1544 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 43, NO.
6, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2007
Unbalanced Magnetic Forces in Permanent-Magnet
Brushless Machines With Diametrically
Asymmetric Phase Windings
Z. Q. Zhu, Senior Member, IEEE, Dahaman Ishak, David Howe, and Jintao Chen
AbstractA general analytical model, formulated in 2-D polar
coordinates, is developed to predict the unbalanced magnetic
force, which results in permanent-magnet brushless ac and dc
machines having a diametrically asymmetric disposition of slots
and phase windings. It is shown that the unbalanced magnetic
force can be significant in machines having a fractional ratio of
slot number to pole number, particularly when the electric loading
is high. The developed model is validated by finite-element cal-
culations on 9-slot/8-pole and 3-slot/2-pole machines. In addition,
the unbalanced magnetic force has been measured on a prototype
3-slot/2-pole machine and shown to be in excellent agreement with
predicted results.
Index TermsBrushless machines, magnetic field, permanent
magnet (PM), unbalanced magnetic force, unbalanced mag-
netic pull.
I. I NTRODUCTION
P ERMANENT-MAGNET (PM) brushless machines em-
ploying a fractional ratio of slot number to pole number
and a concentrated (i.e., nonoverlapping) winding are popular
due to their inherently low cogging torque, short end-windings,
high efficiency, and high power density [1][7]. Typical
slot/pole combinations for three-phase PM brushless machines
in which the slot number Ns and the pole number 2p dif-
fer by one, i.e., 2p = Ns 1, are 3-slot/2-pole, 3-slot/4-pole;
9-slot/8-pole, 9-slot/10-pole; 15-slot/14-pole, 15-slot/16-pole;
21-slot/20-pole, 21-slot/22-pole, etc. In such machines, the
flux-linkage per coil and the torque density are high since the
coil pitch is approximately equal to the pole pitch. In addition,
the cogging torque is very small because of the fractional
ratio of slot number to pole number and the fact that the least
common multiple between the number of slots and poles is
large. However, one disadvantage is that such machines may
exhibit an unbalanced magnetic force due to the diametrically
asymmetric disposition of the stator slots and coils [7][10],
Paper IPCSD-07-044, presented at the 2005 Industry Applications Society
Annual Meeting, Hong Kong, October 26, and approved for publication
in the IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS by the Elec-
tric Machines Committee of the IEEE Industry Applications Society. Man-
uscript submitted for review November 3, 2005 and released for publication
May 5, 2007.
Z. Q. Zhu, D. Howe, and J. Chen are with the Department of Electronic and
Electrical Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, U.K. (e-mail:
Z.Q.Zhu@sheffield.ac.uk; D.Howe@sheffield.ac.uk; J.Chen@sheffield.ac.uk).
D. Ishak is with the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering,
Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang 14300, Malaysia (e-mail: elp01DI@
sheffield.ac.uk).
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/TIA.2007.908158
0093-9994/$25.00 2007 IEEE
which may compromise the bearing life and result in excessive
acoustic noise and vibration.
It is well known that an unbalanced magnetic force will
result in an electrical machine if it exhibits rotor eccentricity.
The unbalanced magnetic force due to rotor eccentricity in
PM brushless machines was investigated in [11] and [12].
However, the unbalanced magnetic force that results from rotor
eccentricity is not the subject of this paper. In [8][10], finite-
element analysis was employed to investigate the unbalanced
magnetic force that results from both rotor eccentricity and
an asymmetric winding disposition in low-power external-rotor
brushless dc (BLDC) motors of the type that is extensively
used in hard disk drives. A hybrid numerical technique, which
combined an analytical expression for the magnetic field in the
air-gap region with the finite-element analysis of the field in
other regions of a brushless machine, was developed in [8] and
[9], whereas in [10], the finite-element method was used to
compare the unbalanced magnetic force that results in 9-slot/
12-pole, 9-slot/8-pole, and 9-slot/10-pole BLDC motors.
In this paper, a general analytical model, formulated in 2-D
polar coordinates, is developed to predict the unbalanced mag-
netic force in brushless ac (BLAC) and BLDC machines,
having surface-mounted magnets and a fractional number of
slots per pole, due to a diametrically asymmetric disposition
of the stator slots and phase windings. Predictions from the
analytical model are validated by finite-element calculations on
two machines having 9-slots/8-poles and 3-slots/2-poles. The
calculation method for the unbalanced magnetic force is vali-
dated by measurements on a prototype 3-slot/2-pole machine.
II. A NALYTICAL M ODEL
A. Air-Gap Field Distribution
The instantaneous air-gap field distribution under any load
condition can be calculated by summing the open-circuit field
produced by the rotor PMs and the armature reaction field
generated by the three-phase stator winding such that
Bload (r, , t) = Bm (r, ) + Ba (r, , t) (1)
for both the radial and circumferential flux density components,
where Bm (r, ) and Ba (r, , t) are the field produced by the
PMs and the armature reaction field, respectively, is the rotor
angular position with reference to the axis of a magnet pole, is
the stator angular position with reference to the axis of phase A
ZHU et al.: UNBALANCED MAGNETIC FORCES IN PERMANENT-MAGNET BRUSHLESS MACHINES 1545

