Electr Eng (2007) 89:617–627
DOI 10.1007/s00202-007-0072-4
ORIGINAL PAPER
Driving characteristics analysis of stationary discontinuous
armature permanent magnet linear synchronous motor
for factory automation systems
Yong-Jae Kim · Hideo Dohmeki
Received: 7 November 2006 / Accepted: 29 April 2007 / Published online: 23 June 2007
© Springer-Verlag 2007
Abstract The stationary discontinuous armatures in
permanent magnet linear synchronous motors (PM-LSMs),
which consist of several stator sections that are distributed
along the track and that the mover with PM is running with-
out thrust force between these sections, have been proposed
as a driving source for transportation systems. This design
is very economical in long-distance transportation systems
in factories, because the armature is engaged only when
accelerated and decelerated operation is necessary. However,
the stationary discontinuous armature PM-LSM contains the
outlet edges which always exist as a result of the discon-
tinuous arrangement of the armature. For this reason, the
high alteration of the thrust force and the attractive force
produced between the armature’s core and the mover’s per-
manent magnet when a mover goes through the between
the armature’s installation part and non-installation part has
been indicated as the problem of the stationary discontinuous
armature PM-LSM. As a result, the stationary discontinuous
armature design involves the velocity ripple of the mover with
PM during acceleration when freewheeling changes over to
re-acceleration. We have proposed and examined constant
load angle control without position feedback in order to sup-
press the velocity ripple which occurs at the re-accelerator
with the aim of achieving smooth drive of the stationary
discontinuous armature PM-LSM. This paper describes the
examination of constant load angle control without position
feedback with the aim of suppressing the velocity ripple,
which occurs in the re-acceleration portion. Also, we have
Y.-J. Kim (B) · H. Dohmeki
Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering,
Musashi Institute of Technology, 1-28-1, Tamazutsumi,
Setagaya, Tokyo 158-8557, Japan
e-mail: kim@eml.ee.musashi-tech.ac.jp
H. Dohmeki
e-mail: dohmeki@ee.musashi-tech.ac.jp
examined the analysis of the effect of the outlet edge on the
mover’s drive which exists as a result of the discontinuous
arrangement of the armature side based on the re-accelera-
tion characteristics obtained using constant load angle con-
trol without position feedback.
Keywords Linear synchronous motor · Discontinuous
arrangement · Thrust force coefficient · Velocity ripple
suppression · Energy transduction
1 Introduction
The linear motor has been produced and distributed mainly
through the factory automation (FA) transportation field
focusing on high speed, low noise, simplification of driving
apparatus and simplification of maintenance of FA field [1].
The linear induction motor (LIM) has developed as a main-
stream in this field on the basis of its simplicity of structure
and production of high thrust force [2]. However, in recent
years, slanted/vertical transportation with high efficacy and
positioning accuracy is additionally demanded in this field
as well as high load and horizontal transportation systems.
As a result, the linear synchronous motor (LSM) has arisen
as an alternative system in this field. In order to satisfy all
the above demands, a permanent magnet linear synchronous
motor (PM-LSM) has been applied to transportation systems
using high- energy magnet materials [3–8]. We also carried
out our research using this PM-LSM.
Usually, in a transportation system using linear motors, a
full-length (continuous) armature-side-on-ground design is
employed. This design is very reliable although it is costly
in long-distance transportation systems. However, a discon-
tinuous arrangement is favorable in a long-distance system
123
618
Mover with PM
Continuous
Discontinuous
vmax
Velocity v (m/s)
1 2
1 -- Discontinuous arrangement of armature units
2 -- Continuous arrangement of armature units
0
Distance x (m)
Fig. 1 Speed profiles of PM-LSM horizontal transportation systems
unless constant-speed requirements are very strict. Thus, our
laboratory has proposed a stationary discontinuous armature
PM-LSM in which the armature is engaged only when accel-
erated/decelerated operation is necessary, instead of con-
stant application of thrust force [9,10]. Figure 1 shows speed
profiles of PM-LSM horizontal transportation systems. The
main problem with the stationary discontinuous armature
arrangement is synchronization of the speed of the mover
and traveling magnetic field. We have studied this problem,
and have established a synchronization method for horizon-
tal and slanted configurations using optical sensors installed
on the armature to detect the mover’s velocity and posi-
tion [11,12]. However, the stationary discontinuous arma-
ture design involves the velocity ripple of the mover with PM
(mover) during acceleration when freewheeling changes over
to re-acceleration. Particularly, velocity ripple acts as the
major factor of vibration and noise causing step out due to
load disturbance in the worst case. Especially in the case of
semiconductor wafer transportation systems or transportation
systems that require low vibration and noise, the control/
restraint of velocity ripple is highly desirable. Therefore, we
propose an innovative driving method which allows stable
synchronization and prevents velocity ripple during
re-acceleration when the mover changes from freewheeling
Fig. 2 Experimental device
Armature unit
a outline of experimental Re-accelerator
device, b schematic
representations of armature unit
Guide rail
Mover
with PM
123
Electr Eng (2007) 89:617–627
Armature
to re-acceleration using open loop control which has a simple
system structure and is economical.
This paper presents the examination results obtained by
using the constant load angle control without position feed-
back, proposed as an innovative driving method to suppress
the velocity ripple which occurs at the re-acceleration portion
with the aim of maintaining smooth drive of the stationary
discontinuous armature PM-LSM. Also, we have examined
the analysis of the effect of the outlet edge on the mover’s
drive which exists as a result of the discontinuous arrange-
ment of the armature based on the re-acceleration characteris-
tics obtained by constant load angle control without position
feedback.
2 The stationary discontinuous armature PM-LSM
2.1 Specifications of the experimental device
The appearance of the experimental device is shown in Fig. 2a
and the armature arrangement is given schematically in
Fig. 2b. Several armature blocks can be arranged at certain
intervals within the total length of 6,500 mm. The device
has three stator parts: from left to right, they are referred to
as the accelerator, the re-accelerator and the decelerator. The
armature block has a silicon steel lamination with three-phase
windings. The space factor (ratio of windings occupied in the
armature’s slot) is 38.96% and the rated current is 1.3 A. The
mover features a skewed arrangement of neodymium-based
rare-earth magnets (NEOMAX-30SH) on a magnetic plate.
The permanent magnets provide BHmax = 238.5 kJ/m3 and
the length of the mover is 300 mm.
The specifications of the experimental device are listed in
Table 1, and the system configuration is shown in Fig. 3.
Photo-interrupters for velocity/position detection are pro-
vided in the armature and the shielding plate with known
length is mounted on the mover, so that the velocity can be
(a) (b)
Controller
6500 Units: (mm)
Mover with PM
Armature Freewheeling 300 Freewheeling
2000 2000
Accelerator Re-accelerator Decelerator
Mover with PM vi Optical τ
Sensor
d Armature
Armature unit unit
Accelerator Direction of Motion
Electr Eng (2007) 89:617–627 619

Table 1 Specifications of experimental device Optical sensors for drive

Accelerator Re-accelerator Decelerator
Parameter Value (unit)

Armature unit 3 3 3
Length of the stator (per unit) 324 mm
Magnetomotive force (mmf) 410.8 A Position sensor
for evaluation Amp. Amp. Amp.
Mover with PM
3 3 3
Number of magnets 8 poles DC
Pole pitch τ 33 mm
Magnet
Amp. D/A
Length 28 mm
Width 45 mm Evaluation system Drive system
Thickness 3 mm
Maximum energy product BHmax 238.5 kJ/m3 Fig. 3 System configuration of experimental device
Force 160 N
2.0
Air-gap (g) 4.0–8.0 mm
a*= 2.0 m/s2
1.5 a*= 1.0 m/s2

Velocity v (m/s)
1.0 a*= 0.0 m/s2
calculated from the light-interruption intervals. The speed
data are sent to the personal computer, and excitation is per- 0.5 a*= -0.5 m/s2
formed via PWM servo amplifiers connected to every coil. Measured value
Theoretical value
In addition, an evaluation system is employed to analyze 0.0
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700
the position and velocity of the mover on an absolute linear
Position x(mm)
scale (total length 4,000 mm, resolution 0.1 mm) constitut-
ing a sensor which is completely independent from the drive
Direction of motion
system.
Fig. 4 Re-acceleration characteristics using conventional driving
method
2.2 The synchronization method
2.3 Behavior of mover during re-acceleration
The synchronization method acquires information about the
position and velocity of the mover with a sensor. Then, the The driving characteristics of the mover during acceleration
current phase angle and frequency which excite the arma- when freewheeling changes over to re-acceleration are shown
ture winding at open loop operation are calculated [11,12]. in Fig. 4. Here the experimental conditions are; weight of
An optical interrupt type sensor is used on this system. As the mover is 4.7 kg, air-gap is 5.0 mm, and the initial veloc-
shown in Fig. 2b, the sensor is placed at a distance “d” apart ity of the mover at the onset of overlap is 1 m/s, with the
from the armature. After calculating the initial velocity of acceleration command varied. Then the maximum ampli-
the mover by the optical interrupter type sensor, excitation tude value of current command are constant at 1.3 A, and
was conducted at an appropriate current phase angle and fre- the re-acceleration portion of the armature included one unit
quency using (1) and (2) as follows: 324 mm long. As indicated by Fig. 4, the mover accelerates
depending on the theoretical value, which means that the
vi synchronization method provides sufficient synchronization.
fs = (1) However, one may conclude from the diagram that velocity
2τ
ripples occur at any acceleration.
d
ts = (2)
vi
2.4 Reasons for velocity ripple during re-acceleration

