IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 43, NO.

3, MAY/JUNE 2007 685

Cogging Torque Reduction in an Axial

Flux PM Machine via Stator Slot
Displacement and Skewing
Alvaro B. Letelier, Delvis A. González, Juan A. Tapia, Member, IEEE,
Rogel Wallace, Associate Member, IEEE, and M. Aníbal Valenzuela, Senior Member, IEEE

Abstract—Cogging torque is a source of vibration and noise in

permanent-magnet (PM) machines. This torque is proportional to
the PM flux and the reluctance variation, and is independent of
the load current. In this paper, two methods for cogging torque
reduction in an axial PM machine with field weakening capability
are presented. The machine’s rotor configuration considers two
sections: one PM pole that provides the field excitation and one
iron section in charge of providing low d-axis reluctance. Sig-
nificant reduction of the cogging effects is achieved by adjusting
stator geometry and rotor pole configuration. Three-dimensional
finite-element analysis is used to demonstrate these improvements.
Conclusions and design recommendations are presented for a
5-kW eight-pole PM machine prototype under construction.
Index Terms—Axial flux permanent-magnet (AFPM) machine,
cogging torque reduction, three-dimensional finite-element analy-
sis (3D-FEA).

I. I NTRODUCTION
Fig. 1. AFPM machine topology with field weakening capability.
P ERMANENT-MAGNET (PM) machines are very attrac-
tive due to their high efficiency and power density. How-
ever, for a given operational temperature, their constant and
and air gap harmonic permeance. In PM machines, cogging
torque arises from the magnet’s tendency to align itself with the
unvarying excitation demands extra effort to control the in-
minimum reluctance path given by the relative position between
duced voltage at high speed [1]. Extended speed operation
rotor and stator [2]. It has no net value but introduces vibration
over their rated value requires an effective air gap flux control
and noise that degrade the response of the high-performance
so that field weakening can be achieved. This is necessary in
motion control particularly at low speed and light load. Several
order to meet the voltage and current inverter constraints in a
techniques to reduce the cogging effect in PM machines have
variable-speed alternating-current drive based on PM machines.
been proposed in the literature [3], [4].
Cogging torque is also an important issue in machine design.
In this paper, mechanisms for reducing cogging torque are
This torque is caused by the interaction between the excitation
studied. This investigation is oriented to minimizing this un-
desirable effect in an axial flux PM (AFPM) machine with
Paper IPCSD-06-115, presented at the 2005 IEEE International Electric
Machines and Drives Conference, San Antonio, TX, May 15–18, and approved extended speed range, as depicted in Fig. 1. Due to the dou-
for publication in the IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS by ble rotor topology, the misalignment between them introduces
the Electric Machines Committee of the IEEE Industry Applications Society. unbalances that may increase the cogging effects. However,
Manuscript submitted for review May 18, 2005 and released for publication
December 16, 2006. This work was supported in part by the Direccion de Inves- the solid structure of the stator allows us to introduce geom-
tigacion, University of Concepción, under Project 206.092.047-1.0, and in part etry modifications to reduce this unwanted effect, such as
by Fondo Nacional para el Desarrollo la Ciencia y Tecnologia, FONDECYT, stator side displacement and rotor pole skew configuration.
under Project 1030329.
A. B. Letelier was with the Electrical Engineering Department, Three-dimensional finite-element analysis (3D-FEA) software
University of Concepción, Concepción 4089100, Chile. He is now FLUX2D/3D by MAGSOFT is used to evaluate the effects of
with BHP Billiton, Concepción, Chile (e-mail: Alvaro.AE.Letelier@ such modifications.
bhpbilliton.com).
D. A. González, J. A. Tapia, R. Wallace, and M. A. Valenzuela are
with the Electrical Engineering Department, University of Concepción, Con- II. O PERATING P RINCIPLE OF THE AFPM M ACHINE
cepción 4089100, Chile (e-mail: degonzalez@udec.cl; degonzale@gmail.cl;
juantapia@udec.cl; rwallace@udec.cl; anivalenz@udec.cl). W ITH E XTENDED S PEED R ANGE
Color versions of one or more of the figures in this paper are available online
at http://ieeexplore.ieee.org. The rotor pole geometry of the proposed AFPM machine
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/TIA.2007.895738 contains a low-reluctance path for the d-axis air gap flux.