winding, and = r t, where r is the mechanical angular The foregoing expressions are general to all radial-field PM
velocity. brushless machine topologies having surface-mounted mag-
The open-circuit air-gap flux density distribution in a slotless net rotors and are applicable to BLDC and BLAC machines,
PM motor equipped with radial or parallel magnetized magnets u being equal to 1 for a BLAC machine. Furthermore, the
can be expressed as air-gap flux density distribution in a slotted motor can be


obtained by introducing a relative permeance function [13].
Bmr (r, ) = KB (n)fBr (r) cos(np) (2) However, as will be shown later, the influence of the slot
n=1,3,5,... opening on the unbalanced magnetic force in PM machines
having an asymmetric disposition of stator slots and phase
for the radial component, and windings is negligible and will be neglected for simplicity.



Bm (r, ) = KB (n)fB (r) sin(np) (3)
n=1,3,5,... B. Unbalanced Magnetic Force

for the circumferential component, where KB (n), fBr (r), and
fB (r) are given in Appendix B and depend on the pole number
2p, the stator bore radius Rs , the magnet inner radius Rr and
outer radius Rm , as well as the harmonic order.
The three-phase stator ampere conductors can be represented
by an equivalent current sheet of infinitesimal thickness dis-
tributed over the stator slot openings, the current sheet density
being
The unbalanced magnetic force is the resultant global mag-
netic force that acts on the rotor due to an asymmetric magnetic
field distribution in the air-gap. It can be calculated either an-
alytically or by finite-element analysis using Maxwells stress
tensor method, as shown in Appendix D. The force components
Fx and Fy , which act on a rotor having an axial length la , can
be computed by evaluating the following expressions along a
surface of radius r in the middle of the air gap:

3N

2
Js = Iu Ksov Kdpv rla   
Rs u Fx = B2 Br2 cos + 2Br B sin d (7)
v 2o
  0
cos(upr tv+u ), for u = 6c 1, v = 3c+u
(4) 2
cos(upr t+v+u ), for u = 6c 1, v = 3cu rla   
Fy = B2 Br2 sin 2Br B cos d. (8)
2o
where c = 0, 1, 2, 3, . . . , N is the total number of series 0
turns per phase, Ksov is the slot opening factor, which is given
in Appendix C, Kdpv is the winding factor, which will be The corresponding radial and circumferential components of
discussed later for the two machines under consideration, r the unbalanced magnetic force can then be obtained.
is the rotor speed, u is associated with time harmonics in the
current waveform, Iu is the harmonic phase current, and u is III. F INITE -E LEMENT V ALIDATION AND I NVESTIGATION
the associated current harmonic phase angle.
As shown in Appendix C, by applying appropriate boundary The main design parameters of the 9-slot/8-pole and 3-slot/
conditions, the distribution of the vector magnetic potential can 2-pole brushless machines, which have been used to validate the
be derived, and the radial and circumferential components of developed analytical model, are given in Appendix A. Due to
the armature reaction field, Bar and Ba , respectively, can be space limitations, however, only field distributions correspond-
obtained as ing to BLDC mode of operation will be presented.

