Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motors (PMSMs) are increasingly being used and are required to satisfy noise and vibration specifications. Thus, it is necessary to develop design guidelines for electric motors that consider vibration response as a key output of the design. This work shows the influence of the main design parameters regarding PMSMs: the number of slots and the number of poles. First, the influence of the number of slots in the natural frequencies is analysed by Finite Element calculations, which are experimentally verified. Then, the analytical calculation of the vibration response is explained. This is applied for several combinations of the number of slots and the number of poles, and the results are compared. Considering the analytical development, a procedure to choose the most adequate combination of the number of slots and poles is proposed. The analytical predictions are validated according to experimental measurements in two machines.

The use of electric motors, and particularly, Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motors, is increasing in recent years, and their vibration response is one of the most crucial aspects regarding their behaviour. Thus, the reduction in vibrations is one of the key objectives when optimizing electric motors. In an initial design state, the influence of the main design parameters on the behaviour of the machines is not always clear. For that reason, this work presents a global sensitivity analysis procedure that allows identifying the most influential design parameters and determining guidelines to optimize the design of Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motors. First, the analytical calculations employed to estimate the electromagnetic torque and the vibration response of the machine are described. Then, the sensitivity analysis procedure, based on the Monte Carlo method, is presented, and the conditions to apply the method successfully and accurately are analysed. Finally, the sensitivity analysis is performed for a particular electric motor design, and some general design guidelines are deduced, which can be extrapolated to similar machines.

The vibration of the stator frame due to electromagnetic forces is one of the main noise and vibration sources of electric machines. In some applications, due to the wide variety of working conditions, magnetic circuit design optimisations are not enough, and the control of the machine is needed to reduce vibrations. Therefore, this work presents a reduced model, to be used during the control, which is able to estimate the stator frame vibrations of a Permanent Magnet Synchronous Machine. Finite Element calculations are performed, and the results are saved in Look-Up Tables and implemented in a calculation procedure, allowing a fast vibration estimation for any input conditions. The proposed model demonstrated the same accuracy as Finite Element simulations, with a calculation time of several seconds. The model was validated using experimental measurements, and it reliably estimated the evolution of the vibration of a commercial machine under varying current and rotational speed. Its potential to test harmonic current injection strategies was also experimentally corroborated. Thus, the model presented in this work is suitable to be further developed and implemented as a virtual sensor in a harmonic injection control procedure