Switched Reluctance Motor

This application analyses a simple switched reluctance motor using two different methods: the MagNet Transient 2D with Motion solver, and a circuit simulator with the ActuatorWizard. The device is set up so that the coils are switched depending on the position of the rotor. The analysis starts with the rotor stationary and at 10 degrees from the aligned position. A voltage source is switched on at t=0.01 seconds, the rotor gradually accelerates, with the applied voltage switched between the coils every 30 degrees of rotor rotation.


Results

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This graph shows the current in the first pair of coils (one at 45 degrees and the other at 225 degrees) as a function of time. The results from the Transient 2d with motion (black trace) compares well with the circuit simulator's output (red trace), in particular since that the switching time depends on position.

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A plot of the response surface model for torque created by the ActuatorWizard and used by the circuit simulator. The periodic option in the actuator wizard was specified, so that position values outside the range shown (0 to 30 degrees) are calculated using symmetry. A total of 120 Magnetostatic2d solutions were required to generate this model.

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The simulator's circuit which models the switched reluctance motor. Each pair of coils is represented by one "ActuatorLink" component. Both components point to the same RSM file, but the initial position of the rotor of the second is displaced 90 degrees from the first, to account for the relative position of the rotor with respect to each coil pair.