16

IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON POWER ELECTRONICS, VOL. 5. NO. I . JANUARY 1990

DC Machine Models for SPICE2 Simulation

Abstract-A four level computer model is proposed for dc machine

simulation using SPICE2 to meet different simulation requirements.
The most complex model takes account of magnetic saturation, armature reaction, current dependence of winding circuit parameters and
eddy current effects. These models enable designers to simulate the
static and dynamic characteristics of a complete dc motor drive system
more conveniently and accurately.

I. INTRODUCTION
C MACHINES are commonly used in many industrial applications such as servo control and traction
because of their relatively easy control scheme. The computer model for a dc motor armature used to be considered
as a constant resistor and inductor plus a back EMF proportional to field current and rotor speed [l]. To investigate both the static and dynamic relationships of a real dc
motor drive system, this simple model is inadequate because it ignores phenomena such as magnetic saturation,
field armature reaction and eddy current effects. Normally
the machine field is operating near its saturation region
and it is very easy to push the operating point into the
saturation region when overload torque is needed. Armature reaction is also an important phenomenon during
heavy loads. Also, a rectifier or chopper drive supplies
the machine with pulsating current which causes strayload losses in the winding copper as well as in the solid
and laminated parts of the motor magnetic circuit, thus
reducing the motor efficiency.
Several papers proposed better dc machine models for
use in drive system simulation and analysis 121, [ 3 ] . To
the authors knowledge, most of them are specified mathematically, either by differential equations [3] or using the
Laplace Transform 141. The disadvantage of those approaches is that the mathematical models cannot be easily
linked to those of the power converters and designers generally have to assume the drive electronics to consist of
ideal switching devices.
SPICE2 is a widely accepted and commonly used circuit simulation package. Many contributors proposed
computer models for simulating components used in
power conditioning systems [5]-[7], allowing the designers to model the drive electronics and analyze it in SPICE2
without any difficulty. To develop dc machine models in
SPICE2 is to widen its capabilities to include complete
converter/motor drive systems. This will allow the de-

Manuscript received August 1988; revised August 1989.

The authors are with the School of Electrical Engineering. The University of Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia.
IEEE Log Number 8932108.

signer to study the whole drive system in only one simulation without special assumptions and avoiding the use
of complex mathematical operation, making drive design
work more straightforward and practical.
In this paper, a four level computer model is proposed
for dc machine simulation using SPICE2 to meet different
simulation requirements. Those models take account of
the machine magnetic saturation, armature reaction and
eddy current effects. Level 0 is an ideal machine model;
Level 1 includes machine field saturation effect; Level 2
considers both the machine saturation effect and armature
reaction phenomena. Level 3 simulates both the above
phenomena and also the machine stray-load losses and
current dependence of winding circuit parameters.
11. MODELDEVELOPMENT
A . Level 0 Model
For an ideal dc machine, a set of performance equations
can be derived as follows (Fig. 1):
Vu = R,i,
V

Rfif

dum
Jdt

+ L, didt + K,ifw,
dif

+ L f -dt

+ f w , + TL = ~ , i f i ,

(3)

where V,, Vf are terminal voltages of armature and stator

field respectively. R,, Rf are the armature and stator field
resistance respectively. TL is the load torque, w, is the
machine rotational speed, f is the shaft friction coefficient,
J is the rotational inertia and K , is the EMF constant. The
field excitation winding here could be a series or parallel
winding.
All the circuit elements in Fig. 1 can be modelled and
simulated simply in SPICE2. The model parameters can
all be obtained from simple experiments or by direct measurements. This model ignores all non-linear effects,
would be reasonably accurate if the machine is operating
at light load conditions and is a useful model for rough
preliminary design.

B. Level 1 Model
For a machine operating near rated load, the above
model is no longer strictly correct because the magnetic
circuit is not linear as the model assumed. Two approaches are possible to simulate field saturation.

0885-8993/90/0100-0016$01.OO @ 1990 IEEE

17

LIANG AND GOSBELL: DC MACHlNE MODELS FOR SPICE2 SIMULATION

E
R
If
0

Vf

'18

Fig. 2 . DC machine magnetic saturation curve.

0

Fig. 1. DC machine SPICE2 model level 0.

