D.C.

MOTOR

Motor Principle
- An Electric motor is a machine which converts electric energy into
mechanical energy.

- Its action is based on the principle that when a current-carrying

conductor is placed in a magnetic field, it experiences a mechanical force
whose direction is given by Flemings Left-hand Rule.
- Constructionally, there is no basic difference between a d.c. generator
and a d.c. motor. In fact, the same d.c. machine can be used
interchangeably as a generator or as a motor.
- When its field magnets are excited and its armature conductors are
supplied with current from the supply mains, they experience a force
tending to rotate the armature.
- Armature conductors under N-pole are assumed to carry current
downwards (crosses) and those under S-poles, to carry current upwards
(dots). By applying Flemings Left-hand Rule, the direction of the force on
each conductor can be found. It is shown by small arrows placed above
each conductor.

Significance of the Back e.m.f.

- when the motor armature rotates, the conductors also rotate and hence cut the flux. In
accordance with the laws of electromagnetic induction, e.m.f. is induced in them whose
direction, as found by Flemings Right hand Rule, is in opposition to the applied voltage

- Because of its opposing direction, it is referred to as counter e.m.f. or back e.m.f..Eb

The equivalent circuit of a motor

- The rotating armature generating the back e.m.f. Eb is like a battery of e.m.f. Eb put across a
supply mains of V volts.

- V has to drive Ia against the opposition of Eb.

- The power required to overcome this opposition is EbIa

where Ra is the resistance of the armature circuit.

- Back e.m.f. depends, among other factors, upon the armature speed. If speed is high, Eb is
large, hence armature current Ia is small. If the speed is less, then Eb is less, hence more
current flows which develops motor torque

Voltage Equation of a Motor

The voltage V applied across the motor armature has to:

*This is known as voltage equation of a motor.

Now, multiplying both sides by Ia, we get:

= +

=Electrical input to the armature

= Electrical equivalent of mechanical power developed in the armature
= Cu loss in the armature

Hence, out of the armature input, some is

wasted in loss and the rest is
converted into mechanical power within
the armature.

Condition for Maximum Power

The gross mechanical power developed by a motor is:

= 2

Differentiating both sides with respect to Ia and equating the result to zero, we get

= 2
Since

Therefore,

= +

And

= 2

= 2

Thus gross mechanical power developed by a motor is maximum when back e.m.f. is
equal to half the applied voltage.
This condition is, however, not realized in practice, because in that case current would be
much beyond the normal current of the motor. Moreover, half the input would be wasted in
the form of heat and taking other losses (mechanical and magnetic) into consideration, the
motor efficiency will be well below 50 percent.

Power Stages in DC motors

The various stages of energy transformation in a motor and also the various losses occurring
in it are shown in the flow diagram below:

From above, it is seen that A B = copper losses and B C = iron and friction losses.

A.C. MOTOR

Classification of A.C. Motors

- With the almost universal adoption of a.c. system of distribution of electric energy for light and
power, the field of application of a.c. motors has widened considerably during recent years.
- As a result, motor manufactures have tried, over the last few decades, to perfect various
types of a.c. motors suitable for all classes of industrial drives and for both single and threephase a.c. supply.
- This has given rise to bewildering multiplicity of types whose proper classification often offers
considerable difficulty. Different a.c. motors may, however, be classified and divided into
various groups from the following different points of view :

With regard to current type:

1) single phase
2) three phase

With regard to :their speed

1) constant speed
2) variable speed
3) adjustable speed

With regard to their structural

features:
1)

open

2)

enclosed

3)

semi-enclosed

4)

ventilated

5)

pipe-ventilated

6)

riverted frame eye

Induction Motor: principle of operation

- As a general rule, conversion of electrical power into mechanical power takes place in the
rotating part of an electric motor.
- In d.c. motors, the electric power is conducted directly to the armature (i.e. rotating part)
through brushes and commutator

- Hence, in this sense, a d.c. motor can be called a conduction motor. However, in a.c. motors,
the rotor does not receive electric power by conduction but by induction in exactly the same
way as the secondary of a 2-winding transformer receives its power from the primary.
- That is why such motors are known as induction motors. In fact, an induction motor can be
treated as a rotating transformer i.e. one in which primary winding is stationary but the
secondary is free to rotate

Induction motor: Construction

-

An induction motor consists essentially of two main parts : (a) stator, and (b) rotor.

