IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 40, NO.

2, MARCH/APRIL 2004 499

A New Method of Partial Excitation for Dual Moving

Magnet Linear Synchronous Motor
Mu-Shin Kwak, Student Member, IEEE, and Seung-Ki Sul, Fellow, IEEE

Abstract—This paper presents a new partial excitation control

method of the moving magnet linear synchronous motor and pro-
poses an implementation and a control method for a dual mover
linear motor. The problem of conventional partial excitation circuit
is clarified and a new partial excitation control method is proposed,
which is external control by a main control board. Based on this
partial excitation control method, a novel control method for dual
mover moving-magnet-type linear motor is proposed. The validity
and performance of the proposed partial excitation control method
for the linear motor is verified by experimental results. These ex-
perimental results reveal excellent position control capability such
as less than 10- m position error within 10 ms after position com-
mand, while both movers are controlled independently.
Index Terms—Dual movers, impedance balance, moving-
magnet-type linear synchronous motor, partial excitation.

I. INTRODUCTION

R ECENTLY, the need for linear motion drive system has

been increased in many industrial applications [1]. The di-
rect drive is the most important advantage with the linear motor
system because the electrical power is directly transferred to
the translational mechanical power. Therefore, the linear system
is widely used for the high precision linear motion application
such as surface-mount technology (SMT) placement systems
and test handlers. For these linear motion systems, linear syn-
chronous motors are widely used, which are highly efficient.
There are two kinds of linear synchronous motors. One is the
moving coil linear motor and the other is the moving magnet
linear motor. In the case of the moving coil linear motor, the
moving part is the coil and the stationery part is the magnet, as
shown in Fig. 1(a). On the other hand, in the case of the moving
magnet motor, the moving part is the magnet and the stationery
part is the coil, as shown in Fig. 1(b). Compared to the moving
coil motor, the moving magnet motor may have the following
merits. Because the motor cable is stationery and due to the re-
duced moving parts, the reliability and mechanical design can
be enhanced. Usually, the magnet is more expensive than coils
and the total material cost can be reduced [2]. Without the cable
to the moving parts, a multiple mover can be easily accommo-
dated in a single stator.
Paper IPCSD 03–129, presented at the 2002 Industry Applications Society
Annual Meeting, Pittsburgh, PA, October 13–18, and approved for publication
in the IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS by the Electric Ma-
chines Committee of the IEEE Industry Applications Society. Manuscript sub-
mitted for review November 15, 2002 and released for publication December
12, 2003.
The authors are with the School of Electrical Engineering and Com-
puter Science, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-742, Korea (e-mail:
kms0912@eepel.snu.ac.kr; sulsk@plaza.snu.ac.kr).
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/TIA.2004.824488
0093-9994/04$20.00 © 2004 IEEE
Fig. 1. Two kinds of linear synchronous motors. (a) Moving coil linear motor.
(b) Moving magnet linear motor.
When it comes to the moving magnet linear motor, a circuit
which is called a partial excitation circuit is additionally needed.
A partial excitation circuit means a switching circuit which ener-
gizes only the coils which are located directly below the moving
magnets [3]. If the stationary coils are not properly energized, the
coils which are outside the magnet generate losses.
If it is possible to mount more than one moving magnet as-
sembly on one stationary coil assembly, cost and space will be
greatly saved. However, there are technical difficulties imple-
menting this dual moving magnet linear motor due to the ener-
gizing of the coils selectively.
This paper demonstrates the problem of the conventional par-
tial excitation method using Hall sensors [4] and proposes a new
partial excitation control method using external control.
II. CONVENTIONAL PARTIAL EXCITATION METHOD
In conventional method, Triacs are used as switching ele-
ments to turn on and off each coil for selective switching, and
the gating signal is made by Hall sensors which detect the flux
of the auxiliary magnet attached to the moving magnet. Fig. 2
shows this conventional partial excitation circuit.
500
Fig. 2. Conventional partial excitation method.
Fig. 3. Impedance unbalance when conventional partial excitation method
used.
In the conventional method, selective excitation operation
is carried out internally by Hall sensors. Therefore, the linear
motor can be energized and controlled by an inverter as if it
were a moving coil motor. However, it is an important problem
because the timing of turn-on of the incoming coil and the
turn-off of the outgoing coil does not exactly match and, hence,
there is inevitable phase unbalance.
Fig. 3 shows the Triac gating command generated by Hall
sensor for A-phase coils. In this figure, 4_A and 7_A are iden-
tifications for A-phase coils named in order, that is, 4_A for the
fourth coil of phase and 7_A for the seventh coil of phase.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 40, NO. 2, MARCH/APRIL 2004
Fig. 4. Proposed partial excitation circuit (externally controlled).
Fig. 5. Triac turn-on and tun-off control timing with respect to electrical angle
when mover is moving to left side.
is the measured -phase current when the motor is oper-
ating, and 7_A command and 4_A command are observed Hall
sensor outputs to energize the respective coils. When the 7_A
command becomes low, coil 7_A is connected to the -phase
power line. If the 4_A command goes high, coil 4_A is discon-
nected from the power line when becomes zero. As a result,
for some period which is shown as the shaded area in Fig. 3, the
impedance of -phase coils becomes smaller. Originally it was
expected that only three -phase coils are enabled all the time,
initially, 4_A, 5_A , and 6_A. However, during the shaded area,
four -phase coils are enabled. Similar situations can happen
with -phase and -phase coils.
Hence, the impedance of a phase of output of the inverter
changes abruptly. If the motor impedances change rapidly and
are unbalanced, the current regulation of the inverter would be
worse. Therefore, the performance of the speed and position
control cannot be improved.
III. PROPOSED PARTIAL EXCITATION CONTROL METHOD
In conventional method, the controller bandwidth is limited
because of this kind of impedance unbalance. To solve this
KWAK AND SUL: METHOD OF PARTIAL EXCITATION FOR DUAL MOVING MAGNET LINEAR SYNCHRONOUS MOTOR 501

