FEM simulation and analysis of

commutation in DC machines
by

Maxime Valero

Master Thesis

Supervisors:
Robert Andersson
ABB Corporate Research, Vsters, Sweden

Royal Institute of Technology

Department of Electrical Engineering
Electrical Machines and Power Electronics

Stockholm 2006
XR-EE-EME 2006:001

1
Summary:
This work investigates the possibilities to simulate commutation in a DC motor. To
depict those commutations, a finite element method (FEM) model of the motor along with the
commutator has been established. An attempt has been made to determine unknown
parameters of the model, such as the end-winding inductance and the brush contact resistance,
so that simulations could agree with experimental results. The influence of the conditions of
operation (direction of rotation, excitation) as well as the different components in the
machine (field winding, commutating and compensating winding) has been investigated.
The different results show that a simplified model of the contact brush-commutator with
a linear dependence between the contact voltage drop and the current density does not
represent correctly the commutation behaviour. This is why a new model for the contact
brush-commutator has been implemented, where the evolution of the current density as a
function of the contact voltage drop follows the characteristic of a diode. This new model has
been shown to be more accurate in representing the commutation process. Moreover, the
mutual action between the different windings and the commutating coils of the armature
winding is shown not to be highly influential in the commutation process.

2
Acknowledgement:
This project has been performed in the division of electrical machines and intelligent motion
in the department of Power technology at ABB Corporate Research in Vsters. I would like
to thank my supervisor, Robert Andersson, for his contribution and support in the different
tasks of my project. I would also like to thank Ola Agln for providing me with useful
features of the machine and for assisting me in the achievement of my work. Moreover, I
would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor at KTH, Juliette Soulard, for her help in
the accomplishment of my report.
Finally, I would like to thank Heinz Lendenmann for having given me the opportunity to
carry out my thesis at ABB Corporate Research.

3
1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 5
1.1 Purpose ....................................................................................................................... 5
1.2 Definitions and abbreviations..................................................................................... 5
1.3 Structure ..................................................................................................................... 6
2 Literature study .................................................................................................................. 7
2.1 Commutation.............................................................................................................. 7
2.1.1 Ideal commutation.............................................................................................. 8
2.1.2 Commutating poles and compensating windings............................................... 9
2.2 Sparking ................................................................................................................... 12
2.2.1 Occurrence of arcs............................................................................................ 12
2.2.2 Degrees of sparking.......................................................................................... 13
2.2.3 Flash-over......................................................................................................... 13
2.3 Black band test ......................................................................................................... 14
2.4 Other parameters influencing commutation ............................................................. 15
2.4.1 Brushes and commutator characteristics .......................................................... 15
2.4.2 Effect of mutual inductances............................................................................ 16
3 FEM Model of the DC machine:...................................................................................... 17
3.1 Model of the machine............................................................................................... 17
3.2 Electric circuit .......................................................................................................... 18
3.3 Aim of the simulations ............................................................................................. 19
3.3.1 Black band test ................................................................................................. 19
3.3.2 Simulations....................................................................................................... 20
4 Determination of the unknown parameters ...................................................................... 22
4.1 Variables to study..................................................................................................... 22
4.1.1 Estimation of the voltage over the switch ........................................................ 22
4.1.2 Voltage over the switch.................................................................................... 25
4.2 End-winding inductance........................................................................................... 25
4.3 Influence of the contact resistance ........................................................................... 29
4.4 Conclusion................................................................................................................ 33
5 Different factors affecting the commutation .................................................................... 34
5.1 Field weakening ....................................................................................................... 34
5.2 Direction of rotation ................................................................................................. 37
5.3 Mutual inductances .................................................................................................. 42
5.3.1 Field winding.................................................................................................... 42
5.3.2 Commutating winding...................................................................................... 45
5.3.3 Compensating winding..................................................................................... 49
5.3.4 Conclusion........................................................................................................ 52
6 New model for the switches:............................................................................................ 53
6.1 New characteristic of the switch .............................................................................. 53
6.2 Simulations............................................................................................................... 53
6.3 Conclusion................................................................................................................ 55
7 Conclusions and future studies......................................................................................... 56
7.1 Conclusions .............................................................................................................. 56
7.2 Suggested work ........................................................................................................ 56
8 References ........................................................................................................................ 57

4
1 Introduction

1.1 Purpose
Commutation in DC machines is a rather difficult process, which can be accompanied,
under certain conditions, by sparks, and flash-overs in the worst case. Those sparks may arise
from mechanical trouble (vibration, eccentricity), machine adjustment or electrical factors
(overload, rapid change of load). The purpose of this project is to give a basic model of the
commutation in one of the DC motors manufactured by ABB so as to enable a future study
and improvement of its commutation behaviour. Nevertheless, the process of sparking,
because of its complexity, is not modelled.
This work has been performed in collaboration with ABB Automation Technologies AB
- DC motors who took care of the black band tests from which it has been possible to refine
the model of the machine. The results of these black band tests are the start point for the
different simulations that have been run along this report, with the help of the FEM simulation
software FLUX2D version 9.2.

1.2 Definitions and abbreviations

CW Clockwise
CCW Counter clockwise
FEM Finite element method
emf Electromotive force
mmf Magnetomotive force
Ia, I1 Armature current (A)
,m Speed of the motor (rpm)
Iex, I2 Excitation current, or Field current (A)
I3 Commutating current (A)
I4 Compensating current (A)
Irkb Difference between the commutating or compensating current and the armature
current (A)
V2 Voltage source of the field winding, or excitation winding (V)
V3 Voltage source of the commutating winding, or interpole winding (V)
V4 Voltage source of the compensating winding (V)
R2 Total resistance of the field winding, or excitation winding ()
R3 Total resistance of the commutating winding, or interpole winding ()
R4 Total resistance of the compensating winding ()
L2 Inductance of the field winding, or excitation winding (H)
L3 Inductance of the commutating winding, or interpole winding (H)
L4 Inductance of the compensating winding (H)
E Contact voltage drop (V)
j Current density (A/m2)
Lew End-winding inductance of the armature winding (H)
Rbc, Rc Brush contact resistance at full contact between the brush and the lamella ()
coefficient of contact, which varies between 0 (when there is no contact brush-
lamella) and 1 (at full contact)
Preflux Program used to define the geometry and mesh of the machine

5
Prophy, Program used to assign the physical properties and boundary conditions
Modpro
Electriflux Program used to define the electric circuit

1.3 Structure
Chapter 2 presents an overview of the commutation principles, the consequences of a bad
commutation (i.e. sparks), and the different means to improve it.
Chapter 3 describes the FEM model of the DC motor and its commutator that is going to be
used in this project.
Chapter 4 gives different results obtained from simulations in an attempt to define the
unknown parameters of the FEM model.
Chapter 5 shows the influence of the conditions of operation and of the different components
in the machine on the commutation.
Chapter 6 describes simulation results obtained with a new model for the commutation.
Chapter 7 presents the conclusions of this report and different suggestions about further
investigations.

6
2 Literature study

2.1 Commutation
The direction of the current in the armature windings located right under the north pole
of the stator of the machine has to be the opposite of the one right under the south pole so that
the torque is always in the same direction. An inversion of the current in the armature
windings, the so-called commutation, in between two poles is thus needed.
To perform this commutation, different elements are necessary:
- A commutator: It is a hollow cylinder consisting of an assembly of segments with
rectangular sections that are connected to the coils of the armature winding. Those rectangular
segments, or lamellas, are insulated from each other. The different segments are connected to
an external circuit through the brushes.
- Brushes: they are conductors providing a gliding electrical contact between the external
circuit and the segments on the commutator.
Figure 1 shows how the commutation occurs.
t = t0 t = t1
rotor winding rotor winding

I
S

i
.I
N
I i
S
x
I
S

i I
N
I
S

2 1 2 1
direction direction
brush brush
of rotation of rotation
2I 2I

t = t2 t = t3
rotor winding rotor winding

S N S S N S
I i I I i I i I I i

2 1 2 1
direction direction
brush brush
of rotation of rotation
2I 2I

7
 t = t4
rotor winding

S N S
I i I I i

2 1
direction
brush
of rotation
2I

Figure 1: Current in the armature coil and position of the brush at different instants of the
commutation period

2.1.1 Ideal commutation

Ideally, the current in the coils undergoing commutation is changing its amplitude
linearly. At the instant t1 in figure 1, the rotor has moved so that the brush is now covering 25
% of the segment 1. The current i has to increase from I to I/2. Indeed, since the area of
segment 1 covered by the brush is one-third of the area of segment 2 under the brush, the
current passing through segment 2 is three times the current through segment 1, assuming that
the current density is uniform in the lamellas. At the instant t2, the brush is covering the same
area of segments one and two. The current i has thus changed from I/2 to zero. The coil
current will increase until the segment 2 is no longer under the brush. At that time, the
commutating current has reached its final value I and the following coil can start to
commutate.
It has been considered here that the width of the brush is the same as the one of the
lamella. However, the brush covers usually more than one lamella. In that case, the following
coils will start to commutate before the end of the commutation of the previous coil. The
evolution of the commutating current is then slightly different. Indeed, the mutual inductances
between the different commutating coils have to be taken into account since they affect the
change of current.

