BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION: Electric machines are well known in the art. They can be either of the electric motor type, which produces a force when electric energy is supplied, or the generator type, which generates electric energy when a mechanical force is applied to the generator. There exists both rotary and linear electric machine A problem with electric motors is that the torque the motor can deliver is limited by the ferro-magnetic core, which will saturate at a certain current level. Above this current level, the torque will not increase but the heat produced in the core will increase. When the core is heated, the magnetic properties will deterioate, as is the case with most magnetic materials.

The problem is particular troublesome when it comes to linear motors. The moving part of the motor, in this application referred to as the rotor, is often limited in size and thus the maximum electric field that can be applied to it is limited. This leads to an insufficient acceleration in different applications.

Different possible solutions to solve the problem with the limited delivered torque are known in the art. For a stationary motor, this can be dealt with by e. g. increasing the size of the motor. In applications where size and weight are of importance, different exotic materials are used in the ferro-magnetic core. The core can also be laminated in different ways, and different geometric layouts are known where the core is "distributed"in the magnetic field in an optimum manner.

In applications where a linear motor is used to control an electrically actuated valve, the limited torque is apparent. To be able to provide a somewhat useable solution, the present known systems for controlling an electrically actuated valve utilize a system comprising an electromagnet and a spring, set up in a resonant system. In this way, it is possible to adjust the valves somewhat. These systems are difficult to control and it is only possible to adjust the valves slightly during a cycle.

In applications where an electric machine is used in connection with a free piston engine, a conventional linear electric machine can be used to take out the average power when the piston is in a resonance state.

It is desirable to control the movement of the piston in each cycle, e. g. to control the combustion. This is difficult to achieve with conventional electric machines since such machines have a relation between the electric force and the mass of the rotor which is about ten times to low.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION:

The object of the invention is therefore to provide an electric machine, having a higher magnetic torque relative its size and/or weight than conventional electric machines.

According to the invention, this object is achieved by the characteristics of the electric machine specified in claim 1. The other claims contain advantageous embodiments and developments of the electric machine according to the invention.

The object of the invention is achieved by an electric machine comprising a first member and a second member, in which the second member is movable in relation to the first member, and in which the first and the second member comprises a closed magnetic circuit, where the first member comprise at least one coil and a plurality of first segments, each first segment comprising a plurality of first sections, each first section being a first magnetic field altering component, and where the second member comprise a plurality of second segments, each second segment comprising a plurality of second sections, each second section being a second magnetic field altering component.

This first embodiment of the electric machine according to the invention provides an electric machine with a very high power-to-weight ratio. This is obtained by incorporating a first and a second set of magnetic field altering components, in this embodiment made of iron- powder or ferrite. The electric machine can be used as a generator or a motor. Used as a generator, it can deliver a high output compared to its size. Used as a

motor, it can accelerate at a high pace due to the low mass of the moving parts.

In an advantageous first development of the electric machine according to the invention, the second set of magnetic field altering components are made of permanent magnets. This improves the efficiency of the electric machine further.

In an advantageous second development of the electric machine according to the invention, the first set of magnetic field altering components are made of air coils. This improves the acceleration ability of the electric machine.

In an advantageous third development of the electric machine according to the invention, the electric machine comprises a plurality of first members. This gives a polyphase electric machine. The advantage of this is that it improves the controllability of the electric machine when used as a motor and the continuous power output when used as a generator.

In an advantageous fourth development of the electric machine according to the invention, the electric machine comprises three first members. This gives a three-phase electric machine. The advantage of this is that conventional three-phase equipment can be used.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS : The invention will be described in more detail below, with reference to preferred embodiments as shown in the drawings attached, in which

FIG la shows a top view of a first preferred embodiment of an electric machine according to the invention, FIG 1b shows an elevated side view of the electric machine according to Figure la, FIG 2a shows a top view of an advantageous development of an electric machine according to the invention, FIG 2b shows an elevated side view of the electric machine according to Figure 2a, FIG 3 shows a side view of a first segment of the electric machine according to Figure 1, FIG 4 shows a side view of a second segment of the electric machine according to Figure 1, FIG 5a-c shows a working cycle of the electric machine according to Figure 1, FIG 6 shows an advantageous development of a second segment according to Figure 4, FIG 7 shows a top view of a second advantageous development of the electric machine according to the invention, and FIG 8 shows a split side view of the electric machine according to Figure 7.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The preferred embodiments of the invention and developments described below must be regarded solely as examples and in no way limit the scope of the patent claims. In the preferred embodiments here described, the same reference numbers in the various figures relate to the same type of part. Each part is therefore not described in detail in all preferred embodiments.

