Classification Method to Define Synchronization Capability Limits of Line-Start Permanent-Magnet Motor Using Mesh-Based Magnetic Equivalent Circuit Computation Results

Line start permanent magnet synchronous motors (LS-PMSM) are energy-efficient synchronous motors that can start asynchronously due to a squirrel cage in the rotor. The drawback, however, with this motor type is the chance of failure to synchronize after start-up. To identify the problem, and the stable operation limits, the synchronization at various parameter combinations is investigated. For accurate knowledge of the operation limits to assure synchronization with the utility grid, an accurate classification of parameter combinations is needed. As for this, many simulations have to be executed, a rapid evaluation method is indispensable. To simulate the dynamic behavior in the time domain, several modeling methods exist. In this paper, a discussion is held with respect to different modeling methods. In order to include spatial factors and magnetic nonlinearities, on the one hand, and to restrict the computation time on the other hand, a magnetic equivalent circuit (MEC) modeling method is developed. In order to accelerate numerical convergence, a mesh-based analysis method is applied. The novelty in this paper is the implementation of support vector machine (SVM) to classify the results of simulations at various parameter combinations into successful or unsuccessful synchronization, in order to define the synchronization capability limits. It is explained how these techniques can benefit the simulation time and the evaluation process. The results of the MEC modeling correspond to those obtained with finite element analysis (FEA), despite the reduced computation time. In addition, simulation results obtained with MEC modeling are experimentally validated.