Approach Z
The field excitation versus back emf voltage curve under no load condition is shown in Fig. 2 . The curve can
be linearized piecewisely by two lines with different
slopes:
AE = 0
while if 5 ifs

- AE,

- Rd$
while if > ifs
(4)
Ai,,
Aif2
To implement this equation in SPICE2, a switching circuit is required to switch the machine performance curves
from linear to saturation regions and vice versa. A SPICEable switching circuit is proposed as shown in Fig. 3 . AE
is the reduction in back-emf voltage due to field saturation
and is proportional to the voltage drop across R,,,. In this
circuit, when if < if,y,diode D2 is reversed biased and AE
= 0. When if > if,, diode D2 is forward biased and AE
AE2

Fig. 3 . A SPICE-able switching circuit.

0: A i f .

1 -exp(-i ,432~)'

16

0.8

24

Fig. 4. Curve similarity between tanh ( x ) and 1 - e - ' 4 " '

Approach 2
From a mathematical view point, the dependence of
machine back-emf voltage and field current can be well
approximated by the expression [3]:

- +

E = C, tanh (C, * 0)+ C, If C,.

(5)
SPICE2 does not support the hyperbolic tangent function but it can be approximated by using an exponential
function associated with the characteristics of a reversed
biased diode with suitable device parameters. Fig. 4
shows the similarity between these two functions.
The characteristics of the SPICE2 diode are modelled
by a nonlinear current source I d . The value of ID, which
is negative I d , is determined by

V, = kT/q, k is Boltzmann's constant, Tis the absolute

temperature in degree K and q is the electronic charge. V,
is about 25.85 mV at room temperature. Vd is the diode
forward bias voltage and I,/ is the forward current through
the diode. If we set n = 27 and Z, = 1 .O. then the equation
becomes

ID

1 - exp (1.432

V(,).

(7)

U
0

Fig. 5 . DC machine model level I-saturation

part only

It fits the nonlinearity of the hyperbolic tangent function in the area when Vd < 0. Then, the machine saturation curve can be modelled by the circuit in Fig. 5, where
V, is a current sensor for ID .

C. Level 2 Model
As the machine current approaches rated value, armature reaction becomes more important. Two approaches
will be given for the simulation of this effect.
Approach 1
The E-Zf curves for different value of armature current
Z, are shown in Fig. 6 , [8]. The curves show an effective
reduction in flux with increasing I,. The armature reaction
voltage drop effect is modelled by a dependent voltage

IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON POWER ELECTRONICS. VOL. 5, NO. I , JANUARY 1990

18

tive flux within this region in terms of the field current is

mm

In the region between If and If

5 , / N f , the armature
reaction will saturate the iron, especially at the leading
pole tip (motor) or the trailing pole tip (generator). The
demagnetizing effect of the armature reaction varies along
the pole shoe.
If this region is divided into n partitions and assumed
to be linear in each partition, the average flux component
including armature reaction for this region is

:
1

Fig. 6 DC machine armature reaction effects

+ tanh

+ c3

(24

C2 ( I f

%))

Fig. 7 . Model simulates armature reaction voltage drop.

( 2 k - l)3,
nNf

+2

source E A R controlled by both the field current If and armature current I, as shown in Fig. 7, where
EAR

= C,Z,

+ C6Zf.

(8)

Ethis the threshold voltage at which armature reaction

effects begin as shown in Fig. 6 and can be determined
either from the manufacturers information or by simple
experiments. ELMand D2 limit the armature reaction voltage drop Vu, (Node 4 to 0), for the demagnetizing effect
does not increase infinitively with I,.
Approach 2
To combine both the effects of field saturation and armature reaction, the magnetic field of the machine is made
dependent on the non-homogeneous saturation of the stator pole. The effective machine field excitation flux (current), can be obtained from following equation when the
armature reaction is taken into account [3].

+ C3 . I + C4) dZ

(9)

(12)

(13)
For practical purposes, it is accurate enough to divide
the nonlinear saturation curve after the knee into three to
six linear segments. It is felt that satisfactory simulation
results can be obtained for most machines with n as small
as three. Each partition in this model can be realized by
a subcircuit (.Subckt) in SPICE%. Linking the subcircuits
together gives the model as shown in Fig. 8.
Km+eff = ( K m + ( l f e f f l )

Km+eff2)/2.