(a) Stator
-

It is made up of a number of stampings, which are slotted to receive the windings.

It is wound for a definite number of poles*, the exact number of poles being determined by
the requirements of speed. Greater the number of poles, lesser the speed and vice versa.

The stator windings, when supplied with current, produce a magnetic flux, which is of
constant magnitude but revolves (or rotates) at synchronous speed (given by Ns = 120
f/P). This revolving magnetic flux induces an e.m.f. in the rotor by mutual induction.

Construction continues
(b) Rotor
(i) Squirrel-cage rotor : Motors employing this type of rotor are known as squirrel-cage
induction motors.
(ii) Phase-wound or wound rotor : Motors employing this type of rotor are variously known as
phase-wound motors or wound motors or as slip-ring motors.

Almost 90 per cent of induction motors are squirrel-cage type,

because this type of rotor has the simplest and most rugged
construction imaginable and is almost indestructible.

Power Stages in an Induction Motor

-

Stator iron loss (consisting of eddy and hysteresis losses) depends on the supply
frequency and the flux density in the iron core. It is practically constant.

The iron loss of the rotor is, however, negligible because frequency of rotor currents under
normal running conditions is always small. Total rotor Cu loss = 3 2
2 2

Different stages of power development in an induction motor are as under :

SPECIAL MACHINES

Introduction
-

This section provides a brief introduction to electrical machines which have special
applications. It includes machines whose stator coils are energized by electronically
switched currents, such as stepper motors. There is also a brief description of
servomotors. These motors are designed and built primarily for use in feedback control
systems.

Stepper Motors
-

These motors are also called stepping motors or step motors. The name stepper is used
because this motor rotates through a fixed angular step in response to each input current
pulse received by its controller.

In recent years, there has been widespread demand of stepping motors because of the
explosive growth of the computer industry. Their popularity is due to the fact that they can
be controlled directly by computers, microprocessors and programmable controllers.

As we know, industrial motors are used to convert electric energy into mechanical energy
but they cannot be used for precision positioning of an object or precision control of speed
without using closed-loop feedback.

Stepping motors are ideally suited for situations where either precise positioning or precise
speed control or both are required in automation systems.

Step Angle
-

The angle through which the motor shaft rotates for each command pulse is called the step
angle

Smaller the step angle, greater the number of steps per revolution and higher the
resolution or accuracy of positioning obtained.

The step angles can be as small as 0.72 or as large as 90. But the most common step
sizes are 1.8, 2.5, 7.5 and 15.

The value of step angle can be expressed either in terms of the rotor and stator poles
(teeth) Nr and Ns respectively or in terms of the number of stator phases (m) and the
number of rotor teeth.

Step Angle
-

Resolution is given by the number of steps needed to complete one revolution of the rotor
shaft. Higher the resolution, greater the accuracy of positioning of objects by the motor

A stepping motor has the extraordinary ability to operate at very high stepping rates (up to
20,000 steps per second in some motors) and yet to remain fully in synchronism with the
command pulses.

When the pulse rate is high, the shaft rotation seems continuous. Operation at high speeds
is called slewing. When in the slewing range, the motor generally emits an audible whine
having a fundamental frequency equal to the stepping rate. If f is the stepping frequency
(or pulse rate) in pulses per second (pps) and is the step angle, then motor shaft speed
is given by

Stepping motors are designed to operate for long periods with the rotor held in a fixed
position and with rated current flowing in the stator windings. It means that stalling is no
problem for such motors whereas for most of the other motors, stalling results in the
collapse of back emf (Eb) and a very high current which can lead to a quick burn-out.

Applications of Stepper motors

-

Such motors are used for operation control in computer peripherals, textile industry, IC
fabrications and robotics etc. Applications requiring incremental motion are typewriters, line
printers, tape drives, floppy disk drives, numerically-controlled machine tools, process
control systems and X-Y plotters.

position information can be obtained simply by keeping count of the pulses sent to the
motor thereby eliminating the need for expensive position sensors and feedback controls.

Stepper motors also perform countless tasks outside the computer industry. It includes
commercial, military and medical applications where these motors perform such functions
as mixing, cutting, striking, metering, blending and purging. They also take part in the
manufacture of packed food stuffs, commercial end products and even the production of
science fiction movies.

