Additive Manufacturing of High Performance Shaped-Profile Electrical Machine Windings

正如英国先进推进中心和航空航天技术研究所所指出的那样，电机在功率密度和效率方面的性能改进是混合动力汽车和电动汽车以及更多或全电动飞机成功的关键。传统电机的效率和封装体积受到制造电绕组的方法的限制，即使用绕在定子齿上的均匀截面的预绝缘导体。在这里，我们建议使用金属添加剂制造(3D打印)，其中原料或粉末材料被选择性地粘合在连续的2D层中，以逐渐形成紧凑的3D缠绕。添加剂制造提供的几何自由度允许同时最小化端部绕组体积和单独成形导体型材，以优化效率，同时充当高性能无机电气绝缘材料的衬底。该技术可以解决航空航天、能源和高价值汽车行业高完整性和高价值电机设计中日益增长的低批量、灵活性和定制化需求，同时实现立法和市场情绪所要求的二氧化碳减排。具体地说，我将领导这个多学科项目，利用雷尼绍、3TAM、电机设计有限公司和蒂赛德大学的专业知识，探索高性能异型电机绕组添加制造的潜在好处。合作伙伴代表领先的电气机械设计(布里斯托尔大学电机设计有限公司)、电气绝缘材料(蒂赛德大学)、英国添加剂制造供应链(雷尼绍)和终端添加剂制造零部件生产(3TAM)。这一系列的合作伙伴涵盖了从理论绕组设计到制造的绝缘原型绕组所需的技能和能力。因此，该项目将导致英国在这一领域的知识和技能基础的显著增长，并开发一个技术演示程序，以说明此类绕组对工业和学术界的定量好处。这将使新的跨行业关系和合作得以培养，以期在项目期后继续进行研究，最终导致行业采用，并进一步使英国成为高价值电机技术的卓越中心。

Performance improvement of electrical machines in terms of power-density and efficiency is central to the success of hybrid- and electric- vehicles and more- or all- electric aircraft, as indicated by the UK Advanced Propulsion Centre and the Aerospace Technology Institute. Efficiency and packaging volume of conventional electrical machines are limited by the method used to manufacture electrical windings, i.e. using pre-insulated conductors of uniform cross-section wound around the teeth of the stator. Here, we propose the use of metal additive manufacturing (3d printing), in which feedstock or powdered material is selectively bonded in a succession of 2D layers to incrementally form a compact 3D winding. The geometric freedom offered by additive manufacturing allows the simultaneous minimisation of end-winding volume and individual shaping of conductor profiles to optimise efficiency all while acting as a substrate for high performance inorganic electrical insulation materials. The technology could address the increasing drive to low batch size, flexibility and customisation in design for high integrity and high value electrical machines for the aerospace, energy and high value automotive sectors while enabling CO2 reductions demanded by legislation and market sentiment.Specifically, I will lead this multidisciplinary project exploring the potential benefits of Additive Manufacturing of High Performance Shaped Profile Electrical Machine windings leveraging expertise from industrial and academic partners Renishaw, 3TAM, Motor Design Ltd and Teesside University. The partners represent leading electrical machine design (Motor Design Ltd, University of Bristol), electrical insulation materials (Teesside University), UK additive manufacturing supply chain (Renishaw) and end-use additive manufacturing part production (3TAM). This range of partners cover the necessary skills and capability to go from theoretical winding design to manufactured, insulated prototype windings. As such, the project will result in a significant growth in the UK's knowledge and skills base in this area and develop a technology demonstrator to illustrate the quantitative benefit of such windings to industry and academia. This will allow new cross-sector relationships and collaborations to be cultivated with a view to perpetuate the research beyond the project period, ultimately leading to industrial adoption and further poising the UK as a centre for excellence in high value electrical machine technologies.