~

368 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS. VOL. 31, NO. 2, MARCWAPRIL 1995

Achieving a Constant Power Speed

Range for PM Drives
Gordon R. Slemon, Life Fellow, IEEE

Abstract-Flux weakening has long been a standard approach

in obtaining a constant power speed range for traction drives
with commutator motors. There is much current interest in using
permanent magnet (PM) commutator motors or, preferably,
electronically commutated PM motors for such applications.
Some PM motor designs, such as those using inset or buried mag-
nets, have been proposed to achieve flux weakening. This paper
questions the desirability of the flux weakening approach for a
number of applications where energy efficiency is of prime im-
portance, such as in electric vehicles. For an acceptable increase Fig. 1. Speed-torque range for traction drive.
in the rating of some of the semiconductor devices, standard
PM commutator motors and switched PM motors with surface-
mounted magnets can be used and a significant reduction in machines which are essentially hybrids, combining features of
power loss can be achieved.
both PM and reluctance motors. Usually, a component of the
supply current is used to weaken the motor flux while the other
I. INTRODUCTION component is used to provide torque [4].

M OST drives for electric automobiles, trains, buses, and This paper poses the question whether flux weakening is
off-road vehicles are designed to provide a constant the optimum approach to the achievement of a constant power
drive torque up to a base speed and then to provide torque range for some traction drives. Are there potential advantages,
which is inversely proportional to speed up to a maximum such as in the balance of such factors as capital cost, energy
speed [ 11. This constant power range of operation is dictated, efficiency, and operating distance range in using PM motors
not by the motor properties, but by the limitation of the energy in their natural constant flux mode and designing appropriate
supply system. The motor frame size is chosen to provide the switching and control systems?
maximum torque and the structure and bearings are designed In the following, several systems are examined. All are
to provide the maximum speed; given adequate supply power, discussed in relation to a traction drive with the following
the motor could provide both at the same time. By choosing quantities specified.
a base speed lower than maximum speed, a proportionally The drive is to operate at all conditions within the speed-
lower maximum supply power can be used with little loss in torque range shown in Fig. 1.
operating performance. Base speed W b rads,
Commutator motors have long been used for traction drives. Maximum speed w = y W b rads,
Normally, full field current is used up to the base speed. Then, Base torque T b N.m available up to W b , and
holding the armature current constant, the field is weakened in Direct supply voltage v b V.
inverse proportion to the speed to provide the constant power Derived from the above are the base quantities:
range. Base power P b = T b w b W and
In recent years, there has been considerable interest in em- Base current I b = P b / v b A.
ploying electronically-commutated permanent-magnet (PM)
Values of the constant-power speed ratio y are frequently in
motors for traction applications. Most PM motors tend to have
the range 2-4. For simplicity in the discussion to follow, the
essentially constant magnetic flux because of the properties
drive systems are initially assumed to be ideally efficient to
of modem magnet materials. For electronically-commutated
obtain approximate comparative device ratings. Some effects
drives, a number of motor structures and control means have
on losses are then discussed.
been proposed to provide for field weakening. Included, for
example, are the inset PM motor [2]-[4], and various forms
of buried-magnet PM motors [ 5 ] , [ 6 ] . These form a group of
11. WOUND-FIELDCOMMUTATOR MOTORDRIVE(WFCM)
Paper IPCSD 94-72, approved by the Electric Machines Committee of
the IEEE Industry Applications Society for presentation at the 1993 Industry As a basis for comparison, let us first consider a con-
Applications Society Annual Meeting, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, October 3-8. ventional wound-field commutator motor supplied by a two-
Manuscript released for publication September 9, 1994. quadrant chopper as shown in Fig. 2. For the constant torque
The author is with the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering,
University of Toronto, Toronto, M5S 1A4 Canada. range, the field current is set at a maximum value providing a
IEEE Log Number 9408 178. flux constant k, so that the generated voltage e, reaches the
0093-9994/95$04.00 0 1995 IEEE