3N

1
Bar (r, , t) = o Iu Ksov Kdpv Fv A. Magnetic Field Distribution in the 9-Slot/8-Pole Machine
u v
v
 Each phase of the 9-slot/8-pole machine comprises three
sin(upr t v + u ), for u = 6c 1 v = 3c + u
adjacent coils connected in series, the middle coil being of
sin(upr t + v + u ), for u = 6c 1 v = 3c u opposite polarity to the other two coils [Fig. 1(a)]. The winding
(5) factor is the product of the coil-pitch factor and the distribution
3N

1
factor and is given by
Ba (r, , t) = o Iu Ksov Kdpv Gv
u v
v Kdpv = Kdv Kpv (9)

cos(upr t v + u ), for u = 6c 1 v = 3c + u where Kpv = sin (v (4 / 9)) and Kdv = (1 / 3)[1

cos(upr t + v + u ), for u = 6c 1 v = 3c u 2 cos(v(8/9))].
(6) Although the axes of the windings of phases A, B, and C are
displaced by 120 elec. and their back electromotive forces are
where the effective air-gap length is = Rs Rr , and the symmetrical and phase shifted by 120 elec., the disposition
functions Fv and Gv depend on the number of poles, the of the phase windings about the diameter of the machine is
harmonic orders, and the stator and rotor bore radii, and are asymmetrical. This can result in an unbalanced magnetic force
given in Appendix C. between the rotor and the stator. Ideally, the phase current
1546 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 43, NO. 6, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2007

Fig. 1. Disposition of phase windings and open-circuit, armature reaction,

and resultant field distributions for the 9-slot/8-pole machine in the BLDC
mode, at t = 6.245 ms (ia = 10 A, ib = 10 A, and ic = 0 A). (a) Winding
disposition. (b) Open circuit. (c) Armature reaction. (d) Resultant.

waveforms that correspond to BLAC and BLDC modes of op-

eration are sinusoidal or 120 rectangular, respectively. Figs. 1
and 2 show the open-circuit, armature reaction, and resultant
field distributions, together with the air-gap flux density dis-
tributions, when operated in BLDC mode, at t = 6.245 ms
(60 elec.) when ia = 10 A, ib = 10 A, and ic = 0 A. As will
be seen, good agreement is achieved between the analytical and
finite-element predictions. It can be also seen that whereas the
open-circuit flux distribution in the stator core is fairly nonuni-
form, the air-gap field distribution is more or less symmetrically
distributed about the diameter of the machine, although, due to
the odd number of stator slots, a slight asymmetry exists, which
leads to a small unbalanced magnetic pull acting on the rotor
even on an open circuit. However, the armature reaction field
distribution is much more nonuniform, and the resultant air-gap
field distribution is correspondingly more asymmetrical. Fig. 2. Air-gap flux density distributions for the 9-slot/8-pole machine in
the BLDC mode, at t = 6.245 ms (ia = 10 A, ib = 10 A, and ic = 0 A).
(a) Open circuit. (b) Armature reaction. (c) Resultant.
B. Unbalanced Magnetic Force in the 9-Slot/8-Pole Machine
The unbalanced magnetic force that results when the 9-slot/ the finite-element and analytically predicted variation of the un-
8-pole machine is operated in BLDC and BLAC modes has balanced magnetic force components Fx and Fy with rotor po-
been calculated analytically and by finite-element analysis. sition, again assuming the same peak phase current of 10 A for
Field solutions were computed at time steps of 2.0833 ms, BLDC and BLAC modes. Overall, good agreement is achieved.
which corresponds to incremental displacements of the rotor In both modes, the unbalanced magnetic force increases almost
of 5 elec. Fig. 3 compares the finite-element predicted loci of linearly with the phase current (Fig. 5). This may be explained
the unbalanced magnetic force for various peak phase currents by approximately expressing the unbalanced magnetic forces as
for BLDC and BLAC modes. follows: unbalanced magnetic force (Bm + Ba )2 Bm 2
+
It can be seen that the unbalanced magnetic force that results 2Bm Ba + Ba 2Bm Ba + Ba 2Bm Ba (when Ba  Bm )
2 2

