluctance network, which is the key to guarantee the computational efficiency and high accuracy. The electromagnetic performances of both flat-shaped and V-shaped IPM machines are investigated to show the advantages of different IPM machine topologies analytically. The HSM predictions for both IPM machines are validated by finite-element (FE) analysis and experimental results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is recognized that the rotor with shielding cylinder (SC) is one of the effective measures to restrain the rotor eddy current loss (RECL) for high-speed surface-mounted permanent magnet synchronous motors (PMSMs). At present, the RECL of PMSMs with multilayer composite rotor structure is mainly analyzed by the finite element method (FEM), which has obvious shortcomings in time-consumption and the mesh generation of thin SC. In this paper, a multi-layer subdomain analytical model for calculating the RECL of high-speed PMSMs with both non-ferromagnetic retaining sleeve and SC is proposed by taking the effects of eddy current reaction, stator slotting and current harmonics into account. Moreover, the 3-D distribution coefficient of eddy current in the SC is derived by the equivalent impedance method and the effects of temperature on the conductivity of the SC and RECL are obtained through equivalent thermal network (ETN) model. Based on the analytical model, the SC parameters are calculated to obtain the variation ranges when the RECL is minimum. Finally, the C-shape core experiment was built up to verify the correctness of the multilayer analytical model under different shielding layer conductivities and thicknesses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]