Design of a linear switched reluctance machine

A standard design procedure for a single sided and longitudinal flux based linear switched reluctance machine is developed in this paper. The proposed design procedure utilises the rotating switched reluctance machine design by converting the specifications of the linear machine in to the equivalent rotary machine. The machine design is carried out in the rotary domain which is then transformed back in to the linear domain. Such a procedure brings to bear the knowledge base and familiarity of the rotary machine designers to design a linear machine effectively. The paper contains the illustration of the proposed design procedure for a 4.8 m long prototype. An analysis procedure is developed with a magnetic model and results from it are verified with finite element analysis prior to construction of the prototype. Extensive experimental correlation in the form of inductance vs. position vs. current and propulsion force vs. position vs. current to validate the analysis and design procedure is given in the paper.