Steady-state time-periodic finite element analysis of a brushless DC motor drive considering motion

This paper aims at providing a framework for comprehensive steady-state time-domain analysis of rotating machines considering motion. The steady-state waveforms of electromagnetic and circuit quantities are computed via iterative solution of the nonlinear field-circuit-and-motion problem with constraints of time periodicity. The cases with forced speed and forced load torque are considered. A comparison of execution times with a conventional time-stepping transient model is carried out for two different machines. The numerical stability of a time-periodic model with forced speed is shown to be worse than that of traditional transient time-stepping one, although the model converges within a reasonable number of iterations. This is not the case if forced load via equation of mechanical balance is accounted for. To ensure convergence of the iterative process the physical equation of motion is replaced by the fixed-point equation. In this way the model delivers time-periodic solutions regarding not only the electromagnetic quantities but also the rotational speed.