Because of the special structure, transverse flux permanent magnet motor (TFPMM) has some problems such as low power factor and large torque ripple, so it is necessary to improve the control algorithm to reduce the torque ripple and improve the control efficiency. Based on the traditional direct torque control (DTC), a DTC control strategy using space vector modulation (SVM) is proposed to solve the problems of inaccurate current and flux linkage control and large torque ripple in the traditional control strategy. Aiming at the problem of large cogging torque of TFPMM, the motor cogging torque is fit into the expression of electrical angle, and compensated to the output of torque observer, so that the torque observer can observe the cogging torque component, and then the cogging torque ripple can be suppressed. Simulation results show that SVM-DTC has smoother current waveform and more accurate flux linkage control than the traditional DTC. After adopting the cogging torque compensation method, the motor torque ripple is significantly reduced, which verifies the effectiveness of the compensation control algorithm. The improved control algorithm enhances the overall performance of the motor control system. 