Introduction to Electric Machines and Drives

Gain a comprehensive introduction to electric machines and drives, covering core principles from AC system fundamentals and machine dynamics to modern inverter and drive control techniques. Designed for both newcomers and seasoned professionals seeking a refresher, the course leverages industry expert insights and practical design examples to boost productivity, efficiency, and overall system performance. This program is ideal for professionals aiming to enhance their understanding and application of electric drive technologies.

Learning Outcomes:

Understand the fundamentals of AC systems, machine dynamics, and inverter control techniques.
Apply practical design examples to improve productivity and efficiency in your work.
Gain insights from industry experts to stay updated with the latest innovations in electric drives.

Who Should Attend:

Engineers and technicians working in appliance drives, cranes and elevators, precision motion control, and renewable energy.
Professionals involved in electric/hybrid-electric vehicles, autonomous vehicle control, aerospace, marine, and military vehicles.
Individuals seeking a refresher or new knowledge in the field of electrical rotating machines and drives.

Course Details: RA01369-E138

Course Outline

Introduction

Review: AC Systems and Three-Phase Circuits

AC voltages and currents
Effective or RMS values
Complex numbers and phasor concepts
Why three-phase?
Harmonics
Per-unit system

Review: Electromagnetics and Energy Conversion

Magnetic fields, flux, and force
Faraday’s Law of Induction
Ferromagnetic materials
Inductors and transformers
The DC machine

Basics of AC Machines

Elementary AC machines: air-gap MMF, flux, voltage waveforms
Distributed stator windings
Elementary rotor-stator coupling
Three-phase operation

Induction Motors: Steady State

Induction machine types: wound rotor, “squirrel cage” rotor
Circuit models
Concept of slip
Torque-speed curves

Synchronous Machines: Steady State

Synchronous machine types: wound rotor, permanent magnet
Circuit models and vector diagrams
Capability curves

Converter Power Electronics: Basic Theory, Devices

Review of circuit fundamentals
Basic converters
Conversion stages
Device characteristics and capabilities

AC Inverter Basics: VSI, CSI, Modulation

Basic inverter system
Voltage source inverter (VSI)
Current source inverter (CSI)
Modulation techniques
Pulse width modulation (PWM)
Practical considerations

Adjustable Speed Drives: Basics

Basic adjustable speed drive systems
Review: DC machine speed control
Varying voltage
Varying frequency
Motor and drive selection

Adjustable Speed Drives: Volts/Hz Control

Concepts of constant flux and torque
Operation at constant torque or power
Low speed operation
Basic Volts-per-Hertz system
Drive limitations

Adjustable Torque Drives: Basics

Ideal adjustable torque systems
Review: DC machine torque control
Key elements of torque control
Synchronous machine torque
Induction machine torque-slip control

Induction Motor Field Orientation

Review machine forces: Lorentz and reluctance
Rotating vectors: stator and rotor currents
Lorentz force control = vector control
AC current regulation
IM slip and torque production

Application-Specific Selection of Machine-and-Drive Systems

Load types and characteristics
Specific drives to suit application
Practical issues of machine and drive selection
PM versus IM
Installation considerations

Application of Wide Bandgap Devices to Power Electronics

Review of Silicon Carbide (SiC) and Gallium Nitride (GaN) devices
DC-DC converter example using SiC
2-level VSI using SiC and GaN inverters

High-Speed Electric Machines

Review of high speed electric machines
Sizing equation and definition of tip speed
Pros and cons of each machine for high speed
High-speed machine design considerations

Course Schedule

Location and Lodging

Course Location

Pyle Center

702 Langdon Street
Madison, WI 53706

Map

866-301-1753

608-262-1122

Lodging

Madison Concourse Hotel and Governor's Club

One West Dayton Street
Madison, WI 53703

DoubleTree by Hilton Madison Downtown

525 West Johnson Street
Madison, WI 53703

Map

Accommodations include: Enjoy complimentary business center, WiFi and Local/Airport Shuttle. Each room has a refrigerator, microwave, 42-inch HDTV, and executive desk. Parking available $15/night.

Online Reservations

800-222-8733

608-251-5511

More Madison Lodging Options

Course Notes

This is a HyFlex (in-person and online) taught course. Your registration is for one teaching platform only: in-person or online. Please be prepared to attend all days either in person or online. Contact us if you have any questions or if you need to make a change.

Registration confirmation will guide students through accessing the Canvas course site.

Students will create and log in to the Canvas course site with a NetID. Course assets such as instructional materials, participation certificates, and course evaluations will be available to all students through the Canvas course site.

The course materials are all digital and only available on the Canvas course website.

Online attendees will access sessions via the Zoom web conferencing platform. The Zoom link will be provided a few days before the course.

Please watch the email address that you provide during registration for release dates and pre-course information.

