Simulation based efficiency prediction of a Brush less DC drive applied in Ventricular Assist Devices

Ventricular Assist Devices (VADs) are mechanical blood pumps that support the human heart in order to maintain a sufficient perfusion of the human body and its organs. During VAD operation blood damage caused by hemolysis, thrombogenecity and denaturation has to be avoided. One key parameter causing the blood's denaturation is its temperature which must not exceed 42 degrees C. As a temperature rise can be directly linked to the losses occuring in the drive system, this paper introduces an efficiency prediction chain for Brush less DC (BLDC) drives which are applied in various VAD systems. The presented chain is applied to various core materials and operation ranges, providing a general overview on the loss dependencies.