Development of a novel two-layer multiplate magnetorheological clutch for high-power applications

A novel magnetorheological (MR) clutch for high-power applications is designed, simulated and tested. The clutch is implemented in a two-layer multiplate transmission form and adopts a two-way liquid cooling method to improve the heat dissipation capability. In this paper, a brief introduction to the transmission form of the proposed MR clutch is given first. Then, theoretical analyses of the output torque, magnetic circuit and temperature characteristic are conducted and further design details are presented and discussed, followed by a magnetostatic simulation of the designed circuit. A prototype of the clutch was fabricated and several tests were carried out to evaluate the torque transmission, time response and steady slip power of the prototype. The results show that the proposed MR clutch can produce a maximum output torque of 1545 N m and possesses a high steady slip power of up to 35 kW. Therefore, the developed two-layer multiplate MR clutch is promising for applications in many high-power situations.