Instructors and Program Director

Instructors
Thomas Jahns
Grainger Professor of Power Electronics And Electric Machines
Dr. Thomas M. Jahns received his bachelors, masters, and doctoral degrees from MIT, all in electrical engineering.
Dr. Jahns joined the faculty of the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1998 in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. He served for 14 years as a Co-Director of the Wisconsin Electric Machines and Power Electronics Consortium (WEMPEC), a world-renowned university/industry consortium in the electrical power engineering field. Since 2021, he is the Grainger Emeritus Professor of Power Electronics and Electrical Machines.
Prior to coming to UW-Madison, Dr. Jahns worked at GE Corporate Research and Development (now GE Global Research) in Niskayuna, NY, for 15 years, where he pursued new power electronics and motor drive technology in a variety of research and management positions. His current research interests at UW-Madison include integrated motor drives and electrified propulsion for both land vehicles and aircraft.
Dr. Jahns is a Fellow of IEEE. He received the 2005 IEEE Nikola Tesla Technical Field Award “for pioneering contributions to the design and application of AC permanent magnet machines”. Dr. Jahns is a Past President of the IEEE Power Electronics Society. He was elected to the US National Academy of Engineering in 2015 and received the IEEE Medal in Power Engineering in 2022.
Renato Amorim Torres
Researcher
Renato Amorim Torres received the B.Sc. degree in electrical engineering from the Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil, in 2016, and the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, Madison, WI, USA, in 2020 and 2022, respectively. During his M.S. and Ph.D. studies, he was a Research Assistant with the Wisconsin Electric Machines and Power Electronics Consortium (WEMPEC). Since completing his Ph.D., he has been working as a Researcher in Electric Machines and Drive Systems at General Motors Research and Development. His research interests includes power electronics and electric machines with focus areas on machine controls, wide-bandgap power devices, power electronics integration and EMI.
Michael Ryan
President
Michael Ryan received his B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Connecticut, Storrs,1988, M.E. degree in Electrical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY, 1992, and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1997. At UW-Madison, Ryan worked in the WEMPEC labs on projects including dc–dc converters, variable-speed generation systems, and UPS inverter control.
Ryan is President of Ryan Consulting, involved in the application of Power Electronics and Controls, particularly for Alternative Energy systems. He has held prior positions at Capstone Turbine, General Electric Corporate Research and Development and Defense Systems divisions, Automated Dynamics, Otis Elevator, and Hamilton Standard.
Patrick Flannery
Associate Teaching Professor
Patrick Flannery received the B.S. degree in mechanical engineering from The Pennsylvania State University in 1998, and the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, in 2003 and 2008, respectively. Patrick is presently an Associate Teaching Professor in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at University of Wisconsin Madison. Previously he served as Director of Research Engineering with American Superconductor (AMSC) where he was technical lead of several product developments projects for military electronics, grid connected power electronics, wind generator control systems.
Brent Gagas
Staff Systems Engineer
Brent Gagas received his B.S. (2011) M.S. (2013) and PhD (2016) in Mechanical Engineering all from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he was a Research Assistant in WEMPEC under Dr. Robert Lorenz, focusing his research on dynamic magnetization state manipulation and loss minimizing control of variable flux permanent magnet motors. Since graduating, Brent has worked at General Motors, currently as a Staff Systems Engineer, focusing motor and power electronic controls in automotive propulsion systems and has achieved 20 patents and the 2021 Boss Kettering award.
Program Director
Erick Oberstar

Total Credits:

CEU 2,

PDH 20,

Applies to this Certificate:

Electrified Systems,

Course Administration

Fee Information

This course has two attendance options: face-to-face or online.

Face-to-face attendance fee includes morning and afternoon breaks, scheduled lunches, and course materials.

Online attendance fee includes online instruction and course materials. Online attendees will access course sessions via the Zoom web conferencing platform.

Discounts

Wisconsin Electric Machines and Power Electronics Consortium, College of Engineering, UW-Madison member course fee: $1675. We will verify your affiliation.
When three or more sign up from same employer, your course discount is $187.5.

Payment Options

If you are planning to attend an Interdisciplinary Professional Programs course, payment is required at the time of registration. Below are the payment options:

Pay by Credit Card

Enroll online and pay by credit card.

Search for the course on the website and then click on the Enroll Now button from the course webpage.
Enter all necessary course attendee information and payment information on the course enrollment page.
You will receive an email to confirm successful enrollment and payment.

Enroll over the phone and pay by credit card.

Call CERC Registrations at 608-262-2451.
Provide the registrations representative with:
- the course name, dates, and/or course number.
- the necessary course attendee information and payment information.
You will receive either a mailed document or an email to confirm successful enrollment payment.

Pay by Check

Mail in a completed registration form and check payable to UW Madison.

Fill out a registration form (found either in the back of the course brochure you received in the mail or here).
Prepare a check, made payable to UW Madison.
Mail the registration form and check to: CERC Registrations 21 N Park St, Ste 7101 Madison, WI 53715
You will receive either a mailed document or an email to confirm successful enrollment and payment.

Pay by Purchase Order

Request Purchase Order information from registration@cerc.wisc.edu
- If a fee quote is needed, contact custserv@interpro.wisc.edu first
You will receive an invoice from UW–Madison Business Services for payment, usually within 3–5 business days

Military

If using SF-182 form, please call our registration number at 608-262-2451 or email registration@cerc.wisc.edu for details and instructions.

Event Cancellation

We reserve the right to cancel a course due to insufficient enrollment or unforeseen events. If we cancel a course, participants will be notified via email or phone and will be given the option for a full refund or to transfer their registration and any fees paid to another course. We are not responsible for non-refundable plane tickets, hotel reservations, and other travel related expenses. For enrollee Course Cancellation, refer to notes on course page.

Cancellation Policy

If you cannot attend, please notify us no later than one week before your course begins, and we will refund your fee. Cancellations received after this date and no-shows are subject to a $150 administrative fee. You may enroll a substitute at any time before the course starts.

Create a custom learning experience

We can deliver this course as an on-site learning experience tailored to your organization’s specific training needs.