Design of an integrated propulsion, guidance, and levitation system by magnetically excited transverse flux linear motor (TFM-LM)

A magnetically levitated vehicle dedicated for transportation systems requires propulsion, guidance, and levitation forces. The components used to generate these forces, such as linear motors and magnets, must have less mass especially because the magnetically levitated vehicle has to carry its own linear motor and magnet. In this paper, an integrated propulsion, guidance, and levitation system by magnetically excited transverse flux linear motor (TFM-LM) with high force and high efficiency is introduced. Analytical equations with one-dimensional magnetic equivalent circuit are developed to predict the propulsion force and to guide the design of TFM-LM. A three-dimensional (3-D) finite-element (FE) program calculates the propulsion force, the guidance force, and the levitation force of TFM-LM also, in order to verify the given specification. To verify the results of 3-D FE calculation, the computed propulsion force, guidance force, and levitation force are compared with the experimentally measured forces detected on the experimental setup. The calculated and measured performances of TFM-LM reveal a high potential of mass reduction for magnetic-levitated vehicles.