8
 i

t0 t1 t2
t3 t4 t

-I

Figure 2: Evolution of the current in the commutating coil in the ideal case

2.1.2 Commutating poles and compensating windings

The linear commutation of the coil current as shown in figure 2 is never obtained in
reality. Indeed, the self-inductance of the rotor winding opposes rapid changes of the current,
which delays the commutation. In addition to this self-inductance, a mmf generated by the
armature current is present between the poles and induces an emf in the commutating coil,
which delays the commutation. Figure 3 shows the effects of the self-winding inductance and
armature mmf on the variation of the current. This behaviour of the current, known as under-
commutation, results in a higher current density at the leaving edge of the brush, which can
sometimes be accompanied by sparks at this edge of the brush.

-I

Figure 3: Evolution of the current in the commutating coil at under-commutation

Commutating poles are placed between the poles of the machine (see figure 4). Their
role is to compensate the flux created in between the poles by the armature mmf and the self
winding inductance. Usually, the commutating poles are connected in series with the armature
circuit so that the compensation is varying with the value of the armature current. The

9
commutating pole is designed with a mmf slightly higher than the armature mmf so that a flux
subsists in the commutating region. This flux is such that an emf is created in the
commutating coil which opposes the self-inductance voltage.

Stator Yoke
Field Poles

Rotor

Armature Winding
Field Winding

Commutating Poles

Figure 4: Cross section of the machine with its commutation inter-poles [14]

However, if the commutation mmf is too high, a phenomenon known as over-

commutation is obtained. In this case, the current in the commutating coil is speeded up (as
shown in figure 5), which results in a higher current density at the entering edge of the brush.

-I

Figure 5: Evolution of the current in the commutating coil at over-commutation

Moreover, in case of overload, the commutation flux becomes saturated and is not high
enough to counteract the armature mmf, which affects considerably the commutation

At relatively high loads, the armature mmf introduces a distortion in the flux
distribution in the airgap (figure 6). As a result, the emf generated in the coils of the rotor
winding is not uniform and the voltage between two neighbouring lamellas is relatively high,
sometimes high enough to create an arc.

10
 x x o x o o xo
x x o x N o o xo S
x x o x o o xo

Figure 6: Evolution of the flux in the air gap for high loads

If the distortion is not compensated, a flash-over can sometimes occur (electrical arc
between the positive and negative brush). To prevent the occurrence of these arcs, a
compensating winding is placed in slots in the main poles (as shown in figure 7). This
winding is usually connected in series with the armature circuit and cancels out the effect of
the armature current under the main poles, which reduces considerably the distortion in the
flux distribution.

Field Poles
PoleFace
Compensation
Winding

Rotor

Armature Winding
Field Winding

Commutating
Poles

Figure 7: Compensating winding [14]

Moreover, thanks to this compensating winding, the mmf required to cancel out the
armature mmf under the commutating pole is lower. The machine can thus work without
saturation in the commutating poles under a higher load.

11
 In reality, it is almost impossible to obtain a linear commutation in the coils since the
commutation is affected by different factors (load current, excitation current, or speed of the
machine). This means that having a linear commutation for one operating point does not
imply that linear commutations are obtained for all the other operating points.
Besides, the evolution of the commutating current drawn in figures 3 and 5 are purely
theoretical. In the case of over-commutation for example, the current in the commutating coil
often increases up to larger values than +I during the commutation due to the influence of the
other commutating coils, the interpole and the main pole.

2.2 Sparking
The term sparking in electrical machines refers to any flash of light under the brush.
Those sparks could be produced for instance by incandescence or rapid oxidation and are not
necessarily due to an electrical discharge (arcing). The term sparking is however used
here when talking about arcing.
It is desirable to try to reduce the occurrence of sparking during the operation of the
machine since those sparks provoke evaporation of the brush/commutator material, causing
the contact surface to be rougher and by that contributing to the wear of the brushes and
commutator. Electric arcs can happen in case of overload and if the machine is undergoing
rapid changes of current. There are many other causes of sparking which are due to the
mounting, maintenance and adjustment of the brushes, or to electrical and mechanical faults.

2.2.1 Occurrence of arcs

Arcing can occur when one lamella is leaving a brush if the commutating current does
not have time to reach its final value, with the condition that the uncommutated current is
higher than the minimum current of the arc. This minimum short-arcing current is different
depending on the polarity of the brush. Indeed, according to Padmanabhan and Srinivasan [1],
this minimum current is lower for the cathodic brush (negative brush for a motor) than for the
anodic (positive brush for a motor): 0,5 A for the anodic brush and 0,01A for the cathodic
brush. This is why sparks are more likely to occur at the cathodic brush than at the anodic
brush.

lamella
brush

2I>0

Figure 8: Negative brush in relation to the segment (motor)

The arcs occurring at the end of the commutation present an approximately constant
voltage which is around 20 V for a positive brush and around 12 V for a negative brush [2].
Moreover, the current transferred through the arc is shown to decrease linearly from its initial
value to the minimum arcing current [2]. The energy dissipated through the arc can thus be
expressed as below:
1
E a = iVa t a (1)
2
where ta is the lifetime of the arc, i the current at ignition and Va the voltage of the arc.

12
It is important to see that the arcing duration ta is higher for a cathodic brush since the spark
persists until the uncommutated current reaches the minimum arcing current and this
minimum current is lower for the negative brush.

Sparks during commutation appear usually at the leaving edge of the brushes (when a
lamella is leaving the brush) for both over- and under-commutations. Some sparks can
however take place at the entering edge of the brush in case of over-commutation (because of
the high density of current at this edge).

2.2.2 Degrees of sparking

Intermittent sparking does not necessarily mean that a bad commutation occurs. There
are different grades of sparking which are classified by a number. Different numbering
systems exist, depending on the machine manufacturer. Figure 9 and table 1 below are an
example of a degree of sparking numbering system.

Figure 9: Degrees of sparking [15] Table 1: Degree of sparking guide[15]

2.2.3 Flash-over
In a commutator, some arcs can occur between neighbouring segments due to the
existence of a conducting path in between the segments (across the insulation), which is
linked to the accumulation of carbon and copper debris (from the brush and from the
commutator). The formation of these arcs can also be a result of the distortion present under
the interpole as it was seen before. Under certain conditions (poor commutations, high
segment-to-segment voltage, rapid change of load), intersegment arcs can give rise to a flash-
over (i.e. arc between positive and negative brushes) [3].

13
 According to Padmanabhan and Srinivasan [1], a flash-over can appear if the duration
of the arc between the brush and the leaving lamella becomes higher than the time for the
commutator to cover the width of the insulation segment between the lamellas.
Which effect is most important in the occurrence of flash-overs is not clearly defined
yet. Nevertheless, flash-overs seem to take place when the machine is running under extreme
conditions (high load, high speed). Moreover, flash-overs are always preceded by brush-to-
segment sparking.

2.3 Black band test

This test enables to investigate the commutating conditions of a DC machine. It consists
in changing the current in the compensating and commutating winding for different values of
the armature current and to note the higher and lower limits of the commutating or
compensating current (they are the same since they are in series) for which sparking occurs.
This is done with a variable voltage source connected in parallel with the compensating and
commutating windings (see figure 10).

Irkb

Ia

Figure 10: Connection for bucking and boosting commutating pole and compensating
winding [7]

The following curve is thus obtained:

14
 Irkb (%)

Limit for no sparking

Centre of the
black band
0
Ia (%)
100

Limit for no sparking

Figure 11: Plotting of the black band test results at a given speed

The black band in between the two curves represents the area of operation for which
there is not any spark, the upper limit being the limit at over-commutation and the lower the
limit at under-commutation. The limit for no sparking corresponds to the value of the current
for which a spark is observed between the brush and the lamella. Usually, the black band
width is reduced with increasing armature current (as shown in figure 11) and increasing
speed.

