Recent concerns about environmental issues and energy management have led to a dramatic expansion of the fields of electrical traction and energy generation. In addition, the design of machines and actuators are being greatly impacted by new drive topologies and new materials. Integration of modern optimization and design techniques is urgently needed to fully take advantage of these systems.
The proposed research will fundamentally advance the application of modern mathematical optimization techniques to finite element analysis-based design of electromechanical energy converters. The modeling and problem formulation will exploit convex characteristics that play an important role in global optimization. This shall lead to streamlined, reliable, and highly efficient design, bringing forth a significant saving of expenses related to sub-optimal energy consumption of the devices and their design methods.
The proposed educational plan will integrate such modern design techniques into the on-campus and off-campus power engineering education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison at the undergraduate and graduate levels. The modern teaching methodology will include development of web-based learning tools, literature-based learning, and small-group based projects.
