Development and Prototyping of a Rotary-Linear Actuation Drive for Vacuum Contactors

In commercial medium-voltage vacuum contactors, widely used for grid management, the linear motion required for the actuation of contacts is often generated by a linear actuator. Aiming to investigate alternatives from an industrial point of view, a rotary actuation system based on a switched reluctance motor and a suited coupling mechanism was developed. The design process, based on a mechatronic approach using multi-physics modeling and simulation, is recalled first in this paper. A dedicated test rig designed and assembled for validation purposes is then described. Finally, experimental results obtained by testing the prototype motor and coupling mechanism are presented, confirming the expected performances.