2.4 Other parameters influencing commutation

2.4.1 Brushes and commutator characteristics

Most of the brushes used today in electrical machines are made of carbon. This
material presents different advantages:
- Its properties are less affected by the elevation of temperature. This is due to the
fact that carbon remains solid up to temperatures exceeding 3000 C.
- It is lighter than metals.
- Carbon does not weld to metals (in case of sparking)
Carbon brushes can be classified into different groups:
- natural graphite grades
- hard carbon grades
- electrographite grades
- metal-graphite grades
- metal-carbon grades
The brush contact resistance, which is the resistance between the brush and the lamella
under the commutation, is an important parameter in the study of the commutation since its
value is often ten times higher than the one of the resistance of the brush itself [7]. The bulk
resistance can thus be disregarded when studying the commutations of the machine.
Furthermore, the brush contact characteristic appears to be nonlinear. Bailey and
Cleghorne [4] have shown that the contact voltage drop under the brush could be
approximated by the following expression:
j 0, 28
E = K1 (2)
1+ K2 P
where E is the contact voltage drop (V), j the current density (A/in2), P the brush pressure
(oz/in2) and K1, K2 are constants depending on the brush material (cf. table 2)

15
 Brush Grades K1 K2
High resistance graphite 1,0 0,22
Hard carbon 0,9 0,2
Electrographite 0,7 0,22
Copper graphite 0,5 0,4
Table 2: Values of K1 and K2 for different grades [4]

The contact resistance is reduced with increasing current density because of the
negative temperature coefficient of the brush material (carbon graphite: -0.0005 C-1[8]).
Indeed, an increase in armature current results in an increase in the temperature.
According to Schuisky [11], the evolution of the contact voltage drop as a function of
the current density can be different if the brush is at standstill or not. Moreover, the
characteristic is different depending on the direction of the current.
The lamellas of the commutator are usually made of high conductivity copper with an
addition of silver so as to raise the softening temperature of the material (from 200C to 300-
350C). Moreover, micanite is inserted in between lamellas to insulate them from each other.

2.4.2 Effect of mutual inductances

In all the cases treated above, it was assumed that the brush did not cover more than
one segment. If the brush is now connected to more than one segment, the mutual inductances
with the neighbouring commutating coils have to be taken into account. Part of the
uncommutated energy in one of the coils at the end of the commutation is now transferred by
induction to the other coils in the same slot. A small part of the energy is induced in the
neighbouring slots as their mutual inductance is lower. As this energy is consumed in the
resistance of these windings, the energy dissipated in the arc and the arcing time become
smaller [2].

16
3 FEM Model of the DC machine:

3.1 Model of the machine

The machine that has been modelled is a DC motor with the following characteristics:
- Active power: 1150 kW
- Rated speed: 1150 rpm
- Rated voltage: 692 V
- Rated current: 1741 A
- Magnetizing current: 23,5 A
- Number of conductors per slot: 6

This motor is going to be studied with the help of Flux2D, a simulation software
calculating the distribution of magnetic and electrical quantities in the machine.
First, the geometry of the machine has to be described (with Preflux). The rotor, stator
and the different slots are drawn. This motor is a six poles machine, which means that only
one third of the machine needs to be drawn. Indeed, the values of the different parameters
(induction, current) are obtained by symmetry. Then, the different materials have to be
assigned to the regions (iron, copper, air gap) and then, the different boundary conditions.
The geometry is shown in figure 12.

Figure 12: FEM geometry of one-third of the machine

Once the geometry has been drawn, the mesh of the different regions must be described.
The more nodes there are in the mesh, the longer it takes to solve the problem. That is why a
compromise has to be found so as to minimise the calculation time and optimise the accuracy
of the solution. The mesh that has been used is shown in figure 13.

17
 Main pole
Commutating
pole
Compensating winding

Figure 13: Meshed geometry of one-third of the machine

The most important part in the machine is the air gap. That is why the density of nodes
is higher in this region. On the contrary, the distribution of flux or induction in the iron part of
the machine (near the axis of the rotor for example) is somehow useless in the calculation
since the induction or flux in this region does not affect greatly the other parameters like the
torque. That is why a lower density of nodes is needed in this region.

3.2 Electric circuit

So as to study the commutation, a model of the commutator must be developed. This
cannot be done with Flux2D since the active part of the motor is already studied. This is why
a circuit has to be implemented, with the help of Electriflux. The contact between the brushes
and the lamellas of the commutator are modeled by switches (see figure 14). Those switches
are connected to the coils of the rotor. The coils of the circuit are going to be assigned later on
to the conductors of the rotor. The switches are purely resistive. The value of the resistance is
varying with the position of the rotor between a constant value (one of the unknown
parameters that will be determined in part 4.3) when the switch is on (at full contact between
the brush and the lamella) to 10 k when the switch is off (when there is not any contact). In
fact, the switch is modeled with two resistances in parallel (see figure 15). End-winding
inductances have also been added in series with the different coils.
The circuit also contains the field winding supplied by a DC current source I2, the
commutating winding with a DC current source I3, and the compensating winding with a DC
current source I4 as seen in figure 14.

18
 Figure 14: Part of the electric circuit model for the contact brush/lamella

- Rc is the brush contact resistance at full contact.

Its value will be determined in part 4.3
- Rair = 10 k
- is the coefficient of contact
Rc Rair - n is a factor that enables to consider the true area
n
1 n of contact. Indeed, due to the speed and the
mechanical vibrations, the area of contact can be
reduced [10]. A factor of two will be used in most
of the simulations
Figure 15: Model of the switch

The different elements of this circuit (coil conductors) will then be implemented into
the different regions with the help of Prophy or ModPro.

3.3 Aim of the simulations

The purpose of this part of the work is to identify the missing parameters of the model,
such as the end-winding inductance, or the brush contact resistance, from the results of the
black band test that has been performed on this machine (see figure 16).

3.3.1 Black band test

This test enables to obtain the limit values of the commutating and compensating
current (at under- and over-commutation) for which there is no spark at all (see figure 16).
The evolution of the black band as a function of the armature current has been obtained for
three different excitations in the clockwise and counterclockwise direction.

19
 CCW 1140 rpm CW 1129 rpm
Irkb [%] Irkb [%]

Ia [%] Ia [%]

CCW 1478 rpm CW 1478 rpm

Irkb [%] Irkb [%]

Ia [%] Ia [%]

CCW 1921 rpm Irkb [%]

CW 1921 rpm
Irkb [%]

Ia [%] Ia [%]

Figure 16: Black band test of the machine

It is important to note that the black band can vary from one machine to another.
Indeed, many factors influence the results (machine mounting, persons who perform the black
band test). The different curves that have been obtained correspond thus to a particular
machine and cannot be generalized. However, this black band test is the unique way to
establish a link between simulations and experiments.

3.3.2 Simulations
Clockwise in the black band test corresponds to counter clockwise in the simulation.
The term clockwise and counter clockwise will thus be used in reference to the black band
test. It was decided to start to analyze the commutation behavior when the machine is rotating
in the counter clockwise direction (relative to the black band test). The influence of the
direction of rotation will however be studied later.
The idea is to simulate with the FEM model the conditions measured for under- and
over-commutation. The values of the end-winding inductance or brush contact resistance
being unknown, they will be varied so that the results from simulation correspond to the limits
of under- and over-commutation (measurement points defining the black band). According to

20
what has been seen in part 2.2.1, it may be more relevant to study the current through the
switch at turn-off. However, the model of the switch is such that the current is forced to zero,
or rather to a value on the order of a few mA at rupture of the contact (due to the large value
of the resistance when the switch is blocked). Moreover, the decrease of the current is rather
sharp, which means that the time step needs to be reduced considerably in order to analyze the
results. This is why considering the voltage over the switch seems to be more appropriate.

