Transverse edge effect in sheet-rotor induction motors

A 2-dimensional-field analysis is presented for the problem of the sheet-rotor induction motor with finite width. Account is taken of the redistribution of the air-gap flux under the action of currents which flow in the active portion of the sheet in the direction of motion. The performance is shown to depend on three dimensionless parameters which are functions of the design data and the slip. It is seen that, for certain motors, the flux redistribution can affect the performance considerably. Measurements of force and flux density made on a linear motor, although showing reasonable agreement with the analysis, suggest that it would be desirable to take into account also, at least for those motors in which severe transverse redistribution occurs, the neglected secondary leakage fluxes that exist in the end regions and within the air gap.