where f s is current frequency at start of excitation (Hz), vi is It is necessary to decide the excitation position command
initial velocity of the mover (m/s), ts is time at start of exci- and the maximum amplitude value of current command to
tation (s), d is distance between the sensor and the coil to be drive with the open loop control. The conventional driv-
excited at current phase ϕs (m) and τ is the pole pitch (m). ing method obtained excitation position command by using

123
620
constant acceleration command to decide the excitation
position command. Then, the maximum amplitude value of
current command was driven constantly. This conventional
drive pattern was used to obtain the results shown in Fig. 4.
The motor’s required thrust force ((M + m)a) and generated
thrust force (K isinδ) are related as follows:
F = (M + m)a = K i sin δ (3)
where m is weight of the load (kg), M is the mover’s dead
weight (kg), a is acceleration (m/s2 ), i is current (A), δ is
load angle (degree) and K is thrust force coefficient (N/A).
The fact that acceleration command is constant means
constant thrust force is always generated. However, in sta-
tionary discontinuous armature PM-LSM, generated thrust
force changes as a result of the change in the magnetic pole of
the mover which is aligned with the armature. In other words,
in fact, the thrust force generated when a mover moves into
the area of the armature (entry interval) or a mover passes
through the area of the armature (ejection interval) is dif-
ferent from that generated when the mover is completely
aligned with the surface of the armature interval. Hence the
load angle varies, causing velocity ripples.
3 Suppression method of velocity ripple by constant
load angle control
3.1 Methods of suppressing velocity ripples
The balance of required thrust force and generated thrust
force is important to suppress the velocity ripple by open loop
control, because the load angle fluctuates when the balance of
required thrust force and generated thrust force becomes dis-
proportionate, and the velocity ripple occurs when the mover
changes from freewheeling to re-acceleration.
When the mover changes from freewheeling to re-acceler-
ation, the velocity ripple occurs because of the fluctuations of
the load angle [13]. Hence, maintaining a constant load angle
in (3) would eliminate the velocity ripple. In other words, we
thought that the velocity ripple that occurs during re-acceler-
ation may be suppressed by making the load angle constant.
Therefore, we used the constant load angle control method to
suppress the velocity ripple. A typical variation of the thrust
force for constant load angle control is shown in Fig. 5. The
thrust force is obtained by controlling the amplitude of the
armature current at a constant load angle. The thrust force
can be produced at the lowest electric power if the load angle
is kept at the maximum (90◦ ).
Thus, we considered that the load angle may be kept con-
stant by matching the balance of the required and generated
thrust force. Figure 6a shows the generated thrust force char-
acteristics during synchronization until the mover aligns with
the armature. The characteristics in Fig. 6a were obtained by
123
Electr Eng (2007) 89:617–627
Actuation point
I1
Thrust force F (N)
I2
I3
I4
0 π/2 π
δ = Constant Load angle d
Fig. 5 Concept of constant load angle control
measuring the static thrust force while varying the phase of
the excitation current of constant amplitude (1.3 A), and we
used the results shown in Fig. 6a to examine thrust force
coefficient. The relationship thus obtained between the thrust
force coefficient and mover’s position is shown in Fig. 6b.
This relationship was calculated from (3), using the aver-
age values from Fig. 6a. As indicated by Fig. 6b, the thrust
force coefficient varies almost linearly with the mover’s posi-
tion. Since the armature stator blocks have symmetric entry
and ejection ends, the thrust force coefficient characteristic is
symmetric as well. Thus, the variation of the thrust force coef-
ficient in the re-accelerator portion is trapezoidal, as shown
in Fig. 6c.
On the basis of this result, we obtained the required thrust
force of the stationary discontinuous armature PM-LSM by
making the acceleration that changes according to the posi-
tion of the mover change in accordance with the variation of
the thrust force coefficient [13]. The required thrust force at
every position can be found by substituting the acceleration
in accordance with the position of the mover in (3). Current
command in accordance with the position of the mover is
decided according to variation of the required thrust force at
every position in order to maintain constant load angle.
First, the maximum amplitude value of current at a con-
stant load angle (90◦ ) must be found. For this purpose, the
thrust force generated at various currents was measured. The
mover’s weight (dead weight) was 4.7 kg, the air-gap was
5.0 mm, the load angle was 90◦ and the current 0–1.3 A.
These characteristics are shown in Fig. 7. As is evident from
the characteristics, the motor’s thrust force coefficient was
52.85 N/A at the air-gap 5.0 mm. Thus, the maximum ampli-
tude value of current providing a balance between the
required and generated thrust force at a constant load angle
90◦ , even with varying acceleration command and weight
load, can be determined as follows:
(M + m)a ∗
Im = (4)
K
where a ∗ is acceleration command (m/s2 ) and K is thrust
force coefficient (N/A).
Electr Eng (2007) 89:617–627 621