0093-9994/$25.00 © 2007 IEEE

686 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 43, NO. 3, MAY/JUNE 2007

Fig. 3. Three-dimensional mesh model. (a) Stator core and teeth. (b) Rotor
iron and magnet pole.

TABLE I
PROTOTYPE DIMENSIONS

Fig. 2. Phasor diagram and flux relationship for salient pole synchronous
machine.

This is achieved by removing a PM section and introducing

a laminated iron portion [5]. Thus, with proper control of the
stator current, the armature reaction can be utilized to reduce
the flux per pole. In fact, below the rated speed, the current
angle γ (shown in Fig. 2) is calculated to operate at maximum
torque per ampere trajectory. Above the rated speed, the linear
variation of the back electromotive force due to speed makes it
necessary to reduce the air gap flux, so as to keep the terminal
voltage at rated value. Due to the fixed excitation of the magnet,
an external mechanism is necessary to achieve such a reduction.
In the same figure, the armature reaction of the stator current
is represented by the term jXd Id . For the proper value and
position of the stator current phasor, the armature reaction can
be used to control the total air gap flux. If a low-reluctance
path is observed by this reaction, just a low d-axis current is
required to perform this reduction. Based on that principle, the Fig. 4. Three-dimensional mesh for one-pole FEA.
proposed AFPM machine allows us to achieve field weakening
control with a low ampere-turn requirement and a minimum B. Stator Slot Displacement Effect
demagnetizing effect over the magnet.
3D-FEA is performed to find the optimal geometry that
provides minimum cogging torque. By taking advantage of
III. FEA machine symmetry, only one pole of the machine is considered.
For a north–north machine topology, each side of the laminated
A. Three-Dimensional Finite-Element Model
stator acts independently with each rotor. Therefore, magnet-
3D-FEA provides the required tool to evaluate cogging ically, it is possible to divide the machine in two rotor–stator
torque production for different machine configurations. The sections acting separately but connected by the shaft. Under
stator and rotor models are depicted in Fig. 3, the main di- these circumstances, in both circuits, the interaction between
mensions are listed in Table I, and the complete 3-D model stator teeth and rotor magnets will introduce cogging torque.
is presented in Fig. 4. In order to improve accuracy, second- This torque is proportional to the PM flux φpm and reluctance
order elements are used [6]. Since cogging torque appears under R variation as
no load condition, there is no need to use transient analysis;
therefore, a magnetostatic approach is used for this evaluation. 1 2 dR
Tcogging = φ . (1)
Only the interaction between the stator teeth and the magnet is 2 pm dθ
considered with no current in the stator windings. Two layers of
element are located at the air gap in order to obtain reasonable The displacement between both slot sides of the stator can
results. be utilized to evaluate the total cogging induced. The slot
LETELIER et al.: COGGING TORQUE REDUCTION IN AN AFPM MACHINE 687

Fig. 5. Stator side displacement to reduce cogging torque.

pitch ts and the slot displacement td are shown in Fig. 5.

The displacement factor is defined in terms of these two
values as

td
Kd = . (2)
ts

FEA allows us to calculate separately the cogging torque

over each rotor–stator group (upper and lower) and the resultant
torque value for different displacement factors. In Fig. 6, the
evolutions of the cogging torque for a 60-magnetic-degree
rotation (or two-slot pitch) and different displacement factors
are presented. These plots show the induced torque for each
side and the total torque. For comparison purposes, the base
cogging torque value is considered as the maximum cogging
torque developed in an identical AFPM machine with no iron
piece in the rotor pole (surface mounted) with the same outer
and inner diameter, numbers of slot, and rotor pole geometry.
The calculated cogging torque waveforms are symmetrical with
respect to the origin, which indicates the zero average value
added to the total torque.
A significant reduction in the maximum value of the total
cogging torque is found. In fact, the cogging torque is re-
duced in over 50% when going from the aligned condition
to the complete overlapping teeth (Kd → 0.5). These values
are constant in magnitude, but they occur at different angle
positions depending on the displacement factor. Two main
results can be observed using this approach: a reduction of
the total peak cogging value and a doubling of the cogging
waveform frequency. This result is considering a PM to iron
area ratio equal to 1.3.
The variation of the cogging maximum value as a function of
the displacement factor is shown in Fig. 7. A quadratic depen-
dence between torque and Kd can be noticed. For higher values
of the displacement factor, the reduction rate decreases due to
the fringing and saturation effect. A good approximation for
the maximum cogging torque as a function of the displacement
factor can be estimated by