Types of Stepper Motors

(1) Variable Reluctance Stepper Motor
It has wound stator poles but the rotor poles are made of a ferromagnetic
material. It can be of the single stack type or multi-stack type which gives
smaller step angles. Direction of motor rotation is independent of the polarity
of the stator current. It is called variable reluctance motor because the
reluctance of the magnetic circuit formed by the rotor and stator teeth varies
with the angular position of the rotor.
(2) Permanent Magnet Stepper Motor
It also has wound stator poles but its rotor poles are permanently
magnetized. It has a cylindrical rotor. Its direction of rotation depends on the
polarity of the stator current.
(3) Hybrid Stepper Motor
It has wound stator poles and permanently-magnetized rotor poles. It is best
suited when small step angles of 1.8, 2.5 etc. are required.

Servomotors
They are also called control motors and have high-torque capabilities.
Unlike large industrial motors, they are not used for continuous energy
conversion but only for precise speed and precise position control at high
torques.
Their basic principle of operation is the same as that of other electromagnetic
motors. However, their construction, design and mode of operation are
different.
Their power ratings vary from a fraction of a watt up to a few 100 W.
Due to their low-inertia, they have high speed of response. That is why they
are smaller in diameter but longer in length.
They generally operate at vary low speeds or sometimes zero speed.
They find wide applications in radar, tracking and guidance systems, process
controllers, computers and machine tools. Both dc and a.c. (2-phase and 3phase) servomotors are used at present.

Servomotorscontinues
Servomotors differ in application capabilities from large industrial motors in
the following respects :
1. They produce high torque at all speeds including zero speed.
2. They are capable of holding a static (i.e. no motion) position.

3. They do not overheat at standstill or lower speeds.

4. Due to low-inertia, they are able to reverse directions quickly.
5. They are able to accelerate and decelerate quickly.
6. They are able to return to a given position time after time without any drift.

Servomotorscontinues
These motors look like the usual electric motors.
Their main difference from industrial motors is that
more electric wires come out of them for power as well
as for control. The servomotor wires go to a controller
and not to the electrical line through contactors.

Usually, a tachometer (speed indicating device) is

mechanically connected to the motor shaft.
Sometimes, blower or fans may also be attached for
motor cooling at low speeds.

Solved Problems
Problem 1: A hybrid VR stepping motor has 8 main poles which have been
castleated to have 5 teeth each. If rotor has 50 teeth, calculate the stepping angle.

Problem 2: A stepper motor has a step angle of 2.5. Determine (a) resolution (b)
number of steps required for the shaft to make 25 revolutions and (c) shaft speed,
if the stepping frequency is 3600 pps.

Problem 3: A separately excited D.C. generator has armature circuit resistance of 0.1
ohm and the total brush-drop is 2 V. When running at 1000 r.p.m., it delivers a
current of 100 A at 250 V to a load of constant resistance. If the generator speed
drop to 700 r.p.m., with field-current unaltered, find the current delivered to load.

Problem 4: A 440-V, shunt motor has armature resistance of 0.8 and field
resistance of 200 . Determine the back e.m.f. when giving an output of 7.46 kW at
85 percent efficiency.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON SPECIAL

MACHINES
Q.1. Do stepper motors have internal or external fans ?
Ans. No. Because the heat generated in the stator winding is conducted through
the stator iron to the case which is cooled by natural conduction, convection and
radiation.

Q.2. Why do hybrid stepping motors have many phases sometime more than six
?
Ans. In order to obtain smaller step angles.
Q.3. Any disadvantage(s) of having more phases?
Ans. Minor ones are: more leads have to be brought out from the motor, more
interconnections are required to the drive circuit and more switching devices are
needed.

QUESTIONS..conts
Q.4. What is the main attraction of a multi-stack VR stepper motor ?
Ans. It is well-suited to high stepping rates.
Q.5. You are given a VR motor and a hybrid stepper motor which look exactly similar.
How would you tell which is which ?
Ans. Spin the rotor after short-circuiting the stator winding. If there is no mechanical
resistance to rotation, it is a VR motor and if there is resistance, then it is a hybrid
motor.
Q.6. How do you explain it ?
Ans. Since VR motor has magnetically neutral rotor, it will not induce any e.m.f. in the
shortcircuited winding i.e. the machine will not act as a generator and hence
experience no drag on its rotation. However, the rotor of a hybrid motor has magnetic
poles, hence it will act as a generator and so experience a drag.