Adaptive laser machining and synchronous reluctance machine design

It is well-known that the method selected to cut electrical steel laminations, for example, stamping, EDM or laser cutting, damages the magnetic properties of the electrical steel. Said damage can arise from various mechanisms including mechanical and thermal stresses and is challenging to model accurately. In the design of electrical machines the additional loss that arises from the lamination manufacture is captured through a build factor. In this paper, the damage to electrical steel magnetic properties imparted by laser cutting is experimentally studied. It is found that the laser cutting parameters influence the level of detriment to magnetic properties which could be of benefit in creating mechanically robust but magnetically inert bridges in synchronous reluctance rotor designs. The feasibility and potential performance benefits of such a manufacturing approach are investigated, showing potential torque improvements at low electrical load.