TABLE I
FORMULATION FOR TRIAC TURN-ON AND TURN-OFF CONTROL WHEN
MOVING POSITIVE DIRECTION (N:INTEGER)

TABLE II
FORMULATION FOR TRIAC TURN-ON AND TURN-OFF CONTROL WHEN
MOVING NEGATIVE DIRECTION (N:INTEGER)

Fig. 6. Triac gating signal using proposed method for impedance balance.

problem, a new partial excitation control method is proposed.

Fig. 4 shows the proposed partial excitation circuit for single
mover linear motor. Each on–off action for the respective
Triacs are controlled externally by a main controller, not by
Hall sensors.
Fig. 5 shows the phase current waveform with respect to elec-
trical angle . To match the timing point of the turn-on and
turn-off, the turn-on command must be signaled at zero current
crossing time and the turn-off command must be signaled before Fig. 7. Proposed partial excitation circuit for dual moving magnet linear motor
that on-command time. Then, both the turn-on and the turn-off with neutral points separated and common dc link.
actions will take place at that zero current crossing time simul-
taneously.
coil assembly with two moving magnet assemblies, which are
Fig. 6 shows the Triac control signals when the proposed
independently controllable. In the case of the dual moving
method is applied. A dotted vertical line indicates the time point
magnet linear motor, partial excitation must be carried out
when coil 4_A is turned off and coil 7_A is turned on. As shown
separately with respect to the ABC power line and the UVW
in Fig. 6, the timing of switching has been well controlled.
power line. Two kinds of partial excitation circuits are proposed
Therefore, the impedance of the motor has been maintained as
in this paper.
balanced all the time.
Tables I and II show the on–off command timing formulation
A. Proposed Partial Excitation Circuit With Neutral Points
which is used in the main controller. Turn-on and turn-off time
Separated
is a function of electrical degree which is obtained from the
measured position. Turn-on time of each coils for both direction Fig. 7 shows the proposed partial excitation circuit for the
is the point when the current for the respective coil is zero, and dual moving magnet linear motor with neutral points separated.
turn-off time is electrical radian before or after the turn-on The shared coils are connected to the separate three-phase power
time with respect to the moving direction. lines and to the separate neutral points through separate Triacs.
Triac gating time points are calculated with the main controller
by using each encoder signal (electrical angle information) and
IV. PROPOSED PARTIAL EXCITATION CIRCUITS AND SYSTEM
transferred to the proposed partial excitation circuit. The for-
CONFIGURATIONS FOR DUAL MOVING MAGNET
mulations listed in Tables I and II are used to calculate the Triac
LINEAR MOTOR
gating time points.
The advantages of the dual moving magnet linear motor Fig. 8 shows the system configuration for this circuit. As
are that it can save cost and space by sharing one stationery shown in Fig. 8, a common dc link can be used to both inverters
502
Fig. 8. System configuration for dual moving magnet linear motor with neutral
points separated and common dc link.
Fig. 9. Proposed partial excitation circuit for dual moving magnet linear motor
with common neutral point and dc links separated.
because the neutral points are separated in the proposed partial
excitation circuit.
B. Proposed Partial Excitation Circuit With Neutral Points
Combined
Fig. 9 shows another proposed partial excitation circuit for
dual moving magnet linear motor with common neutral points.
The shared coils are connected to the separate three-phase power
lines and to the common neutral point altogether. Triac gating
time points are calculated with the main controller by using each
encoder signal (electrical angle information) and transferred to
the proposed partial excitation circuit. The formulations listed in
Tables I and II are used to calculate the Triac gating time points.
Fig. 10 shows the system configuration for this circuit. As
shown in Fig. 10, dc links must be separated for each inverter
because the neutral points are not separated in the proposed par-
tial excitation circuit.
This circuit has the advantage that the number of Triacs
needed for partial excitation can be reduced by half. However,
a transformer should be used for the galvanic isolation of the
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 40, NO. 2, MARCH/APRIL 2004
Fig. 10. System configuration for dual moving magnet linear motor with a
common neutral point and dc links separated.
Fig. 11. Dual moving magnet linear motor.
two inverters, and an additional diode rectifier must be added in
order to make an isolated dc link. Once the dc links are isolated
by the transformer, there is no interaction or interference
through the neutral point except stray capacitance.
V. EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS
A partial excitation control method using an external control
signal was proposed for proper determination of Triac gating.
Based on the proposed control method, two kinds of partial ex-
citation circuits for a dual moving magnet linear motor were
implemented with the respective system configurations. Fig. 11
shows the moving magnet linear motor with dual movers. These
two movers have exactly the same parameters. Fig. 12 shows the
proposed partial excitation circuit for a dual mover motor. This
circuit was designed to verify these two proposed ideas. The
KWAK AND SUL: METHOD OF PARTIAL EXCITATION FOR DUAL MOVING MAGNET LINEAR SYNCHRONOUS MOTOR 503

