A transverse flux, PM-excited linear motor (TFM-LM) with inner mover for ropeless elevator was designed and built. It’s output power density is higher and the weight is lower than for conventional permanent magnet excited linear synchronous motors (PMLSMs). To get the maximum thrust force under the given volume, the thrust force density with respect to the ratio of the pole width, height of the PM and the length of pole pitch is optimized by 2-D finite element method (FEM). To verify the design optimization, the computed forces are compared with the experimentally measured forces detected on the experimental setup of the TFM-LM. The calculated and measured performances of TFM-LM with inner mover reveal a great potential of system improvements by reducing mass of the linear motor. For examples, when this motor is applied to a ropeless elevator, it is possible to increase the power density by more than 400[%] than the conventional PM-LSM. The results of this study recommend TFM-LM with inner mover for the ropeless elevators and for gearless direct linear driving systems.

Keywords: Linear motor, Synchronous machines, Transverse flux motor, Rope-less elevator, Permanent magnets.