T qMax = 2.211 · Kd2 − 2.223 · Kd + 0.9253. (3)

These waveforms are similar to those encountered in a regu-

lar PM machine. The maximum cogging torque value appears
for the intermediate position of the magnet with respect to the
stator teeth, and the frequency is given by the number of slots
Fig. 6. 3D-FEA results. Each rotor and total per pole cogging torque val-
per pole. Cogging torque reduction is achieved by the cogging ues for different displacement factors Kd . (a) Kd = 0.13. (b) Kd = 0.46.
waveform displacement of each rotor component. In fact, both (c) Kd = 0.86.
688 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 43, NO. 3, MAY/JUNE 2007

Fig. 8. MMF distribution at the axial flux machines with two rotors and
central stator.
Fig. 7. Maximum cogging torque variation for different displacement
factors Kd .

rotors are interacting with their respective stator side, which

generate an expected cogging torque profile. For a displacement
factor close to zero, both waveforms are aligned, and since
the rotors are connected by the shaft, the resulting torque is
the wave superposition of each side. Consequently, the maxi-
mum total cogging torque is twice as much as each maximum
cogging torque component. The resulting waveform presents
a frequency given by the number of stator slots, as depicted
in Fig. 6(a). As Kd increases, each cogging torque waveform
component is shifted proportionally. The total cogging now is
the composition of two waveforms but with maximum values
happening at different positions, as illustrated in Fig. 6(b).
Thus, the maximum total cogging torque reaches the same of
each component. As a result, maximum cogging is one half
value with respect to the case where Kd is zero (stator teeth Fig. 9. Resultant torque reduction due to the misalignment between each side
aligned). In this manner, a significant reduction is achieved by a of the stator.
mechanical misalignment between the stator sides. As a second
effect, frequency is doubled compared to the previous case. cogging torque is minimized, both torque components operate
Higher cogging frequency can be handled in a better manner at different times with different magnitudes.
by the load inertia. As Kd increases even more [Fig. 6(c)], the Taking as a reference the top set of the stator and rotor
original behavior is repeated because of the realignment of the magnetic circuit, the other stator MMF is shifted in an angle
waveforms. proportional to Kd . The torque component created by the inter-
Introducing a displacement between both stator sides will action between the unaligned stator MMF and the rotor magnet
generate a space shift from each set of three phase winding is lower in magnitude and is space shifted. The combination
magnetomotive forces (MMFs). As a result, the average torque with the top component results in a lower resultant torque. The
produced by the machine will be affected. One schematic reduction of the resultant average torque as the displacement
representation of the rotor and stator’s MMF distribution is factor increases is depicted in Fig. 9. It can be noticed that
depicted in Fig. 8. For this analysis, only the fundamental a reduction on the order of 1.5% with respect to the aligned
components are considered for torque production. Each set of value is expected for Kd = 0.5 (when the cogging torque is
windings creates an MMF distribution when the stator three- minimum). This reduction becomes less important if a lower
phase current flows. These MMFs interact with each rotor value of Kd is selected. According to Fig. 7, there is a range for
magnet pole to create the total average torque developed by the displacement factor among 0.4 to 0.6, where the cogging
the machine [7]. With no displacement between stator sides, torque is minimum with a low average torque diminution due
the stator winding MMF and the rotor magnet are acting at the to displacement.
same time. Each side generates one half of the total torque,
and the resultant total torque is the numerical summation of
C. Magnet Skewing Geometry
each set of rotor–stator component. Consequently, the average
torque is maximal. On the other hand, if one of the stator In contrast with the previous torque cogging reduction tech-
MMF distributions is shifted with respect to the other so that nique, magnet skew is pursued to diminish reluctance variation
LETELIER et al.: COGGING TORQUE REDUCTION IN AN AFPM MACHINE 689

Fig. 10. Rotor pole arrangement for cogging torque reduction. (a) Symmetri-
cal. (b) Asymmetrical.