21
4 Determination of the unknown parameters

4.1 Variables to study

4.1.1 Estimation of the voltage over the switch

First, an estimation of the instantaneous switch voltage at turn-off (when the lamella is
leaving the brush) has been considered. This prediction has been calculated from the last five
instantaneous values given by the FEM simulation just before the rupture of contact. A fourth
order approximation was used to predict the value for = 0. Figure 17 shows the evolution of
the voltage over one switch (obtained from FEM simulation) as a function of the coefficient
of contact. One should notice that the area of contact is decreasing with increasing time when
the lamella is leaving the brush.
4th order approximation - time step=2 us
80

70

switch voltage predicted voltage

60

50

40
V

30

20

10

0
0 0,0005 0,001 0,0015 0,002 0,0025 0,003 0,0035
area of contact (alpha)

Figure 17: Extrapolation of the voltage over one switch for a speed of 1140 rpm, armature
current of 100 A and end-winding inductance of 3,76 H, at over-commutation

This predicted voltage at turn-off over the different commutating switches has been
considered to compare the under- and over-commutating cases. For each operating point on
the black band test obtained from the measurements (in the counter clockwise direction), a
value of the end-winding inductance has been found so that the predicted voltage (or rather
the average of the peak values of the estimated voltage) over the switch is the same for both
under- and over-commutating cases (see figure 18).

22
 25

20

15 over-commutation

10
V

0
0,00E+00 2,00E-03 4,00E-03 6,00E-03 8,00E-03 1,00E-02 1,20E-02 1,40E-02 1,60E-02 1,80E-02

-5 under-
commutation

-10

-15
time (s)

Figure 18: Evolution of the predicted voltage over the commutating switches as a function of
time at 1140 rpm, for an armature current of 1741 A, an end-winding inductance of 1,04 H
and a time step of 2 s

It is important to see that the evolution of the switch voltage as a function of time
oscillates between three values. This shows a difference in the commutation depending on the
lamella or rather on the position in the slot of the armature coil that is connected to the
lamella. Indeed, a pattern occurs in the evolution of the current in the coils (see Figure 20).
This pattern repeats every third coil (on the same layer). In fact, there are six conductors per
slot in the rotor and the mutual inductance between the coils is going to affect the
commutation.

Direction of
rotation

C7 C6
C8

C9
C2 C1
C3

C4

Figure 19: Cross section of the machine under the commutating pole

23
 20

15

IC3 IC4 IC8

10

0
0,0072 0,0077 0,0082 0,0087 0,0092 0,0097
A

IC9 IC7 IC6

-5

-10

-15

IC2 IC1

-20

-25
time (s)

Figure 20: Evolution of the current in the different commutating coils at under-commutation
for a speed of 1140 rpm, an armature current of 100 A, and an end-winding inductance of 5,5
H

The biggest variations in the evolution of the current occur for the coils C3 and C8,
which are located on the left side of the slot (see figures 19 and 20). Those coils are the last in
the slot to finish their commutation and undergo the effect of the rapid changes of current in
the preceding coils, which tends to push the commutating current towards under-
commutation. On the contrary, the coils C4 and C9 are the first in the slot to finish their
commutation, and the commutation of their current is affected by the preceding coils whose
influence is smaller since they are located in another slot. The same phenomenon is observed
in the case of over-commutation, where the coils C3 and C8 are now over-commutating much
more than the coils C4 and C9.
It is however more interesting to study the maximum values of the switch voltage
(linked to the conductors on the left side of the slot) since the corresponding lamellas endure
the worst case of commutation, and are in this way more susceptible to sparking.
Different values of the end-winding inductance have been obtained. Nevertheless,
when reducing the time step, it has been noticed that the voltage over the switch was
decreasing sharply towards zero just before the rupture of the contact between the brush and
the lamella, which means that the prediction is not valid as seen in figure 21.

24
 4th order approximation - time step=0,5 us
90

80

70

60

50
V

40

30

switch voltage
20

10
predicted voltage

0
0 0,00002 0,00004 0,00006 0,00008 0,0001 0,00012 0,00014 0,00016 0,00018 0,0002
area of contact (alpha)

Figure 21: Extrapolation of the voltage over one switch for a speed of 1140 rpm, armature
current of 100 A and end-winding inductance of 3,76 H, at over-commutation

4.1.2 Voltage over the switch

In fact, the model for the contact between the brush and the lamella which is here a
switch does not represent exactly what happens when the lamella is leaving the brush. Indeed,
at rupture of the contact, the uncommutated current (if higher than the minimum arcing
current) and uncommutated energy should be transferred by arcing [2], but the conditions
under which the arcing occurs are more complex than a simple resistance of 10 k. Thus, an
estimation of the switch voltage does not seem to be a good solution to predict the
commutation. Instead of using a prediction, the simulated voltage over the switch has been
directly considered. The end-winding inductance has been changed for each operating point
so as to obtain the same evolution of the maximum switch voltage for both under- and over-
commutations.
It is also important to find a correct value of the time step. This time step does not
have to be too small (so as to reduce the number of computations and by that the time of
simulation) but it does not have to be too large either. The machine has been run at different
speeds for the black band test. The time step has thus been defined depending on the speed so
that the ratio between time step and speed is the same for the different cases. In this way, the
distance covered by the rotor between two steps is the same regardless of the speed. The time
step has then been chosen so that the rapid decrease in the voltage over the switch before the
end of the commutation can be seen.

4.2 End-winding inductance

Many parameters in the model are not known or imprecise. The value of the end-
winding inductance has been determined from some tests on the machine to be 3,92 H but
this inductance can vary with the conditions of operation [9]. In the following simulations, the
end-winding inductance has been found so that the maximum evolution of the switch voltage

25
is the same at under-commutation and at over-commutation (see figure 22). The value of the
contact resistance (at full contact) is kept constant equal to 1 m.
30

25 over-commutation under-commutation

20

15
V

10

0
0 0,0005 0,001 0,0015 0,002 0,0025 0,003 0,0035 0,004 0,0045 0,005
area of contact (alpha)

Figure 22: Superposition of the voltage over the different commutating switches at 1140 rpm,
for an armature current of 871 A, an end-winding inductance of 1,265 H and a time step of 2
s

It can be seen from the curves in figure 22 that there are three evolutions. This is due to
the fact that there are three conductors per slot (on the same layer) and the evolution of the
different variables between the brush and the lamella depends on the position of the conductor
in the slot, as it was seen previously. However, it is more interesting to consider the highest
voltage since it represents the worst case of commutation. The different values of the end-
winding inductance have thus been obtained.
Lew
5

4,5

4
1140 rpm 1478 rpm 1921 rpm
3,5

3
(uH)

2,5

1,5

0,5

0
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000
Ia (A)

Figure 23: Evolution of the end-winding inductance as a function of the armature current for
different excitations (or different speeds)

26
 The end-winding inductance is decreasing with increasing armature current. Moreover,
the variation of the end-winding inductance with the armature current is increasing with
decreasing excitation current. The values obtained for the end-winding inductance are the
same regardless of the time step. The values of the maximum voltage over the switch are,
however, highly dependent on the time step.

Speed 1140 rpm 1478 rpm 1921 rpm

Time step 2 s 0,5 s 1,54 s 0,39 s 1,19 s 0,3 s
Ia = 80 A /////////////////////////////////// 94,2 V 124,3 V 119 V 174 V
Ia = 100 A 63,5 V 79,9 V /////////////////////////////////// ///////////////////////////////////
Ia = 871 A 28,4 V 32,4 V 38,3 V 45 V 57,6 V 70,9 V
Ia = 1741 A 24,2 V 27,3 V 32,4 V 37,5 V 33,3 V 40,3 V
Table 3: Peak values of the switch voltage as a function of the armature current for different
excitations (different speeds) and different time steps

Similarly to the end-winding inductance, the peak values of the voltage are decreasing
with increasing armature current (see table 3 and figure 24).
70

over-commutation 100 A under-commutation 100 A

60

50 over-commutation 871 A under-commutation 871 A

40
over-commutation 1741 A under-commutation 1741 A
V

30

20

10

0
0 0,0002 0,0004 0,0006 0,0008 0,001 0,0012 0,0014 0,0016 0,0018 0,002
area of contact (alpha)

Figure 24: Superposition of the voltage over the commutating switches for different armature
currents at 1140 rpm, for a time step of 2 s

This may be due to the value of the end-winding inductance. Indeed, the high value of
the inductance chosen for low armature currents opposes the variation of the current in the
coils. As it can be seen in the maximum evolution of the currents through the switches (figure
25), the value of the current at low load remains high close to the rupture of the contact and
presents a steeper decrease, which explains these higher values of the voltage.