on open circuit, as a result of the diametrically asymmetric Ba i, where Bm and Ba are the flux densities, which
disposition of stator slots, is relatively small. Fig. 4 compares are due to the magnets and the armature currents, respectively.
ZHU et al.: UNBALANCED MAGNETIC FORCES IN PERMANENT-MAGNET BRUSHLESS MACHINES
Fig. 3. Finite-element predicted loci of the unbalanced magnetic force in the
9-slot/8-pole machine for various phase currents. (a) BLAC. (b) BLDC.
The unbalanced magnetic force that results on open circuit is
2
very small since Bm is almost constant from pole to pole,
as is evident from Fig. 2(a), whereas the amplitude of Ba is
significantly lower than the amplitude of Bm for the prototype
motor, as can be seen from Fig. 2(a) and (b). Therefore, the
term of Ba2 may be neglected, and the unbalanced force has an
essentially linear relationship with the phase current.
It can be also seen that in the BLAC mode, the force locus
is essentially circular since the magnetic field that is produced
by the rotor magnets rotates in synchronism with the field
that is produced by the stator windings, whereas in the BLDC
mode, the force locus is irregular as a result of the two-phase
conduction, six-step operation, when commutation events have
a significant influence on the unbalanced magnetic force. In
addition, since the peak current is assumed to be the same
for both modes of operation, the amplitude of the unbalanced
magnetic force is slightly higher in the BLDC mode, as the
root-mean-square current is higher.
1547
Fig. 4. Unbalanced magnetic forces in the 9-slot/8-pole machine, 10-A peak
phase current. (a) BLAC. (b) BLDC.
Fig. 5. Variation of the average unbalanced magnetic force with phase current
in the 9-slot/8-pole machine.
C. 3-Slot/2-Pole Machine
A similar investigation has been carried out on the 3-slot/
2-pole machine for which the distribution factor is now 1.0, and
the winding factor is equal to the coil-pitch factor, i.e.,
Kdv = 1, Kdpv = Kpv = cos v . (10)
3
Fig. 6 shows the open-circuit, armature reaction, and re-
sultant field distributions, again assuming idealized current
waveforms with an amplitude of 10 A, whereas Fig. 7 compares
analytically predicted and finite-element calculated air-gap flux
1548 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 43, NO. 6, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2007

Fig. 6. Disposition of phase windings and open-circuit, armature reaction, and

resultant field distributions for 3-slot/2-pole machine in the BLDC mode, at
t = 25 ms (ia = 10 A, ib = 10 A, and ic = 0 A). (a) Winding disposition.
(b) Open circuit. (c) Armature reaction. (d) Resultant.