(a) 100 Thrust force at each position

(b) 100

Thrust force coefficient K (N/A)

on the mover with PM 90
80 80
Thrust force F (N)

70
60 60
50
40 40
30
20 20
10
0 0
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350
Position x (mm) Position x (mm)

Direction of motion Direction of motion

(c)
coefficient K (N/A)
Thrust force

Time t (sec)

Direction of motion
Entry interval Complete Ejection interval
(Entrance end) alignment (Exit end)
of the mover
with the armature
interval

Fig. 6 Thrust force and thrust force coefficient at re-accelerator a thrust force-position during synchronization (at entry interval), b variation of
thrust force coefficient in accordance with mover’s position (at entry interval), c variation of thrust force coefficient at re-accelerator

100 o
30 i=0.503 A Load angle constant (90 ) Current
90 2 m/s2
26.6 0.503A
80 25 0.453A
Thrust force F (N)

0.403A
Thrust force F (N)

70 0.353A
20 i=0.253 A 0.303A
60 0.253A
50 0.203A
15 1.005 m/s2 0.153A
40 13.37 0.103A
0.053A
30 10 0A
20
5
10
0 0
0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 o o o o o o o o o o o o o
0 15 30 45 60 75 90 105 120 135 150 165 180
Current i (A)
Load angle d
Fig. 7 Thrust force characteristics during current variation (load angle
δ = 90◦ , air-gap g = 5.0 mm) Fig. 8 Thrust force curves at different currents (where weight load
m = 8.6 kg, mover’s dead weight M = 4.7 kg and acceleration com-
mand a ∗ = 2 m/s2 )

Now let us consider how to find the current command that

changes according to the position of the mover changes in constant load angle (90◦ ), a generated thrust force of 13.37 N
accordance with variation of the required thrust force at every is achieved at a current of 0.253 A, as shown by the dotted
position. Figure 8 shows the generated thrust force curves at line. Thus, the current command in the whole re-accelerator
different current magnitudes (weight load 8.6 kg, mover’s portion can be designed. The relationship between accelera-
dead weight 4.7 kg, acceleration command 2 m/s2 at the air- tion and current is described by the following equation:
gap 5 mm). By substituting these parameters into (4), a maxi-
Im
mum amplitude value of current of 0.503 A is obtained. Next, I ∗ (t) = ×a (5)
let us use Fig. 8 to explain the method for determining the cur- a∗
rent command for every position. For example, at some posi- where a is acceleration in accordance with the position of
tion with acceleration of 1.005 m/s2 , the required thrust force the mover (m/s2 ) and Im is maximum amplitude value of
is 13.37 N, as calculated from (3). Figure 8 indicates that, at a current (A)

123
622 Electr Eng (2007) 89:617–627

Here the experimental conditions are; acceleration command

Im* is 2 m/s2 , weight of the mover is 4.7 kg, air-gap is 5.0 mm, the
initial velocity of the mover at the onset of overlap is 1 m/s and
Current i (A)

the re-acceleration portion of the armature included one unit

324 mm long. The load angle is fixed at 90◦ and the maximum
amplitude value of current command is 0.18 A. Moreover, the
Time t (sec) acceleration command of the conventional driving method
is 1.25 m/s2 and the maximum amplitude value of current
command is constant at 1.3 A. As indicated by Fig. 10a,
Direction of motion
the constant load angle control without position feedback
Entry interval Complete Ejection interval yields better suppression of velocity ripples when the mover
(Entrance end) (Exit end)
alignment
of the mover enters re-acceleration, compared with the conventional driv-
with the armature ing method. As indicated by Fig. 10b, we discovered that
interval
unlike the conventional driving method, reduction of maxi-
Fig. 9 Current command in accordance with mover’s position at mum amplitude value of current is possible in this constant
re-accelerator (load angle δ = 90◦ const.)
load angle control without position feedback method. In order
to evaluate both methods, evaluation is performed using the
The current command at every portion is derived from characteristics of input energy. The input energy Winput J is
(5). The current commands thus obtained are shown below calculated by using (9) from the output current of phase U as
in (6) to (8), for the entry interval, complete alignment of follows:
the mover with the armature interval, and ejection interval, 
respectively: Winput = e · i u dt (9)