In a first preferred embodiment of an electric machine 1 according to the invention, the electric machine is arranged in a circular way, according to Fig. la, lb, 2a and 2b. The electric machine comprises a first member 2, which will be referenced to as the stator 2, and a second member 3, which will be referenced to as the rotor 3. The stator 2 is normally fixed by mounting it to a rigid structure, but it is also possible to mount it in a movable manner. The rotor 3 is movable in relation to the stator 2 about the longitudinal axis 4 of the machine. In fig. la, the longitudinal axis 4 of the electric machine is perpendicular to the paper plane. The stator 2 and the rotor 3 comprise a closed magnetic circuit, indicated with arrow 13. It is also possible to mount the rotor 3 in a fixed way, and let the stator 2 move in relation to the rotor 3.

In Fig. la, it can be seen that the stator 2 comprises a plurality of stator segments 5, positioned in a circular manner, where each segment is fixed to the stator body 7 and pointing inwardly. The rotor 3 comprises a plurality of rotor segments 6, positioned in a circular manner, where each segment is fixed to the rotor body 8 and pointing outwardly. Each stator segment 5 and each rotor segment 6 are placed adjacent to each other, with a narrow air gap in between. The air gap is advantageously as narrow as possible. Each stator segment 5 comprises a plurality of stator sections 10. Each rotor segment 6 comprises a plurality of rotor sections 11.

The stator 2 and the rotor 3 are fitted with a suitable bearing arrangement, not shown. In fig la, some of the stator segments 5 are V-shaped. This can be advantageous when the electric machine is built in a modular way.

In an alternative embodiment of the electric machine, the stator segments 5 and/or the rotor segments 6 can be wedge-shaped in the radial direction of the electric machine as shown in fig. 2a and 2b, where the stator segments 5 are wedge-shaped and the rotor segments 6 are uniform. Wedge-shaped stator and/or rotor segments can be advantageously e. g. depending on the production method with which the electric machine is produced. It is important that the air gaps between the segments are uniform and that the segment surfaces are parallel.

The rotor 3 will move backwards and forwards along the longitudinal axis 4. The main extension of the stator segments 5 and rotor segments 6 lies along this axis 4, i. e. along this axis 4 the segments 5,6 have their greatest physical dimension. The main extension of the stator sections 10 and the rotor sections 11 are perpendicular to the longitudinal axis 4. The closed magnetic circuit 13 is perpendicular to both these axes.

Depending on the use for which the electric machine is designed, either the stator 2 or the rotor 3 can be extended along the longitudinal axis 4. An electric machine where the stator is much longer than the rotor will have an improved efficiency, whereas the maximum obtainable acceleration for the electric machine will be improved with a shorter rotor, having a lower mass.

Figure 3 shows a side view of a stator segment 5. The stator segment 5 comprises a coil 9 encompassing a plurality of stator sections'10. In this example, the sections 10 consist of quadratic bars made of a magnetic conducting material, e. g. iron-powder or a ferrite

material. The saturation flux of the magnetic conducting material is preferably as high as possible. The bars are spaced apart in a regular manner, the spacing being approx. the same as the width of a bar. The coil 9 is made of a conducting material, preferably a material with low resistivity, e. g. cupper or a superconductor.

As an example, the segment is 40 mm wide, 200 mm high and 5 mm thick. A section is 5 mm by 20 mm by 5 mm. The vertical spacing between the sections is 5 mm. The coil is 10 mm wide and 5 mm thick, the area being as large as possible to reduce losses. A typical electric machine can have e. g. 30 stator segments and 30 rotor segments.

