Generator With Alternate Magnetic Circuits For Voltage Stability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing alternating current generators using permanent magnets face challenges in maintaining terminal voltage when an external load is connected or varies, and fail to efficiently utilize magnetic flux, leading to inefficiencies in torque production and electricity generation.
Innovation Solution
The generator employs alternate magnetic circuits by using gaps in the stator and between stator and rotor poles to switch between magnetic paths, with magnetic flux donors and a rotor coil that aligns poles to create varying reluctance paths, allowing for efficient magnetic flux utilization and torque augmentation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If traditional generators use permanent magnets to provide magnetic flux to armature coils, then the generator structure is simplified, but terminal voltage cannot be maintained when external load varies and magnetic flux is wasted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a rotor switch with movable contacts that can dynamically switch between permanent magnet flux paths and field coil flux paths. This dynamic switching mechanism allows the generator to adapt to varying load conditions, maintaining terminal voltage stability while utilizing the simplified permanent magnet structure when appropriate.
Solution Approach 2:
The generator design incorporates both permanent magnets and field coils that can operate independently or together. The rotor switch enables the system to universally handle different operating conditions by selecting the appropriate flux source, making the generator adaptable to both no-load and full-load scenarios.
2Device complexity
If permanent magnets are used to provide magnetic flux, then the generator has simpler structure, but most magnetic flux remains unused during operation
Solution Approach 1:
The rotor switch acts as an intermediary element that connects and disconnects different magnetic flux paths. It mediates between the permanent magnet flux and the armature coils, ensuring that magnetic flux is directed to where it is needed. This intermediary mechanism enables efficient utilization of permanent magnet flux by routing it through the armature coils when load conditions require it.
3Reliability
If field coils are added to maintain terminal voltage, then voltage stability is improved, but device complexity and energy consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The rotor switch provides dynamic control over field coil excitation, allowing the system to apply field coils only when necessary for voltage regulation. This dynamic approach reduces the overall complexity compared to always-active field coils while maintaining voltage stability when needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the operational parameters by switching between different flux sources based on load conditions. When light load exists, permanent magnets alone suffice; when heavy load requires voltage support, field coils are activated. This parameter change strategy maintains voltage stability without permanently increasing device complexity.
4Productivity
If magnetic flux travels through rotor and around stator circumference, then flux is generated, but flux utilization efficiency is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the magnetic flux paths into distinct routes: one through the rotor and another around the stator circumference. The rotor switch enables selective activation of these segments, allowing magnetic flux to be directed through the more efficient path depending on operating conditions, thereby improving flux utilization efficiency while maintaining electricity generation productivity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach enables efficient electricity generation by effectively using permanent magnets, producing alternating current through varying magnetic flux paths, enhancing torque and reducing energy losses.
Implementation Method 1
The generator employs alternate magnetic circuits by using gaps in the stator and between stator and rotor poles to switch between magnetic paths, with magnetic flux donors and a rotor coil that aligns poles to create varying reluctance paths, allowing for efficient magnetic flux utilization and torque augmentation.
Implementation Method 2
gaps in the stator and gaps between the stator and rotor poles to alternate between magnetic circuits. One magnetic circuit connects stator magnet pairs and travels through the stator, which includes gaps on either end of a generator coil wrapped around a generator core. An alternate magnetic circuit connects stator and rotor magnets and crosses the gap between the rotor and stator poles as the poles substantially align during operation of the generator.
Data Source
AI summary
A generator includes a stator that has permanent magnets that complete a magnetic circuit across a series of gaps and through a generator coil. The rotor also includes permanent magnets that complete a magnetic circuit across a gap and through a rotor coil. When the rotor poles align with the stator poles, the stator and rotor magnetic circuits are broken, and new magnetic circuits are completed between the stator and rotor permanent magnets that cross the gap between the stator and rotor poles. A rotor coil can be used to boost the attraction/repulsion between to rotor and stator magnets. Alternating between these magnetic circuits as the prime mover rotates the rotor generates electricity.