 
∗ Im 3vi a ∗ + 9vi a ∗2 + 6xe a ∗3 a∗
I (t) = ∗ t+ (6) where e is terminal voltage (V) and i u is output current of
a 6xe p
phase U (A).
I ∗ (t) = Im (7)

  As indicated by Fig. 10c, an input energy of 43.5 J is
Im 3vi a∗ + a ∗2
9vi + 6xc a ∗3 required with the conventional driving method, while the pro-
I ∗ (t) = − t + a∗ (8)
a∗ 6xc posed constant load angle control without position feedback
method requires only 5.4 J. Therefore, we found that during
where vi is initial velocity of the mover (beginning of the re-acceleration, 87.6% of the maximum amplitude value of
overlap) (m/s), p is the number of poles on the mover (poles), current can be reduced. From these results, it became clear
xe is the distance from the excitation start point to com- that, with the proposed method, a far lower energy input is
plete alignment of the mover with the armature (m) and xc necessary than with the conventional driving method.
is the distance from complete alignment of the mover with Next, as shown in Fig. 11, we examined the re-accelera-
the armature to complete departure of the mover from the tion characteristics using constant load angle control with-
armature (m). out position feedback. At this time, two short armature units
Therefore, the current command in the re-accelerator were used for the purpose of increasing transportation veloc-
becomes the one that is shown in Fig. 9 from the relationships ity at the re-acceleration portion. Moreover, we placed the
of Fig. 8. weight load on the mover and examined the re-accelera-
tion characteristics. Graph (a) in Fig. 11 shows the velocity-
3.2 Experimental verification of velocity ripple suppression position characteristics during re-acceleration when there is
method no load, and graph (b) shows the velocity-position charac-
teristics during re-acceleration when a weight load is applied.
The re-acceleration characteristics of the mover using con- The experimental conditions were the same as those of
stant load angle control without position feedback are shown Fig. 10. However, the re-acceleration portion of the armature
in Fig. 10. Graph (a) in Fig. 10 shows the velocity-position included two units 714 mm long. Moreover, the weight load
characteristics during re-acceleration, graph (b) shows the and maximum amplitude value of current command were
output current waveform, and graph (c) shows the input 0 kg and 0.18 A for Fig. 11a, and 28.2 kg and 1.245 A for
energy during re-acceleration in both methods. Moreover, Fig. 11b, respectively. As indicated by Fig. 11a, we could
the comparison of the constant load angle control without confirm that a stable re-acceleration of the control is possi-
position feedback and the characteristics using the conven- ble without position feedback, even when using two short
tional driving method are shown altogether in each figure. armature units. Furthermore, as indicated by Fig. 11b, the

123
Electr Eng (2007) 89:617–627 623

(a) 2.5 Measured value

(b) 2.0 Constant load angle control without
Conventional driving method
1.5 position feedback a* = 2 m/s2
Theoretical value a* = 1.25 m/s2
2.0
1.0
Ve locity v (m/s)

Current iu (A)
1.5 0.5
0.0
1.0 -0.5 0 100 200 300 400 500 600
Constant load angle control without
position feedback a* = 2 m/s2 -1.0
0.5
-1.5 Conventional driving method
a* = 1.25 m/s2
0.0 -2.0
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500 550 600 Position x (mm)
Position x (mm)

Direction of motion
Direction of motion

(c) 100
(1) Constant load angle control without position feedback a* = 2 m/s2
90
(2) Conventional driving method a* = 1.25 m/s2
80
Input energy Winput (J)

70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
(1) (2)

Fig. 10 Re-acceleration characteristics when there is no load using constant load angle control without position feedback (m = 0 kg, a ∗ = 2 m/s2 ).
a Velocity-position characteristics during re-acceleration, b output current waveform, c input energy during re-acceleration in both methods

(a) 2.5 Measured value

(b) 2.5 Measured value
Theoretical value Theoretical value
2.0 2.0
Velocity v (m/s)

Velocity v (m/s)

1.5 1.5

1.0 1.0

0.5 0.5

0.0 0.0
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000
Position x (mm) Position x (mm)

Direction of motion Direction of motion

Fig. 11 Re-acceleration characteristics using constant load angle control without position feedback with two short armature units (a ∗ = 2 m/s2 ).
a Velocity-position characteristics when there is no load, b velocity-position characteristics in the case where weight load m = 28.2 kg

velocity-position characteristics confirm that stable re-accel- PM-LSM, the attractive force produced between the arma-
eration characteristics are obtained with a weight load. ture’s core and mover’s permanent magnet fluctuates highly.
However, the measured values for the mover’s velocity The attractive force produced at the entry interval operates in
are higher than the theoretical values at the entry interval the same direction as the mover. That is, the mover is acceler-
and lower than those values at ejection interval. This may be ated by the force that pulls in the mover to the armature area.
attributed to the attraction force at the outlet edge which exists On the other hand, the attractive force generated at the ejec-
as a result of the discontinuous arrangement of the arma- tion interval operates in the opposite direction to the mover.
ture and friction in the support mechanism. Figure 12 shows In other words, the mover becomes decelerated by the force,
forces exerted in the mover at the outlet edge. In Fig. 12, which pulls back a mover to the armature area. Therefore, we
we can see that the force generated at the outlet edge has assumed that the variation of the velocity that occurs with the
an effect on a mover. If a mover goes through the bound- constant load angle control without position feedback by the
ary between the installation part and the non-installation outlet edge may be caused by disregarding such boundary
part of the armature at stationary discontinuous armature phenomena.

123
624 Electr Eng (2007) 89:617–627

Fig. 12 Forces exerted in the

(a) Mover
(b) Mover
mover at outlet edge. a Entry
Cogging force Cogging force
interval, b ejection interval At

Normal force
Normal force
Permanent magnet tra e Permanent magnet
cti f orc
ve ve
fo
rce ra cti
t
At
z

y x Armature unit Armature unit

Direction of motion Direction of motion

4 Effect of the stationary discontinuous armature x0

PM-LSM at the outlet edge
4.1 Outlet edge cogging force
To examine the effect of cogging force at the outlet edge,
an analytical result obtained by the general-purpose elec-
tromagnetic field analysis software (JMAG-Studio) and an
experiment result value obtained by the experiment are used
and examined. The method of measurement is as follows:
after setting an air-gap of 5 mm between the armature and the
mover, the mover goes into the armature area in a moment
when there is incomplete alignment between them and a mea-
surement device makes it move to the section that goes com-
pletely out of the armature area in every 2 mm. The position
of the mover was measured by using an absolute linear scale
and the cogging force was measured by using a load cell
(a transducer which force converts into a measurable elec-
trical output) of 98 N. Then, we made half models by using
the general-purpose electromagnetic field analysis software
and analyzed them in three dimensions. The number of ele-
ments is 80,022, and the number of nodes is 92,464. The
amount of the movement per one step is an interval of 2 mm.
Figure 13 shows the three-dimensional analyzed model used
for the analysis. The experiment results and analytical results
of cogging force at the outlet edge are shown in Fig. 14. As
indicated by Fig. 14, when the air-gap is 5 mm, a maximum
cogging force at the entry and ejection intervals of 10.1 N is
generated in the case of the experimental result whereas the
force generated in the case of the analytical result is 9.7 N.
Based on these results, the energy of cogging force that is
generated at each outlet edge is calculated as follows:
Wcentry−interval = Fcentry (x)dx (10)
0
x2
Wcejection−interval = Fcejection (x)dx (11)
x1
where Fc (x) is each outlet edge cogging force (N), x0 is the
position of complete alignment of the mover with the arma-
ture (m), x1 is the position immediately before the mover
passes the exit end of the armature (m) and x2 is the position
of the mover after it has completely passed the exit end of
the armature (m).
From the calculation result, the energy of cogging force
at the entry interval is 1.209 J in the case of the experimental
result and 1.113 J in the case of the analytical result. More-
over, the energy of cogging force at the ejection interval is
1.335 J in the case of the experimental result and 1.228 J in
the case of the analytical result. We found that, when the
constant amplitude is 0.18 A, a maximum energy of 2.746 J
is generated at the entry interval and, moreover, a cogging
force energy of 1.209 J is generated. At the same time, a max-
imum energy of 3.005 J is generated at the ejection interval
and, moreover, a cogging force energy of 1.335 J is generated.
4.2 Relationship of generated energy in movement
of mover
The relationship of the output energy to the input energy is
examined by using the experiment result of Fig. 11a.
Figure 15 shows the output energy in relation to the input
energy. The input energy was calculated by using (12) and
the output energy was calculated by using (13) as follows:

