Rotor Winding End Turn Support for High-Speed Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional electric machines, such as generators, face challenges at high rotational speeds due to centrifugal and axial forces that can weaken or break rotor windings, and result in windage losses that reduce efficiency.
Innovation Solution
The proposed solution involves an improved rotor winding end turn support structure that includes a winding support assembly with a first and second winding support disc and a retaining ring, which provides enhanced retention, support, and cooling of the rotor windings, reducing windage losses and improving dynamic balance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Power
If rotor windings are operated at high rotational speeds, then power output increases, but centrifugal and axial forces weaken or break rotor windings
Solution Approach 1:
The rotor winding end turns are divided into multiple segments and positioned in separate chambers defined by partition walls within the winding support assembly. This segmentation allows each segment to be independently supported and cooled, distributing the mechanical stresses and improving overall winding strength at high rotational speeds.
Solution Approach 2:
The winding support assembly is nested within the rotor core structure, with the assembly containing multiple chambers that house the rotor winding end turns. This nested configuration provides structural support while maintaining a compact design that withstands centrifugal and axial forces at high speeds.
2Power
If rotor windings are operated at high rotational speeds, then power output increases, but windage losses increase and reduce efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The winding support assembly divides the rotor winding end turns into multiple segments housed in separate chambers. This segmentation reduces the overall surface area exposed to air flow and minimizes windage losses by containing the windings within enclosed spaces, thereby improving efficiency at high rotational speeds.
3Power
If rotor windings are operated at high rotational speeds, then power output increases, but thermal management becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The rotor winding end turns are segmented into multiple chambers within the winding support assembly, allowing for distributed cooling pathways. This segmentation enables more effective thermal management by facilitating heat dissipation from multiple locations simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
The winding support assembly acts as an intermediary structure between the rotor windings and the cooling system. It provides dedicated chambers that facilitate heat transfer from the windings to the cooling medium, improving thermal management at high rotational speeds.
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 solution effectively reduces windage losses, enhances the dynamic balance of the rotor core, and improves the thermal management of the rotor windings, leading to increased efficiency and power density of the electric machine.
Implementation Method 1
delivering the fluid coolant flow through first channels defined through the first winding support disc and to a first chamber
Implementation Method 2
improves the thermal management of the rotor windings
Data Source
AI summary
A rotor assembly includes a rotor core having a rotatable shaft and defining at least one rotor post, a winding wound around the post that defines an end turn, and a winding support assembly including a winding support assembly coupled to the rotatable shaft. The end turn defines a set of channels therethrough and is disposed in a first chamber defined by the winding support assembly.