Development of an Integrated Flux/Position Sensor

A novel and practical internal flux sensor for a magnetic bearing has been developed. The bearing uses an integral shunt flux path to provide a measurement of the flux density in the bearing stator. The flux density measurement can be used to improve control functions of the magnetic bearing system. Alternatively, the measurement can be combined with the measurement of coil current in the bearing axis to determine the rotor position. The shunt flux path is created in such a way that the bearing specific load capacity is not diminished, and the bearing package envelope is not increased.