In this embodiment, each stator segment 5 comprises a coil 9. It is also possible to position the coils 9 in the stator 2 in a more condensed way. In this case, the coils are positioned symmetrical but only at a few of the segments, e. g. at every fifth segment. To obtain the same magnetic properties, the total coil area of the electric machine should be the same, regardless of the positioning of the coils 9. A coil 9 can have one or more turns.

A segment 5 is largely made up from the coil 9, the bars 10 and a filling material filling up the spaces between the bars and the coil. To enhance mechanical properties, other materials may also be used, e. g. a ceramic surrounding the entire segment 5. A suitable filling material is e. g. an epoxy resin with glass fiber reinforcement or a ceramic material. It is also possible to laminate the segment 5 with another non-magnetic material to obtain higher strength, e. g. a ceramic. When the segment 5 consists of two layers of e. g. a ceramic with the bars 10 in between, the filling material can

also be air. Another possibility is to include a magnetic material in the filling material between each bar 10 in order to optimize the magnetic properties.

This magnetic material is preferably placed in the center of the filling material. It is also possible to use a magnetic field altering material that differs from the material of the bars 10 as the filling material Another way to produce the segments is to use a thin- film or tape-cast technique. In this case, the sections are placed or printed on a substrate, e. g. a ceramic material, which is then laminated with another substrate, e. g. a ceramic material. Depending on the design, a plurality of layers can be laminated to obtain the desired electrical and/or mechanical properties.

Figure 4 shows a side view of a rotor segment 6. The rotor segment 6 is built in the same way as a stator segment 5, but without a coil. The rotor segment 6 comprises a plurality of rotor sections 11 consisting of quadratic bars made of a magnetic conducting material, in this case of iron-powder. The bars 11 have the same dimensions as the bars 10 and are made from the same material.

Figs. 5 a-c shows a split side view along line A-A from fig. 1. Figs. 5 a-c are used as an example to explain the function of the electric machine, when used as a generator. For this purpose, only a part of the electric machine is shown, in this case two rotor sections 11 and three pairs of split stator sections 10. When the rotor sections 11 and stator sections 10 are positioned in the same geometric plane, next to each other, as in fig. 5a, a magnetic field is applied to the electric machine by

the coils in each stator segment. The rotor segments are forced to move in one direction, denoted by an arrow 12, by an external force, e. g. by a free-piston engine. At the same time, the coils are short circuited, forcing the magnetic field to be constant. Since the time for moving the rotor segments 11 the distance of approx. half a stator section length is short, the magnetic field can be approximated as being constant during this movement. This state represents a half cycle of the electric machine and is shown in fig. 5b. With the magnetic field constant, the energy produced by the external force is converted to magnetic energy. This magnetic energy can be extracted from the coils and stored as electric energy e. g. by charging a capacitor.

During the second half period of the electric machine, the magnetic field applied by the coils is removed by inactivating the coil. This is done to prevent the electric machine to act as a motor during the second half period. At the end of the second half period, i. e. when a full cycle is performed, the electric machine will be in a state shown in fig. 5c. This cycle is then repeated when the electric machine is forced to move in the direction 12. This type of operation can be seen as a pulsed reluctance machine.

In a second preferred embodiment of the electric machine, the rotor sections 11, i. e. the magnetic field altering components 11, consist of short circuited coils, the outline size being approx. the same as for the square bars of iron-powder described above. Fig. 6 shows a rotor segment 6 where the rotor sections 11 consist of short circuited coils 11. The stator sections in this embodiment consist of one of the mentioned magnetic field altering components. The design of the

electric machine apart from the short circuited coils 11 can, but does not have to, be the same as described above. The advantage of using coils is that the rotor weight is reduced, thus the rotor obtains a higher acceleration factor. The short circuited coils 11 can be either air coils or coils with a core. A short circuited coil 11 with a core has a higher inductance and a higher weight. In this embodiment, the filling material can be either a magnetic or a non-magnetic material. With the filling material being magnetic, the magnetic field in the electric machine can be higher, but the magnetic material can saturate. With a non-magnetic material as the filling material, there will be no saturation drawbacks but the resistivity losses will be higher.

