Influence of Pole and Slot Combination on Torque Characteristics and Radial Force of Fractional Slot Permanent Magnet Machines

Abstract

The fractional slot concentrated winding structure effectively solves the difficulty of low‐speed and high‐torque permanent magnet (PM) machines with a large number of poles and slots, but it also brings a wealth of magnetomotive force (MMF) harmonic. The winding function method is used to compare and analyze the stator MMF distribution and harmonic content of the fractional slot PM machines with different pole and slot combinations, and the cogging torque waveform and torque ripple are calculated by the finite element method. The influence of pole and slot combination on radial force and vibration modes of fractional slot PM machines is studied. The main vibration mode can be determined from the lowest order of radial force harmonics. The results show that in a fractional slot PM motor, the radial force is the main cause of noise and vibration, rather than the cogging torque and torque ripple. The dominant radial force is mainly produced by the interaction of rotor field harmonics and armature reaction field harmonics, and the vibration and noise will significantly increase with the decrease of the dominant vibration mode order, which largely depends on the pole and slot combination. This paper provides a certain reference for the selection of pole and slot combination in the electromagnetic design process of low speed high torque fractional slot PM motors. © 2021 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.