A PM-type linear motor capable of self magnetic levitation

This paper suggests a new linear motor which is able to levitate as well as move its mover without any linear bearing or even additive windings. Its structure is very similar to a well-known both-sided linear motor which consists of two stators and a common mover. And the movement principle is the same with that of conventional linear motor. But unlike the conventional one, the amplitudes of phase currents are controlled to levitate the mover. In this paper, the structure and principle of the suggested bearingless linear motor are introduced in detail and its feasibility is experimentally investigated. Using the prototype and a very simple controller, we succeeded in the levitation and linear movement of the mover at a time.