Line-Start Synchronous Reluctance Motor: A Reduced Manufacturing Cost Avenue to Achieve IE4 Efficiency Class

The paper presents the Line Start Synchronous Reluctance Motor (LSSynRM) technology as a promising avenue to bring IE3 motor portfolios to the IE4 efficiency class at contained manufacturing costs. Indeed, the achieving of IE4 efficiency class is concerning many motor manufacturers, where the small-medium manufacturers seem to face the higher efforts in converting their product portfolio. To this extent, a methodology to improve the IE3 Induction Motor (IM) efficiency by introducing the Line Start Synchronous Reluctance motor technology in the IM motor is presented. The new motor design guidelines and constraints are figured out to reduce the impact on the manufacturing process. The paper presents a detailed experimental validation of the realized prototype in steady-state and transient operation referring to a target IE3 IM. The prototype proved to be a cost-effective, mass production-ready solution for super-premium efficiency IE4 motors. The LSSynRM technology demonstrated to be an effective high-efficiency avenue at reduced manufacturing costs in a broad panorama of low-inertia industrial applications.