27
 1140 rpm
60

50 over-commutation 1741 A

40

30
A

over-commutation 871 A

20

10 over-commutation 100 A

0
0 0,005 0,01 0,015 0,02 0,025
area of contact (alpha)

Figure 25: Superposition of the currents through the commutating switches as a function of
the area of contact at 1140 rpm, at over-commutation, for different armature currents and for
values of the end-winding inductance corresponding to the symmetrical case

Moreover, increasing the excitation current tends to reduce the value of the peak. This
shows the influence of the speed on the commutation. Indeed, the time for the current to
commutate is reduced with increasing speed. This may be the reason why the peak voltage is
increasing and the position of the peak is decreasing with decreasing excitation (see figure
26).
40

over-commutation 1140 rpm under-commutation 1140 rpm

35

30 over-commutation 1478 rpm under-commutation 1478 rpm

25
over-commutation 1921 rpm under-commutation 1921 rpm

20
V

15

10

0
0 0,0002 0,0004 0,0006 0,0008 0,001 0,0012 0,0014 0,0016 0,0018 0,002
area of contact (alpha)

Figure 26: Superposition of the voltage over the commutating switches for different speeds
(excitation) at rated armature current, for a time step of 2 s

Concerning the area of contact for which the peak value of the voltage occurs, it can be
seen that the position of the peak is increasing with increasing armature current and increasing
excitation (see table 4).

28
 Speed 1140 rpm 1478 rpm 1921 rpm
Time step 2 s 0,5 s 1,54 s 0,39 s 1,19 s 0,3 s
Ia = 80 A /////////////////////////////////// 2,1e-5 3e-5 4,8e-6 4,1e-6
Ia = 100 A 4,9e-5 6e-5 /////////////////////////////////// ///////////////////////////////////
Ia = 871 A 2,39e-4 2,5e-4 1,2e-4 1,55e-4 6,7e-5 7,7e-5
Ia = 1741 A 2,76e-4 3,08e-4 1,63e-4 1,87e-4 6,2e-5 8,5e-5
Table 4: Position of the peak value of the voltage as a function of the armature current for
different excitations and different time steps

It can be seen that the variation of the end-winding inductance, peak values of the
voltage and position of the peak with the armature current is relatively high. The end-winding
inductance has been shown to depend on the permeability of the magnetic material [9].
However, this big variation of the inductance with the armature current implies that the
voltage over the switch differs considerably depending on the operating point. Given that
approximately similar values of the voltage were expected (so as to make a link between the
switch voltage and the occurrence of sparks), it is clear that something is missing in the
model. This is why it would be interesting to study the influence of the contact resistance on
the commutation.

4.3 Influence of the contact resistance

All the simulations in part 4.2 have been run with a brush contact resistance (at full
contact) of 1 m. The only parameter that has been changed is the end-winding inductance. It
would however be interesting to see how the brush contact resistance affects the
commutation.
First, simulations have been run at a speed of 1140 rpm for different load currents,
keeping the end-winding inductance constant (equal to the value obtained in part 4.2 for a
high armature current). The brush contact resistance has been changed so that the evolution of
the voltage over the switch is the same at under- and over-commutation (see figure 27). The
different values obtained for the contact resistance have been written in table 5.

29
 6

5 over-commutation under-commutation

3
V

0
0 0,01 0,02 0,03 0,04 0,05 0,06 0,07 0,08 0,09 0,1
area of contact (alpha)

Figure 27: Superposition of the voltage over the commutating switches at 1140 rpm, for an
armature current of 871 A, an end-winding inductance of 1,025 H, a brush contact
resistance of 5,73 m, and a time step of 2 s

As it can be seen in table 5, the contact resistance is decreasing and the peak voltage is
increasing with increasing armature current.

Armature current (A) 100 871 1741

Brush contact resistance (m) 98 5,73 1
Peak value (V) 2,2 5,3 24,2
Table 5: Evolution of the contact resistance and peak value of the switch voltages with
the armature current at 1140 rpm and an end-winding inductance of 1,025 H

The variation of the contact resistance and of the peak value of the voltage is relatively
high. In fact, variations in the contact resistance as well as in the end-winding inductance have
to be taken into account to represent more accurately the commutations.
In part 2.4.1, it was seen that the brush contact resistance (or the contact voltage drop)
decreased with increasing current density. The empirical relation obtained by Bailey and
Cleghorne (2) has been used to determine the value of the resistance for the different
operating points (taking the armature current of 1741 A as a reference):
K1 1
Rbc = 0 , 72
(3) where A is the area at full contact ( = 1)
1 + K 2 P Aj
Using a reference value of 1 m for the brush contact resistance at rated current, it has been
possible to estimate the values of the contact resistance at the other operating points, with the
help of relation (3), taking the ratio between the different armature currents. The different
values have been written in table 6.

30
 Speed 1140 rpm 1478 rpm 1921 rpm
Ia = 80 A 7,8 m //////////////// ////////////////
Ia = 100 A //////////////// 9,2 m 7,8 m
Ia = 871 A 1,65 m 1,65 m 1,4 m
Ia = 1741 A 1 m 1 m 0,85 m
Table 6: Determination of the brush contact resistance at different operating points

14

12 over-commutation under-commutation

10

8
V

0
0 0,005 0,01 0,015 0,02 0,025 0,03
area of contact (alpha)

Figure 28: Superposition of the voltage over the commutating switches at 1140 rpm, for an
armature current of 100 A, an end-winding inductance of 3,76 H, a brush contact resistance
of 7,8 m, and a time step of 2 s

It can be seen that an increase in the contact resistance does not only change the
symmetry of the switch voltage, but it reduces the peak voltage and increases the value of the
area of contact for which there is the peak value (see figure 28).
The evolution of the different values of the peak voltage and of the area of contact
corresponding to the peak is then changed considerably (see tables 7 and 8).

Speed 1140 rpm 1478 rpm 1921 rpm

Time step 2 s 0,5 s 1,54 s 0,39 s 1,19 s 0,3 s
Ia = 80 A /////////////////////////////////// 15,8 V 16,7 V 24 V 26 V
Ia = 100 A 11,7 V 12,2 V /////////////////////////////////// ///////////////////////////////////
Ia = 871 A 18,6 V 20,4 V 25,7 V 28,6 V 39,8 V 46,1 V
Ia = 1741 A 24,2 V 27,3 V 32,4 V 37,5 V 33,3 V 40,3 V
Table 7: Peak values of the voltage over the switch as a function of the armature current for
different excitations and different time steps

31
 Speed 1140 rpm 1478 rpm 1921 rpm
Time step 2 s 0,5 s 1,54 s 0,39 s 1,19 s 0,3 s
Ia = 80 A /////////////////////////////////// 2,5e-3 2,5e-3 9,1e-4 9,4e-4
Ia = 100 A 4e-3 3,7e-3 /////////////////////////////////// ///////////////////////////////////
Ia = 871 A 6,1e-4 7e-4 3,5e-4 4,3e-4 1,8e-4 2,2e-4
Ia = 1741 A 2,8e-4 3,1e-4 1,6e-4 1,9e-4 6e-5 8e-5
Table 8: Position of the peak value of the voltage over the switch as a function of the
armature current for different excitation and different time steps

The differences in the values of the switch voltage and position of the peak at different
operating points are there smaller in comparison with the case where only the end-winding
inductance was changed, but they are still high to conclude about the accuracy of the
empirical relation. In fact, this relation used to determine the value of the contact resistance at
the different operating points may correspond to a specific grade of brush. The choice for the
reference value of the resistance (1 m) was also quite arbitrary.
The brush contact characteristic of the brush used for the black band test has then been
obtained from ABB Automation Technologies AB-DC motors (see figure 29).
3,5

2,5
Contact drop (V)

1,5

0,5

0
0 50 100 150 200 250
Current density (kA/m2)

Figure 29: Contact drop / Current distribution curve of the brush used in the black band test

Simulations have been run for a speed of 1140 rpm, an armature current of 1741 A and
a brush contact resistance of 18,9 m (see figure 30). The brush contact resistance has been
determined with the help of the contact drop / current distribution curve, calculating the
resistance between the points 150 kA/m2 and 200 kA/m2. It has to be noticed that the value of
the resistance is varying slightly with the current density. The lowest value (physical value) of
the resistance has been used for the different simulations (see figure 30).

