A Multi-Criteria Analysis and Trends of Electric Motors for Electric Vehicles

The interest in electric traction has reached a very high level in recent decades; there is no doubt that electric vehicles have become among the main means of transport and will be the first choice in the future, but to dominate the market, a lot of research efforts are still devoted to this purpose. Electric machines are crucial components of electric vehicle powertrains. The bulk of traction drive systems have converged in recent years toward having some sort of permanent magnet machines because there is a growing trend toward enhancing the power density and efficiency of traction machines, resulting in unique designs and refinements to fundamental machine topologies, as well as the introduction of new machine classes. This paper presents the technological aspect of the different components of the electric powertrain and highlights the important information on the electric vehicle’s architecture. It focuses on a multi-criteria comparison of different electric motors utilized in the electric traction system to give a clear vision to allow choosing the adequate electrical motor for the desired application. The proposed comparative analysis shows that the induction motor better meets the major necessities of the electric powertrain, whereas the permanent magnet synchronous motor is nonetheless the most used by electric vehicle manufacturers.