Performance prediction of single phase induction motors using field and thermal models

The paper describes a software package for modeling a single-phase induction motor. The authors have developed a software package, in which the performance parameters of a capacitor start and capacitor run single-phase induction motor is evaluated. The inductance parameters and the core loss are evaluated mostly by using finite element (FE) field calculation technique and partly by some standard empirical formulae. The secondary resistance is estimated by using lumped parameter circuits which take into account the deep bar effects. The performance characteristics of the machine are then estimated by solving the equivalent circuit. The steady state and transient thermal characteristics of the motor is also estimated from a lumped parameter thermal model. Experiments were performed on a 3.5 H.P. capacitor run single-phase induction motor and the simulated results were verified with experimental data. It was found that the software gave a satisfactory estimation of the single-phase induction motor examined. The software uses all the motor dimensions as input data for the field and thermal models, so it is useful at the design stage for performance prediction of the designed machine.