32
 5

4,5

over-commutation under-commutation
4

3,5

2,5
V

1,5

0,5

0
0 0,1 0,2 0,3 0,4 0,5 0,6 0,7 0,8
area of contact (alpha)

Figure 30: Superposition of the voltage over the commutating switches at 1140 rpm, for an
armature current of 1741 A, an end-winding inductance of 0,2 H, a brush contact resistance
of 18,9 m, and a time step of 2 s

As it can be seen in figure 30, there is not any symmetry in the switch voltage. This is
due to the fact that the value of the brush contact resistance is too high. In fact, the value of
the contact resistance is varying with the current density as it was seen in part 2.4.1, and the
current density is not constant during the commutation. This is why this model of
commutation is not valid, and something needs to be done to take into account the variation of
the brush contact resistance with the current density.

4.4 Conclusion
Using a constant contact resistance (at full contact), or rather a linear dependence
between the contact voltage drop and the current density, turned out to be inappropriate since
the differences in the results of simulation for the different operating points were quite high.
Moreover, this model of commutation does not represent what really happens in the machine.
For instance, the voltage over the switch is increasing up to more than 100 V in some cases
whereas the contact voltage drop should vary between 1,9 and 2,4 V according to the brush
manufacturer [13]. It would thus be interesting to implement a diode in the model, since the
brush contact characteristic is similar to the characteristic of a diode, as it was seen in part
2.4.1. This will be done in part 6.

33
5 Different factors affecting the commutation

5.1 Field weakening

It can be seen in the results of the black band that a decrease in the excitation current
tends to move the black band downwards. Simulations have been run for three different
speeds (or excitation current) with an armature current of 1741 A, an end-winding inductance
of 1,025 H, and a commutating and compensating current of 1741 A.

Figure 31: Evolution of the coil current for three different speeds

Similarly to the results of the black band test, a decrease in the excitation current causes
the coil current to over-commutate, which means that the black band is moved downwards.
When the excitation is increased, it can be seen that the flux density between the
commutating pole and the main pole seems to increase (see figure 32). The normal component
of the flux density has been calculated on a segment between the commutating pole and the
main pole at different instants (see figure 34). Figure 34 shows that reducing the excitation
causes a decrease in the flux density between the main pole and the commutating pole.

34
 Main pole
Interpole

1140 rpm 1478 rpm

1921 rpm
Figure 32: Distribution of the flux density in the air between the commutating pole and the
main pole for different excitations

Figure 33: Segment used to calculate the normal component of the flux density between the
main pole and the commutating pole

35
 0,00E+00
0 5 10 15 20 25 30
1921 rpm

-5,00E-02

1921 rpm

-1,00E-01
1478 rpm
flux density (T)

1478 rpm
-1,50E-01

1140 rpm
-2,00E-01

1140 rpm

-2,50E-01
mm

Figure 34: Normal component of the flux density calculated on the segment of figure 33 at
different speeds

Increasing the excitation implies that a larger part of the flux is transferred through the
air from the commutating pole to the main pole. This means that a larger part of the flux
generated by the commutating pole is going to transferred through the air to the main pole,
and by that, a reduction of the flux will take place at the end of the commutating pole, as it
can be seen in figure 36.

Figure 35: Segment used to calculate the normal component of the flux density in the
commutating pole

36
 4,00E-01

3,80E-01

1140 rpm
3,60E-01

3,40E-01

3,20E-01
Flux density (T)

3,00E-01 1478 rpm

2,80E-01

2,60E-01

2,40E-01
1921 rpm

2,20E-01

2,00E-01
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50
mm

Figure 36: Normal component of the flux density calculated on the segment of figure 35 for
different speeds

5.2 Direction of rotation

All the simulations run previously were computed in the counter clockwise direction.
The different limits for sparking are however thought to depend on the direction of rotation.
The sign of the speed has thus been changed in the prophy file along with the sign of the
different currents (except the excitation current), keeping the same values obtained in part 4.2.
for the different parameters.
35

over-commutation CW under-commutation CW
30

25
over-commutation CCW under-commutation CCW

20
V

15

10

0
0 0,0005 0,001 0,0015 0,002 0,0025 0,003 0,0035 0,004 0,0045 0,005
area of contact (alpha)

Figure 37: Superposition of the voltage over the commutating switches in the CW and CCW
direction at 1140 rpm, for an armature current of 1741 A and a time step of 0,5 s

37
 It can be seen from the curve in figure 37 that changing the rotation in the clockwise
direction increases the peak value of the switch voltage for the case of under-commutation
and decreases the peak value of the voltage for the over-commutating case. Assuming that the
different parameters in the machine remain unchanged (same end-winding inductance, same
contact resistance) when the direction of rotation is changed, the values of the compensating
and commutating current need to be increased at under- and over-commutation so as to obtain
a symmetry, which means that the black band is moved upwards.
To understand how a change in the direction of rotation affects the commutation, two
points have to be seen. First, it has to be noticed that the flux is the same under the positive
and the negative interpole, and if the direction of rotation is reversed, the direction of the
commutating current is such that the flux density in the commutating pole in the counter
clockwise and clockwise direction are symmetrical with respect to the axis of the interpole
(see figure 38). This means that the flux seen by the commutating coil should be the same in
the clockwise or counter clockwise direction.

4,00E-01

3,50E-01 CCW positive

3,00E-01

2,50E-01 CCW negative

flux density (T)

2,00E-01

1,50E-01 CW negative

1,00E-01

5,00E-02 CW positive

0,00E+00
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50
mm

Figure 38: Absolute value of the normal component of the flux density in the commutating
poles calculated on the segment of figure 35 in the CW and CCW direction

However, the emf generated in the different conductors is not the same if the conductor
is located in the bottom or in the top layer of the slot since the induction is higher close to the
airgap (see figures 39 and 40).

38
 At t = 10,8 ms At t = 11,6 ms

Figure 39: Segment used to calculate the tangent component of the flux density in the bars of
the rotor under the commutating pole
1,50E-01

1,00E-01 segment 1 segment 2 segment 3 segment 4

flux density (T)

5,00E-02

0,00E+00
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35

-5,00E-02
distance from the airgap

Figure 40: Tangent component of the flux density in the bars of the rotor calculated on the
segments of figure 39, at under-commutation, for a speed of 1140 rpm and an armature
current of 1741 A

Reversing the direction of rotation implies that one coil ends its commutation in one
direction at a position where this coil starts its commutation in the other direction, and by that,
the sequence of commutation is changed, as seen in figures 41 and 42.

39
 400

slot
300
6 5 3
direction of
200 rotation
4 2 1

100
coil current (A)

0
0,007 0,0075 0,008 0,0085 0,009 0,0095

-100

coil 1 coil 2 coil 3

-200

-300
coil 4 coil 5 coil 6

-400
time (s)

Figure 41: Evolution of the current in the different conductors of a slot in the CCW direction,
at under-commutation, for a speed of 1140 rpm and an armature current of 1741 A

400

300
slot
1 2 4
direction of
200 rotation
3 5 6

100
coil current (A)

0
0,008 0,0085 0,009 0,0095 0,01 0,0105

-100

coil 1 coil 2 coil 3

-200

-300
coil 4 coil 5 coil 6

-400
time (s)

Figure 42: Evolution of the current in the different conductors of a slot in the CW direction,
at under-commutation, for a speed of 1140 rpm and an armature current of 1741 A

It was seen in part 4.1.1. that the worst case of commutation occurred for the conductors
located in the left side of the slot in the counter clockwise direction. Now that direction of
rotation is changed, the worst case of commutation will occur for the conductors in the right
side of the slot (see figures 41 and 42).
If the coil relative to the conductors 4 and 6 is considered, it can be seen that this coil
starts to commutate at the same position under the commutating pole, for both clockwise and

40
counter clockwise direction, but the entering conductor is in the bottom layer in the clockwise
direction whereas it is in the top layer for the counter clockwise case (see figure 43).

CCW CW
direction of
rotation

CCW

CW

Figure 43: Position of the coil (corresponding to conductors 4 and 6) when starting its
commutation

As it was seen before, the emf generated in one conductor depends on the position of
this conductor in the slot. As a result, the flux seen by the coil is different depending on the
direction of rotation. This is what is shown in figure 44, where the flux seen by the coil
(which is the sum of the flux seen by the conductors in series) is stronger in the counter
clockwise direction at the end of the commutation.