Permanent magnet (S)

Back iron
x2 x2
Permanent magnet (N) Winput = F(x)dx = (M + m)adx (12)
z
0 0
y x
1
Phase v (coil) Woutput = (M + m)(v 2 − vi2 ) (13)
Phase w (coil) 2
Phase u (coil)
Silicon steel lamination
where F(x) is required thrust of the motor (N) and v is
Fig. 13 Three-dimensional analyzed model velocity of the mover (m/s).

123
Electr Eng (2007) 89:617–627 625

(a) 16 Measured value (b) 2

14 3D Analytic value 0
12 -2680 700 720 740 760 780 800 820 840 860 880 900 920 940 960 980
Cogging force Fc (N)

Cogging force Fc (N)

10 -4
8 -6
6 -8
4 -10
2 -12
0 -14
Measured value
3D Analytic value
-2 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 220 240 260 280 300 320 340 -16
Position x (mm) Position x (mm)
Direction of motion Direction of motion

Fig. 14 Outlet edge cogging force. a Entry interval, b ejection interval

10
Output energy that the energy loss occurs at each outlet edge. We examined
8 Input energy the energy loss at each outlet edge by using (14) and (15) as
6
follows:
Energy W (J)

4 x0  
1
2 Wkentry−interval = F(x)dx − (M + m) v 2 − vi2
2
0 0
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000
-2 x0 x0
Position x (mm)
= (M + m)adx + Fcentry (x)
Direction of motion 0 0

1  
Fig. 15 Output energy in relation to the input energy − (M + m) v 2 − vi2 (14)
2

As indicated by Fig. 15, we discovered that the output x2  

1
energy exceeds the input energy until the mover moves into Wkejection−interval = F(x)dx − (M + m) v 2 − vi2
2
the armature area and before passes through the armature x1
area. Moreover, the output energy falls below the input energy
x2 x2
at the same time as the mover passes through the armature
= (M + m)adx − Fcejection (x)
area. We examined the ratio of the energy that was involved in
x1 x1
the movement of the mover at the outlet edge and the energy
generated by the outlet edge. Figure 16 shows the ratio of the 1  
energy that was involved in the movement of the mover at − (M + m) v 2 − vi2 (15)
2
the outlet edge. As indicated by Fig. 16, the output energy
at the entry interval is expected to become equivalent to the As a result of calculating energy loss, an energy loss
energy of the cogging force generated in the same direction of 0.86 J occurred at the entry interval and a loss of 1.04 J
as the direction of motion of the mover in conjunction with occurred at the ejection interval. We thought that these energy
the input energy, and the output is indicated by the dotted losses were caused by the frictional force. From these results,
line of Fig. 16a. However, the actual output energy at the we found that the output energy was 0.349 J higher than the
entry interval falls below the combination of the input energy input energy as a result of those effects at the entry inter-
and the energy of the cogging force. On the other hand, the val. Moreover, the output energy was 2.375 J lower than the
output energy at the ejection interval is expected to become input energy as a result of those effects at the ejection inter-
equivalent to the energy of the cogging force generated in val. Thus, we thought that the variation of velocity occurs at
the opposite direction of the mover in conjunction with the the outlet edge as a result of the constant load angle control
input energy, and the output is indicated by the dotted line without position feedback as proposed in this paper which
of Fig. 16b. However, the actual output energy at the ejec- was influenced by the outlet edge cogging force and the fric-
tion interval falls below the difference of the input energy tional force because the effect at the outlet edge has not been
and the energy of the cogging force. As a result, we found considered.

