Design of Double-Sided Linear Permanent Magnet Eddy Current Braking System

This work tries to design an Eddy current braking system that can brake at a very high speed within a short time or a short distance. In order to maximize the braking force and reduce lateral forces that can cause track deformation or damage, a double-sided linear permanent magnet Halbach array is proposed in this paper. Two possible designs (Type I and Type II) have been investigated. By using mathematic models, Finite Element Method (FEM) and experimental results, Type I design of a double-sided linear permanent magnet Halbach array is selected. Compared with the other design, Type I design can provide a much larger braking force. Moreover, the analysis also shows that the mathematic models can well capture the characteristic of Type I design. Thus these models are used to design a set of optimal design parameters such as the length and thickness of permanent magnet block to maximize flux density and braking force per unit mass of permanent magnets. The optimal performance is validated by using FEM.