LATERAL FORCES IN LINEAR RELUCTANCE MOTORS

Abstract

ABSTRACT Linear reluctance motors (LRMs) are proposed to provide traction and lift force to magnetically-suspended vehicles for urban advanced transport systems. LRMs are similar to Linear Synchronous motors except that there is no dc field excitation. The steady-state and dynamic performance of LRMs has been the subject of several technical publications, however lateral forces has not been reported earlier. In this paper the lateral forces in an LRM with a segmental rotor is studied. These forces are created when the stator and rotor (or track) are shifted transversely from the symmetrical position. Static lateral forces on an LRM are predicted using an idealized model and was found to compare favorably to measured values. Lateral forces were found to increase until the transverse-displacement to stator-width ratio reaches 14.5% and drops thereafter. This ratio should not be exceeded if the benefit of the lateral restoring force is to be obtained. Experimental results are reported showing variation of la...