Export of Simplified Thermal Circuit from Ansys Motor-CAD Software to MATLAB Simulink​ [Tutorial]

Ansys Motor-CAD® dedicated electric motor design tool for multi physics simulation generates a Lumped Parameter Thermal Network (LPTN) (i.e. Thermal Circuit) of the machine to calculate the thermal performance. In general, the generated thermal circuit is dependent on the machine speed, coolant inlet temperature, coolant flow rates, and temperatures, amongst other things.  

This tutorial will show how a fixed thermal resistance network can be exported from Ansys Motor-CAD software to MATLAB Simulink for use in a system simulation. The provided script generates the state space model in Simulink from the matrix files exported from the Ansys Motor-CAD model. The thermal resistance network was obtained from an Interior Permanent Magnet (IPM) motor but can be applied to any machine topology simulated in Ansys Motor-CAD software.

Prerequisites:

• Getting Started with Ansys Motor-CAD Software

Please note: These training materials were developed and tested in the 2026R1 release.