Published online by Cambridge University Press: 19 July 2008
Efficient numerical models have been already developedin 2D to take into account the movement of electromagnetic deviceswith rotating parts in the framework of the Finite Element Method(FEM). When the movement becomes complex it leads to large meshdistortions. A remeshing step is then required which increases thecomputational complexity and can also lead, in some cases, tonumerical ripples on forces and torques due to the fieldprojections between old and new meshes. Moreover, remeshingprocedures in 3D remain an open topic. Meshless methods seem anappealing choice for alleviating the mesh constraints. The NaturalElement Method (NEM) which, has known a growing interest in thedomain of mechanics, allows to proceed in the meshless framework,avoiding one of the main drawbacks related to the vast majority ofmeshless techniques, as is the imposition of essential boundaryconditions. In this paper, a variant of the NEM, known asconstrained natural element method (C-NEM) is applied forsimulating electromagnetic machines involving rotating parts. Anew mixed strategy combining the finite element and theconstrained natural element methods is proposed and then tested byusing an appropriate error estimator.