Fig. 11. Magnet skew diagram for cogging torque reduction.

(dR/dθ) as the rotors move (1). In this manner, the amount of

iron in front of the magnets is kept constant. Similar results can
be obtained for skewing stator teeth. In order to evaluate the
cogging generated as a function of skew angle, two approaches
are followed: symmetrical and asymmetrical magnet skewing,
as depicted in Fig. 10.
For the first case, both rotor poles (iron and magnet) are
twisted in the same direction so that the magnets are coincident
in their areas when located in the machine assembly. For
the second case, the rotor poles are skewed in the opposite
direction. Both rotor magnets are aligned, but their areas are not
coincident. The diagram representing the magnet’s geometric
skewing with respect to the stator teeth and slots is depicted in
Fig. 11. Also, the skew angle θi is defined as the angle in which
the rotor pole is skewed with respect to the stator teeth.
Taking as base value the induced cogging torque for no-iron
pole, i.e., a rotor pole composed only by a magnet, the per unit Fig. 12. Induced cogging torque as a function of the rotor magnet skew angle
cogging waveforms are depicted in Figs. 12 and 13. In these symmetrical rotor pole arrangement.
690 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 43, NO. 3, MAY/JUNE 2007

Fig. 14. Magnet skew angle effect over the maximum resultant cogging
torque. Linear approximations are also shown.

plots, cogging is presented for different magnet skew angles

and for symmetric and asymmetric rotor pole arrangements.
These plots show the cogging torque calculated for each stator
side (upper and lower in fine lines) and the resultant cogging
torque (in solid line). It can be noticed that the cogging torque
is slightly dependent on the magnet arrangement (symmetrical
or asymmetrical). In fact, the asymmetrical magnet disposition
exhibits a lower resultant cogging torque compared to the
symmetrical magnet sequence. Some differences are observed
over the cogging torque waveform for each rotor side when
magnets are reversed. However, this reduction is not significant.
On the other hand, a major effect over the maximum cogging
torque value is experimented as the skew angle θi increases.
This is a direct result of the reluctance variation reduction
seen by the magnets. Fig. 14 compiles these results. The
maximum cogging values for symmetrical and asymmetrical
magnet dispositions are presented as the skew angle varies. A
slight reduction in the maximum cogging torque value for the
asymmetrical case is observed. Although the cogging torque
reduction for the asymmetrical arrangement of rotor magnets is
not substantial, there is an attractive consequence of that choice.
In fact, a machine with asymmetrical disposition of the rotor
poles needs identical rotor pieces, as observed in Fig. 10(b).
Consequently, lower manufacturer requirements are necessary
compared with the symmetrical case, where two different rotors
are required.
A linear approximation to the per unit cogging torque can be
expressed as
• symmetrical

Tcog/Φ2 (θi ) = −0.1963 · θi + 0.8891 (4)

• asymmetrical

Tcog/Φ2 (θi ) = −0.1878 · θi + 0.8817. (5)

Fig. 13. Induced cogging torque as a function of the rotor magnet skew angle. Since θi is defined as the skew angle (in mechanical degrees)
Asymmetrical rotor pole arrangement. between the magnet and stator tooth, these expressions are
LETELIER et al.: COGGING TORQUE REDUCTION IN AN AFPM MACHINE 691

valid for any combination of number of pole and number of

stator teeth. However, some variations have to be introduced
if magnet or tooth has a different geometry or disposition. In
fact, the magnet shape can be oriented to minimize the air
gap harmonic MMF, or even round corners are used to reduce
cogging. Therefore, proper analysis must be done to consider
these modifications.
Adequate skewing techniques over the stator teeth or mag-
nets reduce the cogging. However, these procedures have some
drawbacks such as lower stator winding flux linkages, higher
copper losses, torque generation in different directions, and
higher amount of PM required compared with the no-skewed
geometries. In fact, longer coil turns are required when stator
teeth are skewed, with higher Joule losses compared with the
no-skewed geometry. If the skew is used in the magnet, the
lower PM area in front of the stator coil reduces the total coil
flux linkage.
Equations (4) and (5), in conjunction with (3), are design
equations that are used to optimize the stator teeth disposition
and magnet shape for cogging torque reduction purposes. A
prototype based on these techniques has been built and is
presented in the next section.

