My "perky\cat/volvo" DC bat charger

[Westcliffe01]

That space ship alternator is an exotic beast for sure.  The rotor is the strangest thing I have ever seen.  I did not read the entire article, but have to wonder at what speed it was spun ?

[mobile_bob]

gotta go back and reread, but iirc it was to turn at 50krpm

bob g

[Lloyd]

Lloyd, is there any concern with side loading of the crank???

Bob

Hi Bob,

I'm not to worried about side loading on this set up. First I am well with in specs based on the Cat Spec that Henry posted. Second, my drive pulley, belt tensioner, and belt size, are already cat certified and covered under warranty, by Tradco/NC Cat/Gates.

Plus my duty cycle is 2 hrs run time in 24 hrs, and only about 100 day a year if that.

Lloyd

[Lloyd]

http://www.wipo.int/pctdb/en/wo.jsp?WO=2000048303&IA=WO2000048303&DISPLAY=DESC
Description ALTERNATOR SYSTEM WITH TRANSFORMERS AND AC-DC CONVERTERS Technical Field This invention is related generally to AC-to-DC converters, and in particular to an engine driven alternator including high voltage armature windings for efficiently transferring AC power over relatively small diameter conductors to a remotely located step-down transformer and rectifier which supplies relatively low voltage, high current power to a load which is located at a relatively great distance from the alternator.

In general, low voltage, high current alternators are located on the propulsion engine of a vehicle (automobile, truck, boat, emergency vehicle, aircraft). In many cases, the battery, or batteries, are located in close proximity to the alternator, and leads connecting the alternator to the battery are short. When it becomes necessary to locate the batteries or high-current loads some distance from the alternator, the problem becomes rather formidable because of the size of the wiring conductors required to avoid excessive voltage drop and power loss.

Disclosure of the Invention A high voltage three-phase alternator is combined with a three-phase step-down transformer, a full wave bridge rectifier and a field regulator circuit to regulate the output of the rectifier by varying the field current in the alternator to provide the desired output from the alternator. The high voltage alternator is driven from the torque output shaft of an internal combustion engine or from some other power take-off of an internal combustion engine or other rotating prime mover. The prime mover can be operated at a fixed or variable speed over a typical range of between 400 and 6000 revolutions per minute (RPM).

The useful output voltage of the alternator is developed by a three-phase wye or delta connected secondary winding to produce useful line to line voltages of 50 to 500 Volts AC. The frequency of the three-phase voltage is determined by the number of poles in the alternator and the rotational speed of the alternator shaft. The RPM of the alternator shaft is determined by the prime mover RPM and the coupling ratio between the prime mover and the alternator shaft.

The alternator output voltage is coupled into three-phase transformer windings specifically designed to transform the high voltage from the alternator into a high current secondary winding. The output of this secondary winding is rectified and regulated to provide a DC voltage for charging batteries, running power inverters, or supplying precision DC voltage to other loads. The transformer secondary winding is wound to provide a number of different low charging voltages, for example 6 volt, 12 volt, 24 volt, 36 volt, 48 volt or any other configured battery or DC loads.

The primary-to-secondary ratio of the transformer is adjustable to provide different power outputs at various shaft RPM. For example, adding turns to the primary allows the alternator to regulate at higher voltages providing a higher output power at a given RPM. However, this change will decrease the maximum power output at a lower RPM.

Precision regulation of the rectified DC voltage is accomplished by adjusting the current in the field regulator to control the output voltage of the alternator and consequently the primary voltage of the step-down transformer. Because of the high output voltage of the alternator, a relatively large amount of power can be transferred to the primary of the transformer with relatively small diameter conductors. When this high voltage is transformed to the low voltage secondary and rectified, the result is an unusually efficient transfer of power to produce a low voltage, high current output from small alternator driven by a variable or fixed speed prime mover.


I feel cheated...now if I can leanr some short cuts from  the prior art.

lloyd

[Lloyd]

http://www.wipo.int/pctdb/en/wads.jsp?IA=US2000003323&LANGUAGE=EN&ID=0900636180017578&VOL=3&DOC=003e1e&WO=00/048303&WEEK=33/2000&TYPE=A1&DOC_TYPE=PAMPH&TOK=GaJd9zMCf0UaypF_90JhJjmH5Y4&PAGE=1

The full claim  http://www.wipo.int/pctdb/en/wads.jsp?IA=US2000003323&LANGUAGE=EN&ID=0900636180017578&VOL=3&DOC=003e1e&WO=00/048303&WEEK=33/2000&TYPE=A1&DOC_TYPE=PAMPH&TOK=GaJd9zMCf0UaypF_90JhJjmH5Y4&PAGE=1

[Lloyd]

http://www.google.com/patents?q=3932765&btnG=Search+Patents

This is the prior art listed in the above patent.

Lloyd

[mobile_bob]

its hard for me to imagine how they got a patent for this process, as it is typical of 3phase power transmission over
the last 120 odd years.

even the multitap transformer is nothing new and is widely used in power transmission.

what is it that you are trying to accomplish?

also, do you need the multi tapped transformer? if so that shouldn't add much cost to the custom wound transformers?

btw, thanks for the link to the schematic, i came across it a few years ago, but the copy i got was so small
and fuzzy that it was almost unreadable. now i can print this copy to put in my files.

bob g

[Westcliffe01]

The referenced patent was filed in 2000.   Things changed after a lawsuit in 2003-2005 regarding "frivolous" patents that were issued and basically the Supreme Court gave the USPTO a slap and told them they better buck up and do their job and investigate the "uniqueness" of each application.   Needless to say, I am one of many who has several patent applications filed since 2003 and to date none has been granted.  The pendulum has swung back over in the opposite direction and it is now extremely difficult to be awarded a patent.   Of course, those who got on the bandwagon early (Monsanto and others patenting the genes of existing plant species) are safe...

