Naval Ordnance and Gunnery, Vol. 1 (1957) Chapter 10 - A !O"A !#C CON!$O% &' #("&N! pa).

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Amplidyne generator
The construction and operation of the amplidyne generator can best be understood by following through the steps necessary to conver t an ordinary direct current generator into an amplidyne generator. When a coil of wire is rotated in a magnetic field, voltage are induced in the coil, and, if the ends of the coil are connected together, these voltages cause electric currents to flow in the coil. This is the basic principle of a generator. The principal parts of a generator are the stator, or stationary part, and the armature, or rotating part. In a common form of generator, a coil of wire is wound on a part of the stator and is supplied with a small exciting current which magnetizes the iron in the stator and armature to provide the necessary magnetic fields. The armature carries other coils which are rotated in the magnetic field as the armature is turned. As a result, voltages are induced in the armature coils. The ends of the armature coils in a D generator are connected to copper bars on a commutator which rotates with the armature. The voltages induced in the coils are ta!en off by stationary carbon brushes engaging the commutator as it turns. If the brushes are connected together throu.gh an external circuit, current will flow in the circuit and through the armature coils. The connections to the commutators are such that the maximum voltage appears across two points on opposite sides of the commutator. The positions of these points depend on the direction of the magnetic field and do not change as the commutator rotates. The brushes are located at or near these points to ta!e advantage of the maximum voltage.

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#igure l. $ Development of amplidyne generator. In figure ", the upper view represents an ordinary direct$current generator such as the one %ust described. The inner circle is the commutator, with brushes at top and bottom. The next circle represents the armature, and the outer structure is the stator with a coil carrying the exciting current wound on its pole piece. &ther conditions being e'ual, the power output of the generator will be proportional to the power input
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to the excitation winding, within the limits of normal operation. This generator is assumed to be a l) !w machine *"),))) watts output+, and the excitation re'uired is about ")) watts. The amplification, therefore, is ")) to ". The excitation current produces a magnetic field whose direction is indicated by the arrow #e. It is this magnetic field which induces the ")) volts which appears across the brushes. At the same time, the ")) amp load current flowing in the armature coils creates another magnetic field #, at right angles to #e. It has about the same strength as the field #e. This second magnetic field, called armature reaction, does no useful wor! in the ordinary generator and is, in fact, a source of trouble. If now the brