Investigation of Exterior Rotor Bearingless Motor Topologies for High-Quality Mixing Applications

The selection of a suitable topology is a crucial part of the design process of a machine. In particular, the slot/pole combination of a bearingless motor has a strong influence on the levitation and drive characteristics. In this paper, several feasible slot/pole combinations for a bearingless motor in exterior rotor construction are investigated, and the important characteristics of each possible topology are discussed in detail. In the end, a comparison between the presented topologies is undertaken, and the optimal motor topology is designed and implemented in a prototype setup.