[Lloyd]

http://www.erico.com/public/library/Panelboard/LT1015.pdf

FLEXIBAR® Characteristics     
   

1. FLEXIBAR is UL recognized and CSA certified. The black insulation is moisture resistant, flame (VW-1) and UV retardant, and self-extinguishing (UL 94 V0).
2. FLEXIBAR connections are made by punching directly through the laminates. Since there are no lugs to purchase, fewer parts are required. Installation is simpler and faster – and faulty connection problems are eliminated.
3. FLEXIBAR is formed with multiple layers of thin, tin-plated, electrolytic copper.
4. Easily formed, FLEXIBAR holds its shape, increasing the efficiency of your designs.

When bending the conductor into place, its laminates slide freely within the insulation, conforming to your design configurations.

FLEXIBAR® Advantages

• Requires less installation space when compared to cable
• Reduces assembly time
• Eliminates the cost and installation of lugs
• Increases safety
• Reduces the length and number of conductors
• FLEXIBAR is terminated like a busbar, so connections operate at a lower temperature
• Improves design flexibility
• Easily formed and holds its shape
• Insulation allows for closer spacing than traditional busbar designs
• Improves aesthetics
• Reduces inventory costs
• Lower installed cost

Compare FLEXIBAR to Cable

   *

     When compared to conventional cable, FLEXIBAR requires less
     copper to achieve comparable ampacity
   *

     FLEXIBAR offers space savings
   *

     No lugs or intermediate connection devices are used, improving
     reliability
   *

     FLEXIBAR eliminates the multiple cables and lugs which offers
     the most efficient and cost-effective connection available

[mike90045]

I wonder how easy it is to feed FLEXIBAR thru conduit and into a panel?  As to it's ampacity, I hope they are not increasing ampacity by virtue of a higher temp rated insulation, as in off-grid, the actual resistance and power loss is more critical, than conductor temperature.

Tin plated is nice, may help to keep the copper from corroding clear through.  My old house had 10ga wire on tube and post, and the entire cross section of wire was black and brittle. 10 miles from ocean. (Los Angeles).

But if it's layers, you can have several connections between layers, which is a bit problematic when changing batteries in 10 years, if crud has started to grow between layers.

[Lloyd]

Hi Mike,

It's design use is inter connectors in panels...I'm not sure I would use it on flooded lead acid batteries....I've seen bat cables in that use that had open ended automotive style lugs...where the corrosion had wicked up and corroded 24 inches down the cable. Now I wouldn't hesitate to use it as interconnects for an AGM bat.

In my industry I have to interconnect hi amp buses that are away from the bats...which require that I build up 4/0 jumpers and it's a real pain in ..s, when dealing 1-4 inch jumpers. The flexbar would be Ideal for that...to which I will investigate further cost/availability.

Lloyd

[Lloyd]

http://www.delcoremy.com/pdfs/High_Efficiency_Alternator_White_Paper.pdf

Executive Summary Electrical power on a vehicle is not free. It comes as a direct result of consuming fuel within the engine to drive the alternator. With a typical engine efficiency of 40%, a belt efficiency of 98% and an alternator efficiency of 55%, this leads to an overall energy conversion efficiency of only 21%. Assuming a fuel cost of $4.00/gal, this leads to an on-board electrical power cost of $0.51/kWh, or roughly 4 times a typical household utility rate. Consequently the fuel costs associated with providing electric power can be quite significant and should no longer be ignored.

[Westcliffe01]

Update: Just received notification today that the USPTO approved the first patent application that was filed in 2003. Patent 7 743 501 was awarded on 06/29/2010...  Time will tell how many of the others make it...

The referenced patent was filed in 2000.   Things changed after a lawsuit in 2003-2005 regarding "frivolous" patents that were issued and basically the Supreme Court gave the USPTO a slap and told them they better buck up and do their job and investigate the "uniqueness" of each application.   Needless to say, I am one of many who has several patent applications filed since 2003 and to date none has been granted.  The pendulum has swung back over in the opposite direction and it is now extremely difficult to be awarded a patent.   Of course, those who got on the bandwagon early (Monsanto and others patenting the genes of existing plant species) are safe...

[Lloyd]

Update: Just received notification today that the USPTO approved the first patent application that was filed in 2003. Patent 7 743 501 was awarded on 06/29/2010...  Time will tell how many of the others make it...

The referenced patent was filed in 2000.   Things changed after a lawsuit in 2003-2005 regarding "frivolous" patents that were issued and basically the Supreme Court gave the USPTO a slap and told them they better buck up and do their job and investigate the "uniqueness" of each application.   Needless to say, I am one of many who has several patent applications filed since 2003 and to date none has been granted.  The pendulum has swung back over in the opposite direction and it is now extremely difficult to be awarded a patent.   Of course, those who got on the bandwagon early (Monsanto and others patenting the genes of existing plant species) are safe...

Congrats Westcliffe,

That's our gov. at work. It took the copyright 3 years to register some of my copyrights...they lost the first application...which I had a curries receipt direct to the the CO, the after the second app...2 years. they don't have to review/approve anything in the copyright just file the registration.

Maybe you have more coming...hopefully it will lead to a patent you can practice and make a little green from.

Lloyd

[Lloyd]

Update coming soon