The performance of displacement governors under steady-state conditions

The method of speed control most generally used at the present time relies upon the centrifugal governor which controls the power admitted to a driving machine, generally a prime mover, in relation to the difference between the speed of the machine shaft and a selected basic or no-load speed. Other methods of control are, however, possible, and one which appears to have certain advantages is that in which the power input is controlled in relation to the angular displacement between the machine shaft and another shaft which rotates at a defined and constant angular velocity. This has been called displacement governing, and an attempt is made here to investigate the performance of displacement governors when controlling the power supply to turbo-alternators working in the steady state. The performance of such governors under transient conditions has already received attention, but as far as the present authors are aware, the steady-state performance has not been explicitly treated before.