Numerical and experimental determination of brushless DC motor electromagnetic characteristics

A two-dimensional electromagnetic model of a brushless DC motor is established, based on finite elements methods. The model accounts for the geometry of the structure, the type and the non-linearity of the material utilised. This model allows characteristics prediction for further machine optimization. The significant feature of the machine is that the axial length is lower than the outer diameter. The method used, though based on a two-dimensional finite element approach, has shown that the model developed is of a sufficient accuracy, without going into more complex 3D analysis. The latter would have led to excessive data input and time consumption. In addition, as the computer has calculus power limitations, the descretization process is then restricted to a given number.