A comparative study between axial and radial fluxfocusing magnetic gear topologies and mechanical gearboxes

A variety of magnetic gear topologies have been investigated in recent years as alternatives to traditional mechanical gearboxes. In general these magnetic gears offer advantages in the non-contact transmission of torque including inherent overload protection, reduced acoustic emissions, and a reduction in the number of contacting components subject to wear. The earliest magnetic gear designs however suffered from low volumetric torque densities, which limited their utility for industrial applications. Research into flux focusing magnetic gearbox topologies has resulted in increased volumetric torque densities by actively engaging all of the magnets in the transmission of torque throughout the process. This research compared the volumetric torque density of axial and radial flux focusing magnetic gearbox designs and prototypes to planetary, cycloidal, and harmonic mechanical gearboxes. The rare earth scaled up radial and axial flux focusing topologies were found to have consistently higher volumetric torque densities than planetary gearboxes of comparable diameter. The cycloidal and harmonic gearboxes had comparable volumetric torque densities, with greater volumetric torque densities for some models and lesser volumetric torque densities for others. The expectation is that further improvements in volumetric torque density are possible for flux focusing magnetic gears with additional refinement and optimization of the designs. The current study does show that flux focusing magnetic gear topologies are a plausible future alternative to mechanical gearboxes in applications where their unique torque transmission mechanism would be advantageous.