Construction of a New Type of Modular Tubular Machine

A new type of tubular machine in modular construction that can work either like motor or generator is presented in the paper. It belongs to the transverse flux machines class and operates based on the variable reluctance principle. Two topologies of the machine, with and without permanent magnets (PM), are approached here. A prototype of the tubular machine with electromagnetic excitation, having a stator core built from laminated sheets and the mover core made of soft magnetic composite material, was built and is shown in the paper. The use of the new soft magnetic composite material, Somaloy 700 HR, having 3D magnetic isotropy, brings important advantages in building the structure. The innovative construction, implying the alternation of the magnetic pieces called modules with no-magnetic spacers, has very good performances. A prototype of this machine was built and a test bench equipped with control and monitoring devices in order to perform experimental tests. Some possible applications showing the potential of the proposed machine are also presented.