density distributions for the BLDC mode. The predicted varia-

tion of the unbalanced magnetic force is shown in Figs. 810.
As can be seen, since the magnets are diametrically magne-
tized, the open-circuit air-gap field distribution is essentially
sinusoidal and more or less symmetrical about the diameter
of the machine. The influence of the diametrically asymmetric
disposition of stator slots on the unbalanced magnetic force
is again very small, and the unbalanced magnetic force in the
BLDC mode is higher than that in the BLAC mode. However,
it will be noted from Fig. 10 that, unlike the 9-slot/8-pole
machine, the average unbalanced magnetic force nonlinearly
varies with the current since the amplitude of the armature reac-
tion field is now comparable to that produced by the magnets,
as can be seen from Fig. 7(a) and (b). In this case, similar to
the case of the 9-slot/8-pole machine, it may be explained by
approximately expressing the unbalanced magnetic forces as
follows: unbalanced magnetic force (Bm + Ba )2 Bm 2
+ Fig. 7. Air-gap field distributions for the 3-slot/2-pole machine in the BLDC
mode, at t = 25 ms (ia = 10 A, ib = 10 A, and ic = 0 A). (a) Open circuit.
2Bm Ba + Ba 2Bm Ba + Ba (i and i ). The Ba term
2 2 2 2
(b) Armature reaction. (c) Resultant.
causes nonlinear relationship between the average unbalanced
magnetic force and the current. Their relationship is approxi-
mately linear only when the current is small. and switched reluctance machines [14], [15], and a measure-
ment method has been proposed [15], to date, no measurements
of unbalanced magnetic force have been reported.
IV. E XPERIMENTAL V ALIDATION OF U NBALANCED
Fig. 11 shows a schematic and a photograph of the test rig,
M AGNETIC F ORCE C OMPUTATION
which has been developed for measuring the unbalanced mag-
In this section, the predicted unbalanced magnetic force that netic force. The stator core of the motor under test is held rigid,
results in the 3-slot/2-pole motor is compared with measure- whereas the rotor is mounted on supports that rest on a load
ments made on a prototype motor mounted on a specially de- cell and that can be vertically moved (Fig. 12). However, since
signed test rig. Although the issue of the unbalanced magnetic the requirement is to measure the unbalanced magnetic force
force has been addressed for PM brushless machines [7][12] that results as a consequence of the diametrically asymmetric
ZHU et al.: UNBALANCED MAGNETIC FORCES IN PERMANENT-MAGNET BRUSHLESS MACHINES 1549

Fig. 9. Unbalanced magnetic forces and their magnitude in the 3-slot/2-pole

machine at 10-A peak phase current. (a) BLAC. (b) BLDC.

Fig. 8. Finite-element predicted loci of the unbalanced magnetic force for the
3-slot/2-pole machine for various phase currents. (a) BLAC. (b) BLDC.

disposition of the stator slots and phase windings, the axis of

the rotor is maintained at the center of the stator to eliminate the
influence of rotor eccentricity. Furthermore, to simplify the test
and also to eliminate any tendency for the rotor to rotate as well
as the influence of variations in the remanence due to changes in
Fig. 10. Variation of the average unbalanced magnetic force with phase
temperature, testing was undertaken with the magnet removed current for the 3-slot/2-pole machine.
from the rotor. Fig. 13 shows the orientation of the motor when
mounted in the test rig together with the stator coil connection
such that only a vertical force results.
Fig. 14 shows the measured variation of the unbalanced measured and predicted unbalanced magnetic force that results
magnetic force with current together with predictions from 2-D, without the rotor magnets (Fig. 14) is significantly smaller than
linear and nonlinear, finite-element analyses. As will be seen, that which results when the magnets are in place (Fig. 10). It
the measurements were repeatable, and, in general, there is shows that the magnets on the rotor can significantly amplify
good agreement with the unbalanced magnetic force that is the unbalanced magnetic force on load, although the influence
predicted with the magnets removed from the rotor. However, of the magnets is negligible on open circuit. The variation of the
possible sources of discrepancy include friction in the rotor unbalanced magnetic force with current is also more nonlinear,
support and end-effects. It will be seen, however, that the approximately proportional to the square of current.
1550 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 43, NO. 6, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2007
Fig. 11. Test rig for the unbalanced magnetic force measurement.
(a) Schematic. (b) Experimental setup.
Fig. 12. Vertically movable rotor support.
V. C ONCLUSION
The unbalanced magnetic force that acts on the rotor of a PM
brushless machine can be an important consideration for the
Fig. 13. 3-slot/2-pole motor and winding connection. (a) Prototype 3-slot/
2-pole motor with rotor support. (b) Winding connection.
Fig. 14. Comparison of measured and 2-D finite-element predicted unbal-
anced magnetic force.
design of high-performance machines having a fractional slot
and pole number combination. In this paper, a general analytical
model, formulated in 2-D polar coordinates, has been developed
to predict the unbalanced magnetic force that results from a di-
ametrically asymmetric disposition of slots and phase windings
in both BLAC and BLDC machines. The utility of the model
has been validated by finite-element analyses on 9-slot/8-pole
and 3-slot/2-pole machines and validated experimentally on a
prototype of the 3-slot/2-pole machine. In general, the con-
tribution of the stator slots to the unbalanced magnetic force
is relatively small compared to that due to the stator MMF.
The unbalanced magnetic force significantly increases with the
phase current and, hence, should be considered in designing
machines having high electric loading. In addition, it shows that
the PM on the rotor can significantly amplify the unbalanced
magnetic force on load, although its influence is negligible on
open circuit.
ZHU et al.: UNBALANCED MAGNETIC FORCES IN PERMANENT-MAGNET BRUSHLESS MACHINES 1551

