Design and control of a disk-type integrated motor-bearing system

A disk-type integrated motor-bearing system having axial magnetic flux is newly invented and its design, analysis, and control methods are presented. Sinusoidal motoring currents to four symmetrically placed winding groups produce a torque, whereas control currents of the same magnitude but opposite signs added to the opposite winding groups create radial forces. The control currents are intended to break force symmetry, resulting in unbalanced radial forces. The system employs two stators not only to effectively remove the rotational frequency modulation effect in the radial control forces, but also to reduce the torque ripple. It is shown that the prototype integrated motor-bearing system built in the laboratory succeeds in stable radial direction control and operation of the rotor.