A fuzzy decision support system for magnetic component design

In many areas of electrical engineering, magnetic components like transformers and inductors are necessary parts of an electrical circuit. Designing such a component means finding a suitable combination of a ferrite core and a copper wire, while a great variety of requirements have to be satisfied. However, finding the optimal combination is complicated because of the large number of available sizes and types of cores and wires. A Decision Support System (DSS) can assist a designer of magnetic components in selecting the suitable component alternatives and in ranking them, hereby improving the efficiency and the results of the design procedure. This paper describes the aims and the typical problems of magnetic component design, and discusses a Decision Support System for facilitating the design procedure. As an example, the structure of a DSS is described that selects an ac-inductor of a power converter circuit.