Design of an Eddy Current Brake System Using Microstructures

For the design of the eddy current brake system, this study presents the optimization method using a microstructure concept. The proposed microstructure is a sort of a stacked composite composed of a very thin ferromagnetic membrane and paramagnetic materials and its exact geometry is calculated based on the homogenization theory. The layered structures of the composites are attached to the left and the right sides of the yoke of a brake system and are expected to play a role as a guide to control the magnetic field. The appropriate change of the arranged direction of each composite in the design domain helps the increase of the braking force by modulating the magnetic flux flow. To determine the optimal arrangement directions of the composites, we use the numerical optimization techniques such as the sequential linear programming and the adjoint variable method. The analysis of the magnetic system is based on the two-dimensional finite element analysis.