Motor Building

One of the final steps in our tractor build was assembling the electric motors for the rear wheels. We use brushless motors and controllers from Accelerated Systems Inc. to drive the Werkr Tractor.

If you’ve ever wondered what the inside of an electric motor looks like, read on.

Assembling these motors is a multi-step process. It begins with gluing magnets into the rotor and installing a fan onto the back of the rotor.

The magnets used in ASI motors are made without rare-earth elements, such as neodymium or dysprosium. Instead, these motors use ferrite magnets, which are composed of iron oxides, amongst other cost-effective materials. Not only are these more environmentally sustainable than rare earth magnets, their supply chain is less fragile, as only a few countries mine the rare earth elements used in many electric vehicle motors.

The stator is connected to a terminal block where the phase wires are later connected to the motor controller.

Next, a bearing is pressed onto the motor's shaft, and the shaft is pressed into the stator.

The rotor is then fitted over the stator and secured onto the tapered shaft with a bolt. Finally, a waterproof cover encloses the rotor and stator.

The remaining steps are to install a brake and electrically connect the motors to their controllers.

One step closer to having new prototypes to test!