Analytical calculation and finite element evaluation of electromagnetic leakage field distribution in surface-mounted permanent magnet synchronous motors taking the rotor eccentricity effect into account

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present an analytical calculation for estimating the leakages field distribution in surface-mounted permanent magnet synchronous motors (SMPMSMs) according to a sub-domain field model for eccentricity fault detection.Design/methodology/approachThe magnetic field domain is classified into four sub-domains of PMs, air gap, stator core and outer region. In the proposed method, the governing equations taking the rotor eccentricity effect into account per region and the interface boundary conditions between sub-domains are formulated using the regular perturbation technique, Taylor series and Fourier series expansion. Maxwell's equations are solved in different regions in the polar coordinate system regarding the boundary conditions.FindingsThe radial and tangential components of electromagnetic field distribution in all sub-domains of one SMPMSM are obtained using the proposed method analytically. Finite element analysis is used to validate the results of the proposed method; the results indicated that the analytical model matches the finite-element prediction up to 30% eccentricity, except for some peak values that depend on the harmonic order value. The results of this paper demonstrated that in the event of eccentricity, an asymmetric magnetic field is generated in the outer region of the machine. Although its amplitude is small, it can be an indicator for detecting eccentricity faults from the outside environment of the machine.Originality/valueThe formulas presented in this paper can be applied as a new technique for detecting eccentricity faults in these motors from the outside environment.