Authorized licensed use limited to: INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY BOMBAY. Downloaded on March 28,2020 at 15:05:26 UTC from IEEE Xplore. Restrictions apply.
 SLEMON: ACHIEVING A CONSTANT POWER SPEED RANGE FOR PM DRIVES
DI
Fig. 2. Commutator motor drive with two-quadrant chopper.
base voltage vb at speed Wb. Then,
( 1)
The switching period T of the chopper is made sufficiently
small that the armature current i, is continuous and essentially
constant. For the drive mode up to speed W b , the ON time of
switch S1 is approximately
At speed W b , S1 is fully on and remains on for the speed range
up to w.For speeds greater than W b , the field current is reduced
to provide a motor flux constant,
Constant power P b is delivered by supplying base current I b
from the source voltage v b to the motor.
The rating of switching devices may be assumed to be
primarily dependent on their average current. For switch 5'1,
this average current has a maximum value I b when operating
in the speed range W b to w.For diode 0 1 , maximum average
current is also I b and occurs at zero speed.
Ideally, in the full braking mode, power P b is returned to
the supply for the speed range from w to W b , the armature
current I b being conducted through diode 0 2 . As speed is
further reduced, switch S 2 acts to maintain the motor current
at I,, and, near zero speed, the average current in switch s 2
approaches I b . At limiting torque, the power loss PL, in the
armature winding is constant over the whole speed range.
pLa= R,I; w. (4)
If the voltage drop in each semiconductor device is assumed
to have a constant value V d , the corresponding loss in the
chopper will be V d I b .
MOTORDRIVE(PMCM)
111. PM COMMUTATOR
Let us now consider a similar commutator motor but with
a permanent magnet field. Assuming the same rotor radius,
rotor length, air gap flux density, and armature surface current
density, the same base torque T b will be obtained. This motor
has no effective provision for control of its flux constant
k+. Let us design the armature winding so that its generated
voltage equals the source voltage at maximum speed rather
than at base speed, i.e.,
Authorized licensed use limited to: INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY BOMBAY. Downloaded on March 28,2020 at 15:05:26 UTC from IEEE Xplore. Restrictions apply.
369
In comparison with the WFCM, this motor will have I l y as
many armature conductors, each y times the cross sectional
area. The frame size will be unchanged.
To achieve rated torque T b up to speed W b , the armature
current must be
. Tb
2, = - = (6)
k+
and the generated voltage at base speed will be
e, = k+Wb = v b / y . (7)
At base speed, the chopper switch S1 is on for a period t O N
where
tON -
~
- -1
%-
(8)
7 G y'
Its average current at this speed is
- tON
is1 = y I b - = I b -
I
(9)
i.e., the same as for WFCM. The average current is1 remains
at I b for all speeds from W b up to maximum. The average
current in diode 01 is ( y- 1 ) I b at w b and reaches its maximum
value of y I b at zero speed.
In the braking mode, the average current in diode 0 2 is
I b from w down to w b , reducing to zero at zero speed. For
switch S2, the average current increases to a maximum of
near zero speed. Thus, in the chopper, the current ratings
of the lower switch and diode are increased to y times the
corresponding values for the WFCM drive, while the ratings
for the upper switch and diode remain unchanged. The voltage
ratings of the devices depend on the supply voltage and are the
same for both drives. Both the resistance and the inductance
of the armature winding of the PMCM motor are l/y2 times
the values for the WFCM motor. At all speeds up to w b , the
armature current is T I b . Thus, the power loss in the winding is
unchanged. However, for speeds higher than w b , the PMCM
motor current is reduced while that of the WFCM motor
remains constant. At maximum speed, the armature power
loss comparison is
The wound-field motor will have significant losses in its
field, interpole, and compensating windings while, in the per-
manent magnet motor, such losses are eliminated. Combined
with the lowered armature losses, the average motor losses will
be substantially reduced for the PMCM drive in comparison
with the WFCM drive.
An additional loss which may be of significance in com-
paring the drives arises from the commutator voltage drop V,.
This drop may be considered to be approximately constant and
independent of current. Because of the higher current level of
the PMCM motor, its commutator power loss PL, is related
to that of the WFCM motor by
P L c (PMCM) = y I b % = T p L c (WFCM). (1 1)
The PM motor will have iron losses in its stator and these
will increase as the speed and frequency is increased. The
net reduction in power loss when operating in the constant
power range therefore depends on the ratio of conductor to
 370 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 31, NO. 2, MARCWAPRIL 1995
iron loss in the specific motor design. Depending on the
particular design specification, these features of the constant-