A PPENDIX for parallel magnetization. Also, note that

A. Machine Design Parameters  

sin (np + 1)p 2p
A1n = (A6)
(np + 1)p 2p
A2n = 1 for np = 1
 
sin (np 1)p 2p

A2n = for np
= 1 (A7)
(np + 1)p 2p
 
2M r1
1 for np = 1
A3n = M
1
(A8)
np np
1 Mrn 1
Mn + np for np
= 1

where p is the number of pole pairs, Rs , Rm , and Rr are the

stator bore radius and the magnet outer radius and inner radius,
respectively, p is the magnet pole-arc to pole-pitch ratio, and
Br and r are the magnet remanence and the relative recoil
B. Open-Circuit Magnetic Field permeability, respectively.
In (2) and (3), when np = 1, i.e., n = 1 and p = 1 For the two-pole parallel (diametrically) magnetized magnet
rotor machine, the open-circuit magnetic field can be simpli-
fied as
o Mn
KB (n) =
2r  2
 2 2

Br 1 RR2r Rm
2 +
Rm
cos

2
2
2
2 R r
A3n Rs + Rs In Rs =      
m s
A3n R Rm R r Rr R m Bmr 2 2 2 Rr2


s


 1 + RRm2 1 RR2r + r 1 RRm2 1 + 2
Rm
2
s m s
2 2

r+1 1 R r
r1 RRm RRr

r R s r s m (A9)
(A1)  2
 2 2

 2 Br 1 RR2r RRm2 + Rrm sin
=     .
m s
Rs Bm 2
fBr (r) = 1+ Rr2 2 Rr2
r 1 + R2 1 R2 + r 1 RRm2 1 +
Rm
2
Rm
s m s

 2
Rs (A10)
fB (r) = 1+ (A2)
r

and when np
= 1, KB (n), fBr (r), and fB (r) are given in C. Armature Reaction Field
(A3) and (A4), shown at the bottom of the page, where Mn =
2(Br /o )p ((sin (n/2)/(n/2))) for radial magnetiza- In terms of the vector magnetic potential A, the Laplace
tion and equation, which governs the armature reaction field in the air-
gap and magnet regions, is
Br Br
Mn = p (A1n + A2n ) + np p (A1n A2n ) (A5)
o o 2 A = 0 (A11)

np+1
2np



o Mn np
(A3n 1) + 2 Rr
Rm (A3n + 1) Rr
Rm

KB (n) = 
2np  
2np
2np  (A3)
r (np)2 1 r 1
r+1 1 R R
r
r
Rm
Rs Rr
Rm

r s

 np1  np+1  np+1

r Rm Rm
fBr (r) = +
Rs Rs r
 np1  np+1  np+1
r Rm Rm
fB (r) = + (A4)
Rs Rs r
1552 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 43, NO. 6, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2007

for which the general solution is ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The authors would like to thank Y. Chen and M. Mohd
 