123
626
(a) 3.0 Output energy
2.5 Input energy
Input energy + Energy of cogging force
2.0
Energy Wentry (J)
1.5
1.0
0.5
0.0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 220 240 260 280
-0.5
Position x (mm)
Direction of motion
Fig. 16 Ratio of the energy involved in the movement of the mover at each outlet edge. a Entry interval, b ejection interval
5 Conclusion
Through the examination of the characteristics of re-
acceleration using the suppression method of the velocity rip-
ple by constant load angle control without position feedback
as proposed in this paper, we were able to achieve synchro-
nization without step-out, and also suppression of mover’s
velocity ripple which enabled more stable driving. Further-
more, we could confirm that, by knowing the weight of load
in the mover, a stable re-acceleration of the control is possible
without position feedback. In addition, the proposed method
gives a lower maximum current. By comparing the input
energy, we found that during re-acceleration, 87.6% of the
maximum amplitude value of current can be reduced. From
these results, the driving method as proposed in this paper
has shown a more stable re-acceleration than the conven-
tional driving method, and improvement of the effectiveness
of the entire system was achieved. However, the constant
load angle control without position feedback as proposed
in this paper suffers from some variation of velocity during
entry and ejection intervals. Thus, we examined the varia-
tion of velocity that occurs at the outlet edge. To investigate
the reason for this variation, we examined forces that are
generated at each outlet edge. As a result, we found that
the energy of cogging force at the entry interval operates
with 43.99% of maximum energy with constant amplitude
0.18 A, and the energy of cogging force at the ejection inter-
val operates with 44.43% of maximum energy with constant
amplitude 0.18 A. Moreover, we found that the energy loss
of 0.86 J occurs at the entry interval and 1.04 J occurs at the
ejection interval as a result of the frictional force. There-
fore, we thought that the velocity variation which occurred
at each outlet edge was influenced by the outlet edge cog-
ging force and the frictional force mechanically. From these
results, we think that velocity variation that occurs at the
outlet edge may be reduced by considering the effect of the
outlet edge cogging force and frictional force in the motion
equation.
123
Electr Eng (2007) 89:617–627
(b) 7.5
7.0
6.5
Energy Wejection (J)
6.0
5.5
5.0
Output energy
4.5 Input energy
Input energy - Energy of cogging force
4.0
700 720 740 760 780 800 820 840 860 880 900 920 940 960 980
Position x (mm)
Direction of motion
Generally, the cost of linear motors is expensive. However,
the cost can be reduced by the adaptation of a stationary dis-
continuous armature PM-LSM. Therefore, this device could
be applied in various transportation system fields such as
vehicles, liquid crystal related display systems and semicon-
ductor systems, etc.
References
1. Karita M (2001) Present status of linear drives for industry appli-
cations in Japan. In: Proc IEEJ conf linear drives for industry appli-
cations, pp 462–467
2. Laugis J, Lehtla T (1997) Control of special purpose linear drives.
In:7th European conf on power electronics and applications 3, pp
541–546
3. Deng Z, Boldea I, Nasar SA (1987) Force and parameters of per-
manent magnet linear synchronous motor. IEEE Trans Magn MAG
23(1): 305–309
4. Xiong G, Nasar SA (1989) Analysis of fields and forces in a per-
manent magnet linear synchronous machine based on the concept
of magnetic charge. IEEE Trans Magn 25(3): 2713–2719
5. Mizuno T, Yamada H (1992) Magnetic circuit analysis of a linear
synchronous motor with permanent magnets. IEEE Trans Magn
28(5): 3027–3029
6. Akmese R, Eastham JF (1992) Design of permanent magnet flat
linear motors for standstill applications. IEEE Trans Magn 28(5):
3042–3044
7. Sanada M, Morimoto S, Takeda Y (1997) Interior permanent mag-
net linear synchronous motor for high-performance drives. IEEE
Trans Ind Appl 33(4): 966–972
8. Azukizawa T (2003) Status of linear drives in Japan. In:Proc IEEJ
conf linear drives for industry applications, pp 12–19
9. Seki K, Watada M, Torii S, Ebihara D (1997) Discontinuous
arrangement to long stator linear synchronous motor for transpor-
tation system. In:Proc IEEE conf on Power electronics and drive
systems, pp 697–702
10. Seki K, Watada M, Torii S, Ebihara D (1997) Experimental Device
of long stator LSM with discontinuous arrangement and result.
In:7th European conf on power electronics and applications 3, pp
541–546
11. Kajioka M, Oka K, Watada M, Torii S, Ebihara D (2000) Optimal
drive control timing in discontinuous arranged linear synchronous
motor transfer system. In:Proc conf on power electronics electrical
drives automation & motion, pp A2–25–A2–30
Electr Eng (2007) 89:617–627 627

12. Endou A, Watada M, Torii S, Ebihara D (2000) The various char-
acters by the establishment angle of the carriage course of the PM-
LSM with discontinuous arrangement primary. In:IEE Japan, the
papers of technical meeting of linear drives, LD-00-91 (in Japa-
nese)
13. Kim YJ, Watada M, Torii S, Ebihara D (2002) A study of the
discontinuous primary linear synchronous motor in order to
decrease the vibration. In:Proc conf on electrical engineering II,
pp 908–912

123