Fig. 12. Proposed partial excitation circuit.

TABLE III
PARAMETERS OF TESTED LSM

Fig. 13. Force component current commands and measured currents when
both movers are under position control when neutral points are separated
(from the top: q -axis current command of mover_uvw; actual q -axis current of
mover_uvw; q -axis current command of mover_abc; and actual q -axis current
of mover_abc).

neutral points on this circuit may be separated or combined by

changing some connections.
Table III shows the parameters of the moving-magnet-type
machine which is used in this experiment. The dual magnet
linear motor can be regarded as two independent motors as far
as the control is concerned. These two motors have the same pa-
rameters.
The structure of the controller is explained in the Appendix.
Fig. 13 shows the performance of the current controller when
the vector control method is applied in the case of separated
neutral points. In this experiment, the position commands for
mover_abc and mover_uvw are 0.3 and 0.4 m, respectively, and
the curve was used for the motion profile. From Fig. 13, it can
be seen that the currents are well regulated.
Fig. 14 shows the performance of the position controller
(current controller included) in the case of separated neutral
points. In this figure, The falling edge of Flag_moving_uvw
and Flag_moving_abc indicates the time when the motion
profile is finished. Err_Posi_uvw and Err_Posi_abc are the
difference between position command and the measured
position. It is shown that the position error becomes smaller
Fig. 14. Performance of position control when neutral points are separated
than 10 m in 10 ms after the motion profile has been finished. (from the top: position command flag of mover_uvw; position error of
This specification is the widely accepted performance for the mover_uvw; position command flag of mover_abc; and position error of
high-precision position control application such as the SMT mover_abc).
placement system and test handler. In all the experiments, the
resolution of the position encoder is 1 m. are combined, just as expected. The high-frequency components
Fig. 15 shows the phase current waveforms of mover_uvw of is mainly due to the charging and discharging current of
when the neutral points of the two movers were combined. The the distributed stray capacitance.
zero phase current , which is the sum of the phase currents of Fig. 16 shows the performance of the position controller
mover_uvw, is almost zero. Therefore, it can be said that there is (current controller included) in the case of common neutral
no interaction between two movers even when the neutral points points. In this figure, the falling edge of Flag_moving_uvw and
504 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 40, NO. 2, MARCH/APRIL 2004

Fig. 17. Position control structure for each mover. (Posi is the position of the
mover, Velocity is the velocity of the mover and i is the stator d-q current in
synchronously rotating reference frame. ‘ ’ denotes the reference value).

shown that the position error becomes smaller than 10 m in

10 ms after the motion profile has been finished.

