A COMPREHENSIVE DESIGN AND SIMULATION OF QUADRUPOLE ELECTROMAGNETIC LINEAR SYSTEMS FOR PRECISE POSITIONING IN AEROSPACE

Abstract

For linear motion applications, particularly in aerospace, this study outlines the creation of an essential Quadrupole Electromagnetic System (QES) as a substitute for a four-track electromagnetic launcher. The QES design is compared with a four-track system to address concerns regarding rail-armature contact sliding. In a QES, four coils provide a homogeneous electromagnetic field, resulting in a Lorentz force on the slider. The QES was designed using the three-dimensional modeling capabilities of the ANSYS software. The results of the magnetic properties show a high potential for scaling this model to various levels. Additionally, the QES power circuit was simulated using ANSYS Simplorer. The circuit uses silicon-controlled rectifiers (SCR) and a pulse-width modulation (PWM) pulse generator. A force of 4kN was achieved, and this paper presents the current and force plots in detail. The study includes finite element analysis, electromagnetic and current characteristics simulation, and monitoring of the skin and proximity effects. Performance is increased by optimizing the QES design parameters using Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO). The simulation results demonstrate the feasibility and scalability of the QES design.

Keywords

• electromagnetics
• finite element analysis
• four-track electromagnetic launcher