41
 0,07645

0,0764
CCW

0,07635
Wb

0,0763

CW
0,07625

0,0762
0,00095 0,001 0,00105 0,0011 0,00115 0,0012
period of commutation (s)

Figure 44: Flux seen by the last coil in a slot to commutate (sum of the flux seen by the
conductors 4 and 6)

5.3 Mutual inductances

5.3.1 Field winding

The excitation of the motor has been modelled with the help of a constant current
source. This current source forces the excitation current to be constant, which means that
there is not any mutual influence between the field winding and the armature winding. So as
to see the effect of this mutual inductance on the commutation, the current source has been
replaced with a voltage source, whose value has been chosen so that the average current in the
field winding is equal to the current supplied by the current source.

Figure 45: Electric circuit Field winding

A slow transient mode in the excitation current is occurring during the simulation due
to the presence of resistances and inductances in the winding. The inductance L151 represents
the end-winding inductance of the main pole whose value is unknown. The higher the value
of this inductance, and the longer time it will take for the excitation current to reach its steady
state. This is why the end-winding inductance of the main pole has been disregarded and set
to zero.

42
 So as to determine the time constant of the field winding (and by that, the time needed
for the excitation current to reach its steady state), a simulation has been run with the original
electric circuit (figure 14), replacing the constant current source by a sinusoidal current
source. From the evolution of the voltage over the current source, it is then possible to
determine the self inductance of the field winding L2:

i2 (t ) = I 2 sin( 2ft )
with I2=11,75 A (1140 rpm); R2=8,765 ; f=2 kHz
v 2 (t ) = 2 L2I 2 cos(2ft ) + 2 R2 I 2 sin( 2ft )

1,50E+01

1,00E+01

5,00E+00
I2 (A)

0,00E+00
0,048 0,0485 0,049 0,0495 0,05

-5,00E+00

-1,00E+01

-1,50E+01
600000

400000

200000
V2 (V)

0
0,048 0,0485 0,049 0,0495 0,05

-200000

-400000

-600000
time (s)

Figure 46: Current and voltage in the field winding

k
v2 ( )
k f
At t = , L2 = 1,44 H
f 2 * 2fI 2
L2
The value of the time constant is thus: 2 = 0,164 s. The current in the field
R2
winding will need approximately 0,8 s (5*2) to reach its steady state.
From the results of the simulation with the voltage source, it can be noticed that the
time needed for the current to reach its steady state is on the same order as the time calculated
above.

43
 Figure 47: Transient evolution of the excitation current

So as to reach this steady state, the time step has been set to a rather high value (10-4
s), but the commutation behaviour cannot be studied with a so large time step. This is why the
time step needs to be changed to 2 s. The problem is that changing the time step generates
another transient mode, and a large number of steps is required (more than 80 000
computations) so as to reach the steady state again. The different variables will thus be
studied even is the steady state has not been reached, since the mean value of the excitation
current is rather close to the average value at steady state.

Figure 48: Excitation current

44
 It can be seen that the excitation current is oscillating, and the amplitude of the
oscillations varies between 10 mA and 19 mA depending on the operating point, which means
that the influence of the armature winding on the field winding is negligible. These
oscillations may be due to the mutual influence between the commutating coils of the
armature winding and the field winding, but they can also be due to the slots of the rotor (or
rather to the change of permeance during the rotation of the motor), since the period of the
oscillations corresponds to the time for the machine to cover the distance between two slots.
It is now interesting to see how the field winding affects the commutation and the
symmetry of the voltage. As it can be seen in figure 49, the symmetry of the voltage is not
changed. However, the peak values of the voltage are smaller (there is a reduction of a few
percent).
70

60 over-commutation under-commutation

50

40
V

30

20

10

0
0 0,0001 0,0002 0,0003 0,0004 0,0005 0,0006 0,0007 0,0008 0,0009 0,001
area of contact (alpha)

Peak voltage 61,8 V

peak 5,3e-5
Figure 49: Superposition of the voltage over the commutating switches at 1140 rpm, for an
armature current of 100 A, an end-winding inductance of 3,76 H, a brush contact resistance
of 1 m, and a time step of 2 s

5.3.2 Commutating winding

In the same way, the effect of the mutual inductance between the commutating
winding and the armature winding is observable, replacing the current source with a voltage
source. The value of the end-winding inductance L152 has been set to zero so as to reduce the
period of transient.

45
 Figure 50: Electric circuit Commutating winding

The time constant has been determined in the same way as for the field winding, with
I3=26 A; R3=1,257 m:
k
v3 ( )
k f
At t = , L3 = 0,368 mH
f 2 * 2fI 3
L
The value of the time constant is thus: 3 = 3 0,293 s
R3

Figure 51: Transient evolution of the commutating current at 100 A

46
 Figure 52: Transient evolution of the commutating current at 1741 A

The time needed to reach the steady state is on the same order as the one calculated
above. The reduction of the time step once the steady state is reached (t = 1,5 s) is here also
problematic since another transient mode is generated, with a rather long period. The same
assumption will thus be made about the switch voltage.

Figure 53: Commutating current at 100 A

47
 Figure 54: Commutating current at 1741 A

It can be seen that the commutating current is oscillating due to the slots of the rotor
and to the mutual influence of the commutating coil of the armature winding on the
commutating winding. Moreover, the amplitude of the oscillations is higher than for the case
of the field winding (around 0,4 A). The self inductance of the commutating winding is
indeed smaller than the one of the field winding, which opposes more the variations of the
current. This may be the reason why the amplitude of the oscillations is smaller in the case of
the field winding.
Furthermore, the symmetry of the switch voltage is slightly affected by the influence
of the commutating winding for a high armature current (see figure 55).
30

25 over-commutation under-commutation

20

15
V

10

0
0 0,0005 0,001 0,0015 0,002 0,0025 0,003
area of contact (alpha)

Peak voltage under-commutation over-commutation

23,4 V 24,4 V
29,8e-5 26,3e-5
Figure 55: Superposition of the voltage over the commutating switches at 1140 rpm, for an
armature current of 1741 A, an end-winding inductance of 1,025 H, a brush contact
resistance of 1 m, and a time step of 2 s

48
5.3.3 Compensating winding
Then, the influence of the compensating winding has been studied. The inductance
L153 has been set to zero to reduce the period of transient.

Figure 56: Electric circuit Compensating winding

The time constant has been determined in the same way as for the field winding, with
I4=26 A; R4=1,814 m:
k
v4 ( )
k f
At t = , L4 = 0,254 mH
f 2 * 2fI 4
L
The value of the time constant is thus: 4 = 4 0,14 s.
R4
As for the case of the field winding and the commutating winding, the time needed for
the current to reach its steady state is approximately the same as the one calculated before (see
figures 57 and 58).

Figure 57: Transient evolution of the compensating current at 100 A

49
 Figure 58: Transient evolution of the compensating current at 1741 A

Here also, the current is oscillating, with a higher amplitude (up to 0,9 A) than for the
previous cases. This may be due to the low value of the self inductance (0,254 mH instead of
0,368 mH for the commutating winding).

Figure 59: Compensating current at 100 A

50
 Figure 60: Compensating current at 1741 A
Concerning the symmetry of the switch voltage, it can be seen that similarly to the
case of the commutating winding, the variation of the current in the compensating winding
influences the commutations in the case of a high load (see figure 61).
30

25 over-commutation under-commutation

20

15
V

10

0
0 0,0005 0,001 0,0015 0,002 0,0025 0,003
area of contact (alpha)

Peak voltage under-commutation over-commutation

24,02 V 24,92 V
23,3e-5 31,6e-5
Figure 61: Superposition of the voltage over the commutating switches at 1140 rpm, for an
armature current of 1741 A, an end-winding inductance of 1,025 H, a brush contact
resistance of 1 m, and a time step of 2 s

51
5.3.4 Conclusion
From the different simulations that have been run previously, it can be seen that the
possible ripple in the currents of the different windings due to mutual inductances do not
influence greatly the commutations. Indeed, the parts that are affecting the most the
commutations are the commutating and compensating windings (for a high armature current),
but it only needs a small change of the end-winding inductance (less than 1%) to obtain a
symmetry again. The influence of the different windings can thus be neglected. However, it
would be interesting to study the influence of the mutual inductances in field weakening
operation, since all the simulations from this part have been run at the lowest speed (1140
rpm).

