Comparative Study of Permanent Magnet Assisted Linear Switched Reluctance Motor and Linear Flux Switching Permanent Magnet Motor for Railway Transportation

Linear switched reluctance motor (LSRM) has been investigated and supposed as a good candidate in railway system. Recently, permanent magnet assisted switched reluctance motor (PMA-SRM) has attracted extensive attention because of the high torque, robust structure and low cost. However, all these researches focus on the application of small air gaps. How does PMA-SRM perform in large air gap? No research has been conducted until now. As we know, there are many similarities between linear flux switching permanent magnet (LFSPM) motor and permanent magnet assisted linear switched reluctance motor (PMA-LSRM) such as similar primary iron, winding structure, robust secondary and a small amount of permanent magnets. In this case, what are the similarities and differences between these two kinds of motors in terms of electromagnetic characteristics? This paper will compare these two kinds of motors based on the volume of rail transit from the following aspects: thrust force, thrust ripple, efficiency. First, the topology, operation principle of the two LSRMs are introduced and designed. Then, the electromagnetic performance of LSRM is optimized through two dimensional finite element analysis (FEA) based on ANSYS software. The optimization objectives of PMA-LSRM are to maximize the thrust and to minimize the ripple at the given dimensions and the rated condition. The comparison of electromagnetic characteristics between LFSPM motor and PMA-LSRM is completed. Finally, it is concluded that the permanent magnets are not conducive to improving the power of LSRM. And the PMA-LSRM is not outstanding compared with LFSPM motor under the condition of large air gap for rail transit.