Efficiency Measuring of Electric Drive with Traction Synchronous Motor with Permanent Magnets

Traction drives are the main propulsion drives for electric vehicles. Electric vehicles need to operate with the maximum available drive efficiency to maximise driving range per a single charge. Research into advanced traction electric propulsion for vehicles is still asking for data on individual electric drive components' efficiency. Available data on the efficiency of electrical components from manufacturers and suppliers are often relatively difficult to obtain. Other ways to obtain data on drive components' efficiency are results from simulations using mathematical models and results from efficiency measurements. As part of this work, an experiment was conducted to measure an electric drive's efficiency consisting of a three-phase controller and a permanent magnet synchronous motor on an available test bench equipped with an electric dynamometer and a torque sensor. A power analyser was used to measure and process electrical and mechanical quantities in the experiment. The experiment resulted in separate maps of the efficiency of the electric drive, controller and motor.