flux approach may lead to a substantial net increase in energy
efficiency of the motor. The price to be paid for this increase
in energy efficiency is an increase in the rating and cost of
the chopper, and also an addition to the PMCM chopper loss
in comparison with that of the WFCM drive. For a device
voltage drop of V,, the power loss in the chopper from zero
to base speed will be approximately equal to ylb V d , i.e., y
times as large as in the WFCM chopper. As speed approaches
4,the losses for the two choppers approach equality.
In comparing the two motors, it should be noted that for the
same armature radius required to produce the specified torque,
the overall radius of the PMCM motor will be significantly
less than that of the WFCM motor because of the small radial
thickness needed in modern magnet materials [3]. This can
result in an appreciable reduction in the overall mass of the
motor. There will, however, be an increase in the length and
mass of the commutator for the permanent magnet motor
because of the increased armature current.
An important factor in comparing a wound field motor drive
with one using a permanent magnet motor is the specified duty
cycle for the drive application. For the PMCM motor, torque
for cruising at maximum speed is obtained with only l/y2
of the armature resistance loss of the WFCM motor. Thus,
the constant-flux approach becomes more advantageous as the
proportion of time in the high-speed cruising mode at or near
rated power is increased.
As an example of the energy saving which can be achieved
using a permanent magnet commutator motor rather than a
wound field type, consider a drive for a 20-ton transit vehicle
making regular starts and stops with a maximum acceleration
of f l d s 2 , a maximum speed of 20 d s , a base speed of
8 m/s, and therefore a constant-power speed ratio of y =
2.5. Let us assume that the same armature dimensions are
used for both machines and that the thrust requirement at
constant maximum speed is negligible. For the 8-s acceleration
period up to speed W b , the power losses in the armature
windings will be the same for the two machines. For the
remainder of the acceleration, the armature current and power
loss for the WFCM will remain constant. For the PMCM, the
armature current will reduce in inverse proportion to the speed
(to 40% at 4)and the power loss in the armature winding
will reduce to only 16% at maximum speed +. Integration
of power shows that the total energy loss in the armature
winding resistance of the PMCM is reduced to 53% of the
WFCM value for this example. In addition, the loss in the
interpole and compensating windings is eliminated. Usually,
the armature circuit loss is the major component in the total
loss of the motor. Thus, a significant increase in overall
operating efficiency can be achieved. Increase in the speed
ratio results in a further reduction in energy loss.
PERMANENT
IV. SWITCHED MAGNET
MOTORDRIVE(SWPM)
The desirability of eliminating the commutator with its
mass, its length, its necessary maintenance, and its losses
has led to the development of a number of alternative drive
Authorized licensed use limited to: INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY BOMBAY. Downloaded on March 28,2020 at 15:05:26 UTC from IEEE Xplore. Restrictions apply.
It, - 7r
D3
--- 55
"I,
--
SQ ~ y ~ I':D
S 6 s2
configurations.One of these is the switched-permanent-magnet
(SWPM) or commutator-less motor [5].
A cross section of a two-pole, three-phase SWPM machine
with permanent magnets mounted on the surface of the rotor is
shown in Fig. 3(a). A circuit for a typical supply configuration
is shown in Fig. 3(b). As the rotor rotates, this system switches
the supply voltage progressively in turn to pairs of the star-
connected windings in response to signals from rotor position
sensors. As this type of permanent magnet motor has no
effective provision for flux weakening [4], it is usually not
considered as a candidate for traction applications requiring a
constant power range.
However, let us adopt an approach similar to that taken
with the PMCM motor. Recognizing that the flux is constant,
the number of turns per phase in the motor winding is
chosen so that the phase-to-phase generated voltage will be
approximately equal to the supply voltage Vb at the maximum
speed rather than at base speed, i.e., the flux constant will be
U],
k$ = (12)
For the motor shown in Fig. 3(a), torque is produced by the
interaction of the essentially-constant radial flux density over
the whole rotor circumference with the essentially-constant
current sheet distributed over two-thirds of the stator circum-
ference. The current directions shown are for the driving mode
with counterclockwise rotation.
The ratings of the switches and their parallel diodes can be
determined by examining the motor during the rotational angle
of rI3 rad before and after the position shown in Fig. 3(a). For
base driving torque at speeds up to wb, the phase current z,
is made equal to 71,. During the first 7r13 rad of rotation,
switch S1 is modulated to take an average current from
 SLEMON: ACHIEVING A CONSTANT POWER SPEED RANGE FOR PM DRIVES 371

