Types of EV Motor 7
Electric Motor: It is the one that converts the energy from the battery i.e. Electrical energy to Mechanical energy which can be used to drive the wheels in electric vehicles.
Various types of EV motor used in electric vehicles:
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DC Motors
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BLDC Motors(Brushless DC Motors)
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PMSM(Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor)
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Induction Motor
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SRM(Switch Reluctance Motor)
1.DC Series Motors: This is very basic types of ev motor. DC motors were most widely used motor for the traction application in the early 1900’s and because of its highest starting torque, its easy speed control and its capability to withstand the sudden increase in load, these motors are still used in our Indian Railways but Brushes and commutators are used in DC motors. So there in sparking at breast side and because of by which brushes are dying day by day, so there is need to replace brushes and because of this the frequency of changing the brushes, maintenance is very high and this is the biggest disadvantage of DC motors and another thing is its speed regulation is quite poor so that’s why this motor is used for Indian Railways only. Advantages:
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Simpler Installation
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Generally a low cost motor option.
Disadvantages:
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Limited lifetime due to friction wear of the brushes.
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Need converters to supply power to the motor.
2.BLDC Motors(Brushless DC Motors): This motor is upgraded version of DC Motors. This DC motor replaced the rotor with the permanent magnets so there is no need of brushes and commutators and that’s why these motors are called Brushless DC Motors. AS the brushes are not there, the BLDC motors are able to rotate at high speed and they are of course very highly efficient compared to DC motors.BLDC motors running speed is a synchronous speed and its rotor is a permanent magnet. Three hall sensors are used in BLDC motors. BLDC used in light weight vehicles such as kinetic Green, three wheeler such as pigo and Volta automotive. Advantages:
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No sparks and less noise, as the brushes are absent.
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Less maintenance is needed.
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Its efficiency is quiet high,it is 85-90.
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Reduced size of the motor.
Disadvantages:
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High cost of permanent magnets
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High heat weakens magnets.
BLDC Motors in context of e vehicles: There are two types of BLDC Motors:
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Out runner type BLDC Motor:
The specialty of this motor is its rotor
is outside and stator is inside. Because
of this construction this motor are also known as Hub motors because the wheels
are directly connected to the exterior rotor. These types of motors
doesn’t require the external gears systems. Some motors itself has the planetary gear that’s why these motors are choice of many
electric cycle manufacturers like lightspeed bicycle. Also this is the choice
of many two wheeler manufacturers like
22 motors and nds Eco motors.
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In runner type BLDC Motor:
These motors are like conventional motors. Its rotor is inside and stator is outside. As a rotor is inside, it needs the external transmission system to transmit its power to the wheels and because of this the Out runner configuration in quiet bulky compared to In runner configuration.BLDC In runner type used in ather scooter. 3)PMSM(Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor): PMSM is an AC Synchronous Motor.As there is no major difference between BLDC and PMSM motors when it comes to construction and the motor control system but the only difference is nature of driving current and the detection of the position of rotor as the BLDC motor is working on the DC sources and the PMSM motor is working on the AC sources. We are using three hall sensors for the detection of rotor position in BLDC motors and only single hall sensor is used for PMSM otherwise PMSM and BLDC motors are quite similar. Many automobile manufacturers are using this motor in their hybrid e-vehicles Toyota, Nissan leaf,bmwi3,they are using the motor of PMSM as the traction motor. Advantages:
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Permanent magnets are smaller in size.
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Because of absence of torque ripple, it makes these motors more efficient than BLDC Motors.
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High Power Density
Disadvantage:
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High cost
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Risk of demagnetization
4)Induction Motor: This motor is having very simple construction. It requires very less maintenance compared to other motors. There are no brushes so there are very low losses. As there is no permanent magnet the speed control of this induction motor is quiet easy and as there is no any position sensor, we don't require any switches. The overall complexity Is very much less as compared to other motors. But the only thing is this is not the lightest and the most compact motor amongst other motors. But when it comes to application, it is used in many e-cars. Tesla is one of the leading company which is using the induction motor as a traction motor for the propulsion in their electric cars and Tesla Model S is the quiet good example of Induction motor. Mahindra Reva e2o also uses a three phase induction motor for its propulsion. Tata motors are planning to use induction motor in their cars and buses even the two wheeler manufacturers like TVS, it will launch its scooter which will use induction motor for propulsion. Induction motor are very preferable choice for performance oriented vehicles due to its cheap cost. Due to these factor, the Indian railway has started replacing the dc series motor with induction motor. Advantages:
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Induction Motors are robust and can operate in any environmental condition
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Induction motors are cheaper in cost due to the absence of brushes,commutators
Disadvantages:
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Three phase induction motor have poor starting torque and high inrush currents.
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Power factor is low during light load.
5)SRM(Switch Reluctance Motor): This is very good and power electronics based motors. This motor falls under the category of variable Reluctance motor.It is very simple in construction and a very robust mechanisms. It is very suitable for the high speed application. It offers a very high power density which is the requirement of today’s electric vehicles, this is because of its simple construction. It is very easy to cool the motor.Once SRM enters the commercial market, it can replace PMSM and Induction motor in future. Tesla model 3 uses the IPM(Internal Permanent Model)SRM. Advantages:
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Self starting
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High efficiency
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Less heat
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Doesn’t require DC supply
Disadvantages:
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Complexity in control
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Noise level is high
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