Combined-levitation-and-propulsion control of SLIM Maglev vehicle on flexible guideway

Based on the decoupled control method of attractive-normal and thrust forces in a single-sided linear induction motor (SLIM), a compact combined-levitation-and-propulsion SLIM Maglev vehicle can be realized without any additional levitation magnet. In a Maglev system, if the distance between two pillars is long compared with the moving vehicle, a vibration of the guideway is one of the most important problems. This paper presents a combined-levitation-and-propulsion control system with considering the guideway vibration in Maglev vehicle realized by SLIM only. For stable levitation and propulsion, estimated airgap length has been calculated from the measured airgap length by gapsensor and attractive-normal force has been analyzed by finite element method (FEM). Experimental results show that the vehicle can be propelled and levitated stably for the flexible guideway.