the supply which increases to a maximum of r b at W b . The a more-nearly sinusoidal distribution of phase conductors. In
remainder of the phase current i , flows through diode 0 4 . this SYPM motor, only the fundamental component of rotor
The negative phase current i b flows continuously in switch flux density around the periphery is useful in producing torque.
S6. During the next 7d3 rad, the supply current is controlled Thus, little is gained by increasing the angular width of the
by modulation of switch S2 with circulation of the remainder surface-mounted rotor magnets to cover more than 60-70%
of phase current -2, through diode 0 5 and the supply return of the rotor periphery. The narrower magnets provide less
current flowing continuously through switch 5'1. For maximum flux in the yoke than for a SWPM motor with full width
average current ratings in the devices, note that, at W b , S1 magnets and thus a smaller permissible yoke thickness. The
conducts an average current I b for one-sixth of the cycle and rotor configuration is thus similar to the alternate SWPM with
a current of yI, for one-sixth of a cycle. Near zero speed, 0 4 magnets over two-thirds of the rotor surface. Again, let us
carries current ' y r b for one-sixth of a cycle. assume that no flux weakening is attempted. The winding of
For the braking mode below base speed, the phase currents the SYPM motor is designed so that only 1l-y of the available
are reversed with i, = for the same period of 2n/3 rad. supply voltage is applied to the motor at base speed while full
For the first half of this period, the current is controlled by voltage is applied at maximum speed. The inverter structure
modulation of S4. The supply current is carried by D l and for the synchronous permanent magnet drive is the same as
the circulating path is through S4 and D6. For the remaining that shown in Fig. 3(b). The operating difference is that the
nl3 period, i, is controlled by S5 with flow through D1 and switches are pulse-width modulated to provide near sinusoidal
0 2 . The maximum average current in S 4 occurs at zero speed phase currents to the windings.
when it carries for one-sixth of a cycle. For diode D1, Following the pattern used with previous drives, let us
the maximum average current occurs at and above base speed denote the maximum rms phase current as 71.The winding
when it carries current Ib for one-third of the time. turns are chosen to give a flux constant of
For any operating mode, the maximum design values of
Tb
average current for the switches and diodes are IC+ = - (15)
71.
The phase angles of the inverter phase currents are controlled
by use of signals from a shaft mounted angular position sensor
(or equivalent). Over most of the speed range, maximum
driving torque per unit of stator current is produced by making
In comparison with the WFCM motor, the armature winding the field due to the stator lead that of the rotor by 7r/2 rad. As
losses are the same up to base speed, but are reduced below maximum speed is approached, it is usually advantageous to
those of the WFCM motor for all speeds above W b , the increase the angle between the stator and rotor fields so that
reduction factor being y2 at maximum speed. nearly unity power factor is achieved, thus making best use of
The conduction path in the inverter always has two devices the available inverter voltage [7].
in series carrying the motor current, resulting in inverter losses The average device currents for the SYPM system are
at maximum torque of approximately, generally similar to those for the SWPM drive. In the drive
mode at base speed, switch S1 in Fig. 3(b) carries the supply
PLC = ( W d ) ( Y I b ) (14) current, i.e., l / r of the phase current i,, for the one-sixth of
the cycle around its peak value. In addition, S1 carries other
i.e., twice those of the PMCM chopper. phase currents for two-sixth of each cycle, one on each side of
An alternate configuration of the SWPM has surface- its zero current value. The maximum value of average current
mounted magnets covering approximately two-thirds of the in each switch occurs in the drive mode at base speed and is
rotor surface and has its stator windings connected in delta given by
[ 5 ] . This motor provides somewhat lower torque for the same
power loss in the stator windings. However, it has less flux in -i s = -.( Y + 2 ) 1
(16)
its yoke and thus a smaller required yoke thickness. Otherwise, 2JZT
similar power loss and device rating considerations apply to For the diodes, the maximum average current occurs at zero
this motor as to the SWPM with full width magnets. speed and is