52
6 New model for the switches:

6.1 New characteristic of the switch

Since it was difficult to estimate the mathematical expression of the characteristic (in
motion) of the grade of brush used in the black band test (see figure 29), it was decided to use
a characteristic from another brush [11]. This is rather inappropriate since the results of the
black band test can differ considerably from one brush to another. Nevertheless, the aim of the
following simulations was to see if a diode model for the contact brush-lamella gives more
relevant results, with respect to the peak voltage and the end-winding inductance.

The characteristic of the brush [11] has been approximated by a mathematical

expression
j = j0+ (e k +V 1) + j0 (e kV 1) where j0+ = 0,0087 A/cm2; j0- = - 0,00012 A/cm2; k+ = 7,43
V-1; k- = 10,62 V-1.
From this expression, it has been possible to implement in the electric circuit a new
model for the switch.

Figure 62: Contact characteristic

One problem is now the time of simulation. This new model is indeed more complex
and the computation time is longer in comparison with the old model (more than three times
longer).

6.2 Simulations
One of the main problems with the former model was that the voltage over the switch
was varying considerably depending on the operating point (reaching values up to more than
100 V sometimes). In the case of the diode model, the switch voltage remains lower than
three Volts (see figure 63). It is however quite difficult to compare the voltage over the switch
at over- and under-commutation since it varies weakly during the commutation. This is why it
seems to be more relevant to study the current through the switch.

53
 3

over-commutation

0
V

0,00E+00 2,00E-02 4,00E-02 6,00E-02 8,00E-02 1,00E-01 1,20E-01 1,40E-01 1,60E-01 1,80E-01 2,00E-01

-1

under-commutation

-2

-3
area of contact (alpha)

Figure 63: Superposition of the voltage over the commutating switches at 1140 rpm, for an
armature current of 100 A, an end-winding inductance of 2,27 H and a time step of 2 s

In the previous sections, only the positive values of the switch variables were
considered since the value of the contact resistance was independent of the direction of the
current. However, with this new model of the switch, the value of the contact voltage drop (or
contact resistance) depends on the polarity of the brush. This is why both positive and
negative values of the voltage or current are considered in this part.
An attempt has been made to determine the value of the end-winding inductance for
which there is symmetry in the evolution of the current (see figure 64). In fact, the end-
winding inductance has been changed so that the highest value of the current at rupture of the
contact is the same at under-commutation and at over-commutation.
40

30

20 over-commutation

10
A

0
0,00E+00 2,00E-02 4,00E-02 6,00E-02 8,00E-02 1,00E-01 1,20E-01 1,40E-01 1,60E-01 1,80E-01 2,00E-01

-10

-20 under-commutation

-30

-40
area of contact (alpha)

Figure 64: Superposition of the current through the commutating switches at 1140 rpm, for
an armature current of 100 A, an end-winding inductance of 2,27 H and a time step of 2 s

54
 The variation of the end-winding inductance (corresponding to the symmetrical case)
with the armature current is still high (see table 9).

Ia (A) 100 871 1741

Lew (H) 2,27 0,89 0,597
Table 9: Evolution of the end-winding inductance with the armature current at 1140 rpm

The maximum values of the uncommutated current when one lamella is just leaving the
brush (when = 0) are also varying considerably depending on the operating point (see table
10). Moreover, this uncommutated current should not theoretically reach so high values,
according to what has been seen in part 2.2.1. This may be due to the steep increase of the
current density (when the area of contact is reduced) which tends to reduce considerably the
value of the contact resistance in comparison with the old model where the contact resistance
at = 0 was 10 k.

Ia (A) 100 871 1741

Switch current at = 0 (A) 24,4 23,3 41,3
Table 10: Evolution of the uncommutated current with the armature current at 1140 rpm

6.3 Conclusion
From the different results obtained in this part, it is clear that this new model of the
switches does not portray correctly the commutation process as it is shown by the large values
and differences in the values of the uncommutated current. Nevertheless, the variation of the
switch voltage is with this diode model really close to what should be expected since its value
remains below 3 V. It would however be interesting to see the behaviour of this model at
higher speeds since all the simulations from this part have been run at rated speed. Moreover,
it has to be noticed that the contact characteristic used in those simulations may differ
considerably from the characteristic of the brush used in the black band test.
One way to reduce the values of the uncommutated current would be to implement, in
series with the diode model, the first model of the switch (used in part 3, 4 and 5).

55
7 Conclusions and future studies

7.1 Conclusions
The first model of the contact brush-lamella does not permit representing correctly the
commutation since many differences are noticeable between the different operating points (in
the peak values of the contact voltage drop). The diode model of the switch turned out to be
more accurate in the sense that the voltage over the switch remains between reasonable values
(below 3 V) in comparison with the old model where the voltage could reach relatively high
values, as seen in part 4.2.
Nevertheless, the values of the uncommutated current can vary considerably depending
on the operating point. Something needs to be done so that the current through the switch is
the same regardless of the operating point, in order to make a link between this uncommutated
current and the occurrence of sparks.
Furthermore, Field weakening operations have been shown to have a significant
influence on the commutation. Indeed, decreasing the excitation tends to move the black band
downwards. Moreover, the direction of rotation is also affecting the commutation. According
to the FEM simulations, reversing the rotation in the clockwise direction tends to move the
black band upwards.
Besides, studying the influence of the different parameters, regions and conditions of
operation has shown that the different mutual inductances (between the armature winding and
the excitation, commutating and compensating windings) could be disregarded in the analysis
of the commutation process. The evolution of the switch variables are indeed only slightly
affected by the mutual action of the field, interpole and compensating windings.

7.2 Suggested work

The contact characteristic of the brush (in motion) that has been used in the black band
test has been asked to the brush manufacturer. It would be interesting to see how the model
behaves with this new characteristic, once it has been obtained.
Moreover, the armature coils have been modelled in Electriflux by coil conductors,
which means that the distribution of the current density is uniform in each conductor of the
rotor. This simplified model of the rotor winding does not take into account the influence of
the skin effect on the commutation. It would thus be interesting to replace those coil
conductors by solid conductors so as to see how the commutation is affected by the skin effect
in the bars in the rotor slots.
If the contact characteristic of the brush is obtained and if the new model for the contact
brush-lamella enables to give the same evolution of the different variables for the different
operating points, it will be possible to associate this FEM model with the real DC motor, and
from there, modifications in the geometry or structure of the machine will be possible so as to
improve the commutation behaviour of the motor.

56
8 References

[1] Padmanabhan K., and Srinivasan A., Some important aspects in the phenomenon of
commutator sparking, IEEE Trans. Power Apparatus Syst., May 1965, vol. 84, p. 396

[2] Holm R., Theory of the sparking during commutation on dynamos, Trans. AIEE
(Power apparatus and systems), Dec. 1962, vol. 81, p. 588

[3] Turner M.J.B., Sparking and arcing in electrical machines, Proc. IEE, Aug. 1966,
vol. 133, p. 1376

[4] Bayley, and Cleghorne, Some phenomenon of commutation, J. Inst. Elec. Engrs.
(London), 1907, vol. 38, p. 162-174

[5] Shobert E.I. II, and Diehl J.E., A new method of investigating commutation as
applied to automotive generators, ibid., Feb. 1955, vol. 73, p. 1592

[6] Ewing, J.S., and Patel, B.R., Contribution to commutation analysis, IEEE Trans.
Power Appar. Syst., July-Aug. 1972, vol. 91, p. 1663

[7] Morganite Carbon Limited, Carbon brushes and electrical machines, 1961

[8] http://library.thinkquest.org/10784/tempcoeffs_resistivity.html

[9] Ban D., Zarko D., and Mandic I., Turbogenerator end winding leakage inductance
calculation using a 3-D analytical approach based on the solution of Neumann integrals,
IEEE International Electrical Machines and Drives Conference IEMDC03, June 2003,
vol. 3, p. 1576

[10] Alm E., versikt av ankarlckfldets inverkan p kommuteringsfrloppet, DTV

Elektroteknik III Elektromaskinlra II D, 1944, p. 65.

[11] Schuisky W., Berechnung elektrischer maschinen, 1960, chap. 12, p. 268

[12] KTH, Electrical machines and drives 2C1241, 2004, chap. 8

[13] http://www.nationalelectrical.com/literature/literature.html

[14] http://web.mit.edu/6.685/www/chapter6.pdf

[15] http://www.reliance.com/mtr/cmdcbrmn.htm

57