Zero-power control of magnetic levitation vehicles with permanent magnets

This paper deals with the zero-power control of magnetic levitation (maglev) vehicles that use permanent magnets as well as electromagnets for levitation. The nominal load is levitated by permanent magnet and the current consumption for stable levitation can be reduced. In order to guarantee the tracking capability, the proposed controller is based on the state feedback controller and modified to balance attraction force and total weight. The commanded voltage is used instead of the coil current in the feedback loop so that the current measurement can be avoided. A full-scale hybrid maglev tester was constructed and some experiments were carried out to show the performance of the proposed method.