V. SYNCHRONOUS
PM MOTORDRIVE(SYPM)
A synchronous permanent magnet motor is designed to op-
The power losses in the stator windings are reduced in the
erate on an inverter supply in which the switching is modulated
constant power range in the same ratio as with the SWPM
to provide a set of nearly sinusoidal currents to the three phase
because of the reduction of the motor current over the speed
windings [l]. The most usual motor structure differs little
range above base speed.
from that of the SWPM motor shown in Fig. 3(a). The only
significant difference is that the stator windings are usually
short pitched by one or two slots in contrast to the full pitched VI. INSETPM MOTORDRIVE
winding of the SWPM motor. Alternatively, a concentric An alternative configuration for a PM motor is the one with
winding may be used. The winding is arranged to achieve inset magnets shown in cross section in Fig. 4. The rotor iron

Authorized licensed use limited to: INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY BOMBAY. Downloaded on March 28,2020 at 15:05:26 UTC from IEEE Xplore. Restrictions apply.
 312 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 31, NO. 2. MARCWAPRIL 1995
Fig. 4. Two-pole motor with inset magnets.
extends out to near the stator in the arcs between the magnets.
This motor is a hybrid combining PM torque with reluctance
torque. It has been considered for drives requiring a constant
power range because of its potential for flux reduction [2],
[3]. It may however be used to advantage operated in the
constant flux mode, producing somewhat more torque than
for a surface-PM motor of the same rotor dimensions. The
stator windings are supplied with sinusoidal currents as for
the SYPM drive. The current phase angle is advanced so that
the stator field leads the rotor by more than 90”. Reluctance
torque is added to the PM torque with a maximum total
torque being produced for lead angles typically in the range
from 115”-125O. Other than these changes in structure and
angle setting, this motor can be operated as described for
the SYPM drive in Section V with the same advantages of
reduced winding losses. For some applications, consideration
can be given to an approach using an inset PM motor with
partial flux reduction. The open-circuit flux constant ,k4 of the
motor can be fixed somewhere between T&I and TblI and
current angle control can be employed for flux reduction over
the upper part of the constant power range.
VII. CONCLUSIONS
A constant power speed range in a traction drive can
be achieved either by reducing the motor flux at constant
current or by reducing the current at constant flux. The flux
reduction approach cannot be effectively employed in switched
permanent magnet motors or in commutator motors with
surface mounted magnets. Flux reduction can be achieved to
some extent with synchronous PM motors with special rotor
designs.
The use of standard surface PM motors with constant
flux, either Of the commutator type_ _ or preferably of the
electronically-commutated type, may be a preferred alternative
in many At the Of an increased rating Of the
chopper Or inverter switching devices, a substantial reduction
Authorized licensed use limited to: INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY BOMBAY. Downloaded on March 28,2020 at 15:05:26 UTC from IEEE Xplore. Restrictions apply.
of energy loss in the windings can potentially be achieved for
operations in the constant power range above the base speed.
The attractiveness of the constant-flux approach proposed
in this paper depends on the value system of the particular
application. In part, it depends on the capital cost of the
chopper or inverter relative to that for the flux-weakening
approach. The cost of power electronic equipment does not
rise at a rate proportional to the current rating of the devices
but much more gradually. Also, the cost of power electronic
equipment relative to total system cost continues to decrease.
In some drives, the value of increased energy efficiency will
depend primarily on the unit cost of electric energy. In others,
it may reflect the reduction in cooling requirements for the
motor. In an electric road vehicle, its major impact may be
on the mass andor cost of the on-board battery. In some
applications such as for aircraft, the constant flux approach
may permit an increase in conductor current density resulting
in a reduction in motor mass rather than an increase in energy
efficiency. A system-based optimization is required in each
instance.
REFERENCES
G. R. Slemon, Electric Machines and Drives. Reading, MA: Addison
Wesley, 1992.
T. Sebastian, G. R. Slemon, and M. A. Rahman, “Modeling of permanent
magnet synchronous motors,” ZEEE Trans. Magn., vol. 22, no. 5, pp.
1069-1071, Sept. 1986.
-, “Design considerations for variable speed permanent magnet
motors,” in Proc. Int. Conf: on Electrical Machines, Munich, Germany,
Sept. 1986, pt. 3, pp. 1099-1102,
T. Sebastian and G. R. Slemon, “Operating limits of inverter driven
permanent magnet motor drives,” IEEE Trans. Ind. Applicat., vol. 23,
no. 2, pp. 327-333, March/April 1987.
T. J. E. Miller, Brushless Permanent Magnet and Reluctance Motor
Drives. Oxford, U K Oxford Science Publications; Clarendon Press,
1989.
T. M. Jahns, G . B. K h a n , and T. W. Newmannn, “Interior permanent
magnet synchronous motors for adjustable speed drives,” IEEE Trans.
Ind. Applicat., vol. 22, no. 4,pp. 678-690, JulyIAug. 1986.
G. R. Slemon and X. Liu, “Modeling and design optimization of
permanent magnet machines,” Electric Machines and Power Syst., vol.
20, pp. 71-92, 1992.
Gordon R. Slemon (S’46--M’48-SM’SS-F’75-
LF’90) is Professor Emeritus in Electrical and
Computer Engineering at the University of Toronto,
Canada. He was Head of the Electrical Engineering
Department at the University of Toronto from 1966
to 1976, and Dean of its Faculty of Applied Science
and Engineering from 1979 to 1986. Currently, he
acts as a consultant to industry and government, as
well as continuing his research specialty of electric
machines and drives. He is the author or co-author
of five textbooks and 150 technical papers. In 1980,
he initiated the Innovatitm s Foundation at the University of Toronto, and is
Vice-Chairman of its Board. He is a director of Inverpower Controls, Spartec
International, and Electrical Engineering Consociates.
Prof. Slemon is a Fellow of the Institution of Electrical Engineers (U.K.), the
Engineering Institute of Canada, and the Canadian Academy of Engineering.
In 1990, he received the IEEE Nikola Tesla Award and Gold Medal.