Depending on the design of the electric machine, a suitable filling material is chosen.

In a third preferred embodiment of the electric machine, the stator sections 10, i. e. the magnetic field altering components 10, consist of quadratic bars made out of a permanent magnetic material. The rotor sections 11, i. e. the magnetic field altering components 11, consist of an iron-powder or a ferrite material. The design apart from the magnetic field altering components 10 can, but does not have to, be the same as described above. The permanent magnets 10 should be positioned so that all magnets 10 are positioned with the magnetic field in the same direction.

The advantage of using permanent magnets as the magnetic field altering components is that permanent magnets give a higher magnetic field and a higher magnetic torque at a lower current than e. g. iron-powder or ferrite. This gives the electric machine a higher degree of

efficiency. Permanent magnets are more expensive and more sensitive to shock than e. g. iron-powder or ferrite.

In a fourth preferred embodiment of the electric machine, the stator sections 10, i. e. the magnetic field altering components 10, consists of quadratic bars made out of a permanent magnetic material. The rotor sections 11, i. e. the magnetic field altering components 11, consist of an iron-powder or a ferrite material. The design of the electric machine apart from the magnetic field altering components 10 can, but does not have to, be the same as described above. The permanent magnets 10 should be positioned so that all magnets 10 are positioned with the magnetic field in the same direction. In this embodiment, the spaces between the sections in the stator, i. e. the stator filling material, also consist of permanent magnets. These filling magnets are oriented with their magnetic field in the opposite direction to that of the permanent magnets 10. This improves the efficiency of the electric machine further.

In further developments of the invention, it is also possible to use other combinations of the materials mentioned above for the stator sections 10 and the rotor sections 11. Depending on e. g. the design of the electric machine, the application for which the electric machine is intended, the desired characteristics of the <BR> <BR> electric machine, the cost etc. , it is possible to select an appropriate combination of materials. It is also possible to use different materials for the stator sections 10 and/or the rotor sections 11 in the same segment. A stator segment can e. g. contain both sections

made of iron-powder and sections made of short circuited coils.

In a fifth preferred embodiment of the electric machine, the electric machine comprises a plurality of first members 2, i. e. stators 2, located adjacent to each other along the longitudinal axis 4. In this example, an electric machine with three stators 2 will be described.

The layout of these stators 2 can be the same as shown in fig. 1b or 2b. The second member 3, i. e. rotor 3, is preferably long enough to correspond to all the stators 2. The layout of the rotor 3, apart from the length, can be the same as shown in fig. 1b or 2b.

The stators 2 are electrically phase displaced in an equal manner, in this example with 120 degrees. This embodiment improves the possibility to generate continuous energy with the electric machine as a generator or to improve the control of the electric machine when used as a motor. With a displacement of 120 degrees, a three-phase machine is obtained. It is also possible to choose another number of stator members if desired. It is advantageously that the phase displacement is derived from dividing a full cycle with the number of first members 2.

In a second advantageous development of an electric machine, shown in figs. 7 and 8, the electric machine is laid out as a flat linear machine. Fig. 7 shows a top view of the electric machine with the coils 9 opened to improve visibility. Fig. 8 shows a split side view along the line B-B from fig. 7. In this example, the electric machine has four rotor segments 6 and ten stator segments 5, positioned in two groups after each other

with respect to the moving direction 12 of the electric machine. The two groups of stator segments 5 are mechanically and magnetically connected with a magnetic field conducting structure, enabling a closed magnetic circuit 13. In this example, the closed magnetic circuit 13 of the electric machine will be perpendicular to the moving direction 12. The function of the electric machine is the same as described above. The stator 2 and the rotor 3 are fitted with a suitable bearing arrangement.

The invention must not be regarded as being limited to the preferred embodiments described above, a number of further variants and modifications being feasible without departing from the scope of the following claims. An electrical machine according to the invention may be used wherever a small and efficient electric machine is desired, e. g. for controlling valves on a combustion engine.