Improvement of the back-EMF production capability of a hybrid-excited CPA

The paper is devoted to the improvement of the back-EMF production capability of a hybrid-excited claw pole alternator (HECPA) which has been introduced in a previous work. The concept was equipped by ferrite PMs in both stator and rotor. The improvement of the back-EMF production capability is gained thanks to the substitution of the ferrite PM linked to the rotor by a rare earth one. The study is initiated by the description of the HECPA concept and the analysis of the no-load flux paths generated by the rotor excitation and the stator ones. The investigation of the influence of the rotor PM substitution on the HECPA no-load features is carried out by a variable position magnetic equivalent circuit (MEC) whose results are validated by 3D finite element analysis (FEA).