Parametric Investigation of the Core Geometry of an IPMSM to Reduce Vibrations

Electrification has been a significant trend in the automotive industry for the past decades, but only during recent years electric vehicles have started being manufactured on a mass scale. The need of virtual improvement practices to reduce development costs and obtain best in class performances, coupled with the relatively new mass implementation of electric motors as traction sources on vehicles, drives the pursuit of best practices to deliver improved vibration performances with the help of computer aided engineering. This thesis reviews the state of the art of electric traction motor for passenger vehicles, analyzing their sources of vibrations and evaluating different strategies to mitigate them. The proposed solution is a parametric study based on a multiphysics model aimed at minimizing vibrations of the stator teeth, by acting on some key geometric parameters which define elements of the electric machine core. The goal is to minimize the effect of the electromagnetic forces acting on the stator teeth, over a range of rotational speeds that simulates real working condition of a passenger vehicle traction motor, which in turns allows to mitigate the vibrations of the motor and improve comfort of driver and occupants.