A Review on Different Aspects of Traction Motor Design for Railway Applications

Journal article, 2020

This paper presents a review of the current traction motor topologies available in the railway market in three parts. In the first part, essential aspects of the electromagnetic design of railway traction motors, e.g. motor sizing and rotor configurations, are discussed. Different topologies are compared considering the wide range of applications. The pros and cons of each topology in specific applications are highlighted based on the corresponding performance requirements. Different cooling configurations of traction motors common in railway are reviewed in the paper second part where focus is placed on the solutions based on air cooling. The third part presents a review of the available insulation systems for traction motors. Two primary insulation systems used in traction applications with thermal classes of H and N are discussed. The focus in this paper is placed on the main applications in railway including light rail vehicles, metros, electric multiple units, high speed trains and locomotives. Additionally, trends in traction motors development in the coming years are reported separately for electromagnetic, cooling and insulation designs.