Magnetic force characteristics enhancement by a novel permanent magnetic levitation (PML) analysis method for hybrid maglev

•An optimized Halbach structure designed for repulsive force was proposed.•The dimension relationship among magnet rail, permanent magnets on the vehicle, and lateral movement has been put forward.•With the new Halbach structure, both the stability and load-capacity of the permanent magnetic levitation were improved. The hybrid maglev system taking advantage of better carrying capacity in permanent magnetic levitation (PML) and self-stability in superconducting magnetic levitation (SML) has been put forward. PML and SML can share the same magnet rail, which is arranged in Halbach arrays to concentrate the magnetic field on the working region and save magnet materials. Recently, the manned hybrid maglev prototype has been built in Chengdu, China. In this paper, we focus on the PML part, in which the characteristics of the levitation force and the lateral force were studied since they are key factors for load capacity and stability. The research was carried out with both analytic expressions and finite element method. With the relationship between magnetic force and lateral displacement, the recommended maximum lateral displacement was proposed. In addition, considering the end effect of Halbach array, an optimization PML model was designed, which can not only improve the levitation force but also reduce the lateral force. The study offers a reference for the further design and optimization on the PML or the hybrid maglev system involving it.