Voice coil actuators: From model and simulation to automotive application

This paper describes an innovative linear voice-coil-actuated automatic sequential gear with manual shift for a formula student race car. The application is novel to linear voice coil actuators, which are usually adopted in PC hard disks or speakers. A model, which comprises both the dynamic and thermal characteristics of the adopted voice coil is developed to perform several co-simulations of the electrical and mechanical parts of the system. Model validation is also presented. The experiments show that voice coil actuators offer an alternative solution to pneumatic and hydroelectric systems in this application, avoiding the need of any extra-circuit (e.g. for air or oil), compressor or tank.