Brushless DC Motors constitute a small percentage of the total global production of electric motors. The main workhorse of the electric motors worldwide has been the AC induction motor (3 phase) mainly due to its low manufacturing costs an low maintenance.
The Brushless DC Motors are mainly used in applications where there is no AC power available and where control speed is necessary. Brushless DC Motors are also easier to reverse requiring only change of polarity on the input terminals.
Over the past 2 decades with the advancement and price reduction of the frequency inverters saw the gradual popularity of variable AC drives against the variable DC drives (brushed). The main disadvantage of the brushed DC variable drives is their high maintenance due to the brush wear. Over the last few years with the advancement and price reduction of the rare earth magnets and improvements of the power electronics saw an increase in popularity of the Brushless DC Motors.
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