D. Level 3 Model
DC machine parameters as a function of frequency and
degree of magnetic saturation are essential in application
where the motor is to be converter controlled. A rather
detailed model was developed by Blasko [3] in 1985 for
a chopper controlled dc series motor. In this model, an
equivalent network which can simulate the eddy circuit
stray-losses and torque delay phenomenon as shown in
Fig. 9, [3], [9]. The dependence of the equivalent winding circuit parameter X ( R or L ) on the line current I is
represented by

X(Z) = SI * coshp2 ( & I )

where
number of armature current paths
bP pole shoe width
D armature diameter
5 , armature magnetic motive force according to machine loading
Nf number of tums of field winding
number of conductors of armature winding.
In the region between Zf - 3 , / N f and If, the armature
reaction is not strong enough to saturate the iron and behaviour can be assumed to be linear. The average effecU

c4.

+ S3

(14)

where SI, S,, and S3 are determined by the least-squares

method. A sample L ( R ) dependent curve with current Z
is depicted in Fig. 10(a). In Blaskos paper, verification
experiments have been carried out on a chopper system.
The model gives an accuracy of better than 5 percent for
armature current, speed, starting period and the maximum
chopper frequency, but it has the disadvantage that the
designer has to handle a set of nonlinear differential equations. The Level 3 dc model has been developed to incorporate Blaskos model in a form which can be used for
SPICE simulations.

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LIANG AND GOSBELL: DC MACHINE MODELS FOR SPICE2 SIMULATION

0002

0004

0006

0008

001

Time (Sec)

Fig. 1 1 . Comparative simulation with Blasko's [3] results

Fig. 8. DC machine model Level 2-magnetic saturation and armature reaction parts only.

MOSFET

Series
1

Full Load Torque Applied

Fig. 9. Equivalent network of dc machine winding for stray effect.

Fig. 12. MOSFET chopper driven dc motor system.

be used to model Ri where R is a variable (Fig. IO(c))

where Vs, Vsr and VsLare current sensors.
As a check, an attempt has been made to repeat one of
Blasko's simulations as shown in Fig. 11, with some results from his original simulation shown by the dashed
lines. Blasko's paper does not give the value of all his
parameters and some values were guessed. Nevertheless
good agreements have been found demonstrating that
SPICE can be used to automate the solution of complex
machine models involving nonlinear differential equations.

1
L

0
[r

ou
0

40

80

Current (Amp)

(b)

(Cf

Fig. IO. (a) Current dependence of winding circuit components. (b) Model
for Li simulation. (c) Model for Ri simulation.

The cosh ( x ) term in (14) can be replaced by a tanh ( x )

term using
1 - coshp2 ( x )

tanh' ( x )

(15)

where tanh ( x ) can be modelled by the current of a reversed biased diode in response to the terminal voltage as
in the above section.
When L is a variable, Li can be modelled either by
varying L appropriately or by keeping L constant and
varying i by a suitable amount. This is a more convenient
alternative in SPICE simulation and can be represented
by the circuit shown in Fig. lO(b). A similar approach can

111. MOTORSIMULATIONS
The previously described motor models were used for
software simulation of transient states of a typical MOSFET chopper drive system using a series-connected dc
motor. The circuit diagram and a sample SPICE2 input
listing are shown in Fig. 12 and [lo], respectively. The
parameters for the simulated motor are also listed in the
Appendix.
Three simulations have been carried out of start-up signal full-load torque by using three models of different levels as described before. The simulation results plotted in
Fig. 13 show that significant difference in transient response between the Level 3 model and the rest of models.
Therefore, if an accurate computer simulation is required,
nonlinear machine model, Level 3 , must be used. All the
running times for the three simulations were recorded and
listed in Table I for reference. Note: The time includes
data reading, SPICE package allocation, data writing, and
terminal display on VAX 11/750 system.
The large difference of the used computer time between
model Level 3 and the rest models is not because of the

IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON POWER ELECTRONICS, VOL. 5. NO. I . JANUARY 1990

20

Rs = 4.399 Q , Ls = 0.0423 H, B = 0.00083

nm /rad /s
J = 0.00286 KgM, km = 0.66 (unsaturated).
Chopper:
period = 5 ms, input voltage = 200 V , duty cycle
= 0.5.
0-

0 08

004

0 12

Time (Sec)

I
0

0 04

0 08

0 12

Time (Sec)