VI. CONCLUSION
In this paper, the conventional partial excitation method has
been analyzed and the problem with the method has been iden-
tified, which was impedance unbalance. A new partial excita-
tion control method for proper Triac gating has been proposed.
Based on the proposed control method, two new partial excita-
tion circuits have been implemented for a dual moving magnet
linear motor. The validity and performance of the proposed par-
tial excitation method for a dual moving magnet linear motor
was verified by experimental results. The experiment results re-
veal excellent position control capability, such as less than 10
Fig. 15. Phase current waveform when neutral points are combined (from the
top: measured U-phase current of mover_uvw; measured V-phase current of
m position error within 10 ms after position command.
mover_uvw; measured W-phase current of mover_uvw; and calculated Z-phase
current of mover_uvw). APPENDIX
Fig. 17 shows the structure of the controller. The current con-
trol is carried out in synchronously rotating reference frame. The
-axis current is controlled to control the force, the -axis cur-
rent is controlled to be zero, and the speed controller is used as
an upper level controller outside the current controller. Finally,
the position controller is the outmost controller.
The equivalent circuit of the linear synchronous motor (LSM)
is the same as the surface-mount permanent-magnet machine
(SMPMM) as in (A.1) and (A.2)

(A.1)

(A.2)

Based on this machine model, the current controller can be de-

signed as in Fig. 18, where

(A.3)

(A.4)

and the proportional–integral (PI) gains for the current con-

Fig. 16. Performance of position control when neutral points are combined
(from the top: position command flag of mover_uvw; position error of
troller are
mover_uvw; position command flag of mover_abc; and position error of
mover_abc).
(A.5)
Flag_moving_abc indicates the time when the motion profile
is finished. Err_Posi_uvw and Err_Posi_abc are the difference Then, the whole transfer function from the reference current
between the position command and the measured position. It is to the real current becomes first-order low-pass filter whose
KWAK AND SUL: METHOD OF PARTIAL EXCITATION FOR DUAL MOVING MAGNET LINEAR SYNCHRONOUS MOTOR 505

Mu-Shin Kwak (S’02) was born in Cheonan, Korea,

in 1976. He received the B.S and M.S. degrees in
electrical engineering in 2000 and 2002, respectively,
from Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea, where
he is currently working toward the Ph.D. degree.
His research interests are high-performance ac ma-
chine drives and control board design.

Fig. 18. Current controller and motor model.

bandwidth is if the calculated value matches in-

side the machine.
The velocity controller and the position controller are also
simple PI controller and the gains are properly chosen.
REFERENCES
[1] H.-W. Kim, J.-W. Kim, and S.-K. Sul, “Thrust ripple free control of
cylindrical liner synchronous motor using finite element method,” in
Conf. Rec. IEEE-IAS Annu. Meeting, vol. 1, 1996, pp. 42–46.
[2] Anorad Corp., “Moving magnet lightning series,”, New York, Item
90 545, 1998.
[3] , “Linear motor,” U.S. Patent 4 595 870, June 17, 1986.
[4] S.-Y. Jung, J.-S. Chun, and H.-K. Jung, “Performance evaluation of
slotless permanent magnet linear synchronous motor energized by
partially excited primary current,” IEEE Trans. Magn., pt. 1, vol. 37,
pp. 3757–3761, Sept. 2001.
Seung-Ki Sul (S’78–M’80–SM’98–F’00) was born
in Korea in 1958. He received the B.S., M.S., and
Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from Seoul
National University, Seoul, Korea, in 1980, 1983, and
1986, respectively.
He was with the Department of Electrical and
Computer Engineering, University of Wisconsin,
Madison, as an Associate Researcher from 1986
to 1988. He was then with Gold-Star Industrial
Systems Company as a Principal Research Engineer
from 1988 to 1990. Since 1991, he has been a
member of the faculty of the School of Electrical Engineering, Seoul National
University, where he is currently a Professor. His current research interests
are power electronic control of electric machines, electric vehicle drives, and
power converter circuits.