IV. AFPM M ACHINE

A. Prototype
The indicated modifications for cogging torque reduction
are included in the design and construction of a 5-kVA eight-
pole AFPM machine with extended speed range prototype for
traction and energy generation applications. The dimensions are
listed in Table I. Fig. 15(a) depicts the stator portion of the
magnetic circuit. Teeth and core are manufactured by silicon
iron lamination in spiral construction; a similar method is used
for the rotor yoke and iron rotor pole section [Fig. 15(b)].
In this manner, the tangential and axial flux component can
easily flow. However, the radial component is minimized by
the interlamination air gap, which improves magnet utilization.
The final assembly for cogging torque evaluation is presented
in Fig. 15(c).

B. Cogging Torque Measurement

Following a procedure presented in the literature [8], static
cogging torque measurement is performed over the machine
prototype. The measurement and FEA results are depicted in
Fig. 16. The cogging torque produced by trapezoidal magnets
in a regular axial flux surface-mounted PM machine with
the same dimension of the constructed prototype is obtained
by simulation. This model does not contain any modification
over the magnetic circuit to reduce cogging. Considering their
maximum cogging value as a reference (1 pu), optimized model
and experimental results are compared.
Simulation results demonstrate a significant reduction in
the maximum values of the cogging torque when stator slot
displacement and magnet skew are used to diminish cogging
torque. These two passive techniques are completed at the
manufacture stage. Close agreement between experimental and
Fig. 15. Prototype (a) stator side (no winding is shown), (b) rotor (only one
PM is shown), and (c) machine assembly.
predicted values demonstrates that the techniques used are
effective in reducing cogging torque with minimum average
torque reduction.
V. C ONCLUSION
In this paper, two mechanisms for cogging torque reduction
in an AFPM machine are presented. The machine topology al-
lows us to adjust its geometry in order to achieve effective cog-
ging torque reduction. The stator slot displacement technique
692
Fig. 16. Static cogging torque experimental measurement and comparison
with FEA results.
TABLE II
IRON MAGNETIZING CURVE
TABLE III
MAGNET MODEL CHARACTERISTIC
results in a reduction of the maximum cogging torque value
close to 50% as Kd approaches 0.5. This procedure doubles
the frequency of the cogging waveform and slightly reduces
the average torque produced by the machine. In addition, the
rotor magnet skew is also studied. A major effect of the skew
angle is found in cogging variation for the symmetrical and
asymmetrical disposition of rotor poles. But almost no differ-
ence is found when both arrangements are compared between
them. However, asymmetrical geometry exhibits manufacturing
benefits. In fact, only identical rotor pieces are required. Some
reduction over the output power can be expected using this
method.
Analytic expressions for per unit cogging torque have been
derived based on the FEA results, which are useful for design
purposes. The results have been used to build a 5-kW eight-pole
AFPM machine prototype for variable-speed applications.
Compared to a model with no mechanism on cogging
torque reduction, the simulation results establish that significant
diminutions in the maximum cogging torque values are found
when both techniques are used in conjunction. Close agreement
with experimental results confirms this conclusion with a reduc-
tion of over 60% of the maximum value when these techniques
are utilized.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 43, NO. 3, MAY/JUNE 2007
A PPENDIX
M ATERIALS D ATA
See Tables II and III.
R EFERENCES
[1] T. M. Jahns, “Motion control with permanent-magnet AC machines,” Proc.
IEEE, vol. 82, no. 8, pp. 1241–1252, Aug. 1994.
[2] Z. Q. Zhu and D. Howe, “Influence of design parameters on cogging torque
in permanent magnet machines,” IEEE Trans. Energy Convers., vol. 15,
no. 4, pp. 407–412, Dec. 2000.
[3] M. Aydin, Q. Ronghai, and T. A. Lipo, “Cogging torque minimiza-
tion technique for multiple-rotor, axial-flux, surface-mounted-PM motors:
Alternating magnet pole-arcs in facing rotors,” in Proc. IEEE Ind. Appl.
Conf. Annu. Meeting, 2003, vol. 1, pp. 555–561.
[4] N. Bianchi and S. Bolognani, “Design techniques for reducing the cogging
torque in surface-mounted PM motors,” IEEE Trans. Ind. Appl., vol. 38,
no. 5, pp. 1259–1265, Sep./Oct. 2002.
[5] J. A. Tapia, D. González, R. Wallace, and A. Valenzuela, “Axial flux
surface mounted PM machine with field weakening capability,” in Proc.
16th ICEM, Krakow, Poland, Sep. 2004, pp. 91–92.
[6] FLUX 9.10 3D Application, User’s Guide, General Tools Solving and
Results Post-Processing, CEDRAT, Meylan, France, vol. 4, Mar. 2005.
[7] A. E. Fitzgerald, C. Kingsley, Jr., and S. Umans, Electric Machinery,
5th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1990. McGraw-Hill series in electrical
Engineering.
[8] M. Cirani, C. Sadarangani, and P. Thelin, “Analysis of an innovative de-
sign for an axial flux Torus machine,” in Proc. ICEM, Brugge, Belgium,
Aug. 2002, pp. 151–156.
Alvaro B. Letelier was born in Vallenar, Chile. He
received the Electrical Engineering degree and Mas-
ter of Science degrees in electrical engineering from
the University of Concepción, Concepción, Chile, in
2004 and 2006, respectively.
Since 2005, he has been with BHP Billiton,
Concepción, Chile, involved in activities such as
reliability and planning and projects for efficient use
of energy.
Delvis A. González was born in Santa Clara, Cuba.
He received the degree in electrical engineer and the
Master of Science degree from the Central University
of Las Villas, Las Villas, Cuba, in 1997 and 2001,
respectively. He is currently working toward the
Ph.D. degree at the University of Concepción,
Concepción, Chile.
His research interest includes the design,
optimization, and control of permanent-magnet
machines.
Juan A. Tapia (S’01–M’02) was born in
Concepción, Chile. He received the degree in
electrical engineering and the Master of Science
degree in electrical engineering from the University
of Concepción, Concepción, in 1991 and 1997,
respectively, and the Ph.D. degree from the
University of Wisconsin, Madison, in 2002.
Since 1992, he has been with the Department of
Electrical Engineering, University of Concepción,
as an Associate Professor. His primary areas of in-
terest are electromechanical analysis and electrical
machine design for adjustable-speed applications.
LETELIER et al.: COGGING TORQUE REDUCTION IN AN AFPM MACHINE
Rogel Wallace (A’86) received the degree in elec-
trical engineering from the Universidad Técnica
Federico Santa Maria, Valparaiso, Chile, in 1966
and the Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering from
Moscow Power Institute, Moscow, Russia, in 1976.
He was a Post-Doctoral Fellow in electrical ma-
chine design at the Moscow Power Institute. Since
1980, he has been with Department of Electrical
Engineering, University of Concepción, Concepción,
Chile, where he is currently a Professor. His teaching
and research interests include electrical machine de-
sign, power electronic, variable-frequency drives, and control systems theory
applied to electrical drives.
Dr. Wallace received the Applied Science Award in 2001 from the Concep-
cion Municipality for his work.
693
M. Aníbal Valenzuela (M’93–SM’01) was born in
Santiago, Chile. He received the degree in electrical
engineering and the Magister degree in electrical
engineering from the University of Chile, Santiago,
in 1976 and 1978, respectively.
Since 1978, has been with the Department of
Electrical Engineering, University of Concepción,
Concepción, Chile, where he is an Associate Pro-
fessor in the area of electric machines and drives.
From August 1998 to June 1999, he spent his sabbat-
ical leave at the University of Wisconsin, Madison,
with the Wisconsin Electric Machines and Power Electronics Consortium
(WEMPEC). He has several years of consulting activity in the pulp, paper,
and mining industries. His current research interests include motion control
of industrial drives and coordinated motion of multiaxis systems, sensorless
control of ac drives, and thermal evaluation of induction motors.
Mr. Valenzuela was one of the authors of the paper that received the First
Prize Paper Award for the best paper published in the IEEE TRANSACTIONS
ON I NDUSTRY A PPLICATIONS in 2003.