Prototype Tests of Segment-type Outer-Rotor PM motor

This paper presents a novel outer-rotor high-speed permanent magnet (PM) motor with a segmented-shaped rotor. The proposed segment-type PM motor can use reluctance torque in addition to conventional magnet torque. Furthermore, it can remarkably reduce eddy current loss in permanent magnets even though the rotor has sintered Nd-Fe-B magnets. In order to prove the validity, the proposed PM motor is compared to a conventional PM motor by using a three-dimensional finite element method (3D-FEM). Moreover, the prototype tests of the proposed PM motor are conducted. The calculated and measured results prove the validity and usefulness of the proposed segment-type outer-rotor PM motor.