The development of a more electrical aircraft is a technological transition applied or envisioned for almost all the systems in the aircrafts and helicopters. Together with the electrification of aircraft actuation systems, also the implementation of an electric propulsion can lead to many advantages in terms of reduced specific consumption, noise reduction, weight and volume saving. Anyway, this transition is mainly limited by the reliability, lifespan and some safety aspects of electric system.

In this context, the objective of this CfP was the design of a motor-drive for aircraft electric propulsion mainly characterised by high reliability, safety and high power-to-weight/power-to-volume ratio.

To fulfil this objective, a high-performance multi-phase permanent magnet motor drive with modular integrated architecture and fault tolerant capabilities was proposed. Such a system integrated the electromechanical design with the power and control electronics by mean of a compact double stacks stator architecture. The basic objective was to provide integrated and optimised redundancies in order to fulfil the high power-to-volume/power-to-weight ratio requirements.

The integrated system also benefited from the features of Silicon Carbon (SiC) devices to achieve high performance and reliable power electronics stage since they offer faster switching speeds (up to 100kHz), low losses, the ability to function at high operating temperatures (250°), and therefore the flexibility to further improve the converter system design over a very wide frequency range.