A(r, ) = Cv rv + Dv rv cos(v). (A12) Jamil for their assistance in the finite-element calculation and
v experiment.
The field components are related to A by
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2 [15] T. J. E. Miller, Faults and unbalanced forces in the switched reluctance
Fx = rla Sx d (A19) machine, IEEE Trans. Ind. Appl., vol. 31, no. 2, pp. 319328, Mar./
Apr. 1995.
0

2
Fy = rla Sy d. (A20)
0

The rectangular coordinate tensors Sx and Sy can be obtained

from the polar coordinate equivalents Sn and S such that

Sx = Sn cos S sin (A21)

Z. Q. Zhu (M90SM00) received the B.Eng. and
Sy = Sn sin + S cos (A22) M.Sc. degrees from Zhejiang University, Hangzhou,
China, in 1982 and 1984, respectively, and the Ph.D.
where degree from the University of Sheffield, Sheffield,
U.K., in 1991, all in electrical engineering.
1  2  1 From 1984 to 1988, he was a Lecturer with the
Sn = Br B2 and S = (Br B ). (A23) Department of Electrical Engineering, Zhejiang Uni-
2o o
versity. Since 1988, he has been with the University
Substituting (A21)(A23) into (A19) and (A20) gives the of Sheffield, where he is currently a Professor of
electrical engineering. His current major research
analytical expressions (7) and (8) for the resulting unbalanced interests include the application, control, and design
magnetic force. of permanent-magnet machines and drives.
ZHU et al.: UNBALANCED MAGNETIC FORCES IN PERMANENT-MAGNET BRUSHLESS MACHINES 1553

Dahaman Ishak received the B.Eng. degree from
the University of Syracuse, Syracuse, NY, in 1990,
the M.Sc. degree from the University of Newcastle
upon Tyne, Newcastle, U.K., in 2001, and the Ph.D.
degree from the University of Sheffield, Sheffield,
U.K., in 2005, all in electrical engineering.
He is currently with the School of Electrical and
Electronic Engineering, University Sains Malaysia,
Penang, Malaysia. His research interests include
the design and analysis of low-speed high-torque
permanent-magnet brushless machines.
Jintao Chen received the B.Eng. and M.Sc. degrees
in electrical engineering from Huazhong Univer-
sity of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China, in
2001 and 2004, respectively. He is currently work-
ing toward the Ph.D. degree at the Department of
Electronic and Electrical Engineering, University of
Sheffield, Sheffield, U.K., working on the design
and analysis of novel permanent-magnet brushless
machines for automotive applications.
From 2004 to 2006, he was an Engineer with Delta
Electronics (Shanghai) Company, Ltd.

David Howe received the B.Tech. and M.Sc. degrees

from the University of Bradford, Bradford, U.K., in
1966 and 1967, respectively, and the Ph.D. degree
from the University of Southampton, Southampton,
U.K., in 1974, all in electrical power engineering.
He has held academic posts with the University
of Brunel, London, U.K., and the University of
Southampton, and spent a period in industry with
NEI Parsons Ltd., working on electromagnetic prob-
lems related to turbo generators. He is currently a
Professor of electrical engineering with the Univer-
sity of Sheffield, Sheffield, U.K., where he heads the Electrical Machines and
Drives Research Group. His research activities span all facets of controlled
electrical drive systems, with particular emphasis on permanent-magnet excited
machines.
Prof. Howe is a Chartered Engineer in the U.K., a Fellow of the Royal
Academy of Engineering, and a Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and
Technology, U.K.