Fig. 13. Simulation results of chopper driven dc motor system

TABLE I
SIMULATIONS
Level 0

Level 2

Level 3

108.49 s

263.73 s

992.51 s

model complexity but of the high armature current transient (Fig. 13). The high current transient forces SPICE
to run more iterations at smaller time steps in order to get
satisfactorily accurate simulation output.
IV. CONCLUSION
In this paper, a four level computer model is proposed
for dc machine modelling using SPICE2 to meet different
simulation requirements. The models take account of the
machine field magnetic saturation, armature reaction phenomena, current dependence of winding circuit parameters, and eddy current stray effects.
These models have been developed to enable designers
to simulate the static and dynamic characteristics of whole
converter drive system including dc machine more simply, practically, and reliably in one simulation run. Some
simulations has been investigated in order to demonstrate
the benefits of the proposed SPICE2 machine models.
APPENDIX
The simulated dc motor has been allocated to give the
following data:
Series excited dc laboratory motor:

200 V, 1.4 A,
0.4549

1200 r/min,

Ra = 16.105 Q , La =

REFERENCES
[ I ] J . Hindmarsh. Electrical Machines and their Applications. London:
Pergamon, 1977, pp. 266-359.
[2] H. B. Hamilton and E. Strangas, Series motor parameter variations
as a function of frequency and saturation, IEEE Trans. Power A p p .
Sysr., vol. PAS-99, no. 4. pp. 1567-1574, July/Aug. 1980.
[3] V. Blasko, A model of chopper-controlled DC series motor, IEEE
Trans. Ind. A p p l . , vol. IA-21, no. 1, pp. 207-217, Jan./Feb. 1985.
14) S . N. Singh, D. R. Kohli, Analysis and performance of a chopper
controlled separately excited dc motor, IEEE Trans. Ind. Elecrron. ,
vol. IE-29, no. I , pp. 1-6, Feb. 1982.
[ 5 ] P. L. B. Teixeira, Modelling of bipolar power transistors for CAD,
IEEE Caralog CH1529-7/80, pp. 29-33, 1980.
16) H. A. Nienhaus, J. C. Bowers, A high power MOSFET computer
model, IEEE Caralog CH1529/80, pp. 97-103, 1980.
171 R. L . Avant, F. C. Lee, A unified SCR model for continuous topology CADA, IEEE Trans. Ind. Electron., vol. IE-31, no. 4 , pp.
352-361, NOV. 1984.
[8] A. E. Fitzgerald, C . Kingsley, and S . D.Umans, Electric Machinery.
New York: McGraw-Hill, 1983, pp. 217-218.
[9] J . S . Ewing, Lumped circuit impedance representation for dc machines, IEEE Trans. Power App. S y s t . , vol. PAS-87, no. 4, pp.
1106-1 1 I O , Apr. 1968.
[ I O ] Y . C . Liang and V. J. Gosbell, Realistic computer model of dc
machine for CADA topology on SPICE2, in IEEE Power Electronics Specialisrs Con&, Proc.,Apr. 1988, pp. 765-771.

Yung-chii Liang (S85-M86-S86) received the

Associate B.E. degree in electrical engineering
from National Kaohsiung Institute of Technology,
and the M.E. degree from National Tsing Hua
University, Taiwan, Republic of China, in 1981
and 1985, respectively.
In 1985, he was employed as a Hardware Engineer in the Microtek International for designing
computer optical scanners. He is currently a Ph.D.
candidate in School of Electrical Engineering, The
University of Sydney, Australia. His research interests include computer aided modelling, analysis and control in power
electronics, biomedical engineering and fuzzy expert systems.
Mr. Liang is a member of Phi Tau Phi, and ICE.

Victor J. Gosbell (M85) received the B.E. degree in 1966 from the University of Sydney, Australia, while employed with the Sydney County
Council power distribution authority. He received
Ph D degrees in 1971 with work on the asynchronous operation of turbogenerators
He obtained a Rothmans Postdoctoral Fellowship in 1971 and studied the measurement of large
generator parameters for an Australian CIGRE
sub-panel. Since 1972 he has lectured at the University of Sydney, where his research interests
have included power system stability, HVDC transmission, power electronics, and variable speed motor drives.
Dr Gosbell is a Fellow of the Institution of Engineers. Australia.