The use of inductor alternators with electronic regulation for DC generation

Inductor alternators were heavily used in the 1950s and 60s for medium to high frequency generation but have seen a vast decline in use towards the later part of this century. This is due to the increasing use of electronic power supplies which have appeared following the introduction of power electronics. This paper focuses on the use of these power electronic advances for the active control of an inductor alternator. The particular design of inductor alternator is based on a switched reluctance machine with fully pitched windings. The generator and its power electronic controller together form a simple and hence low cost brushless DC generation scheme. The paper describes the construction of this robust and inexpensive machine; the theory of generation and practical results from an experimental alternator. In addition, it is shown that both field current and converter duty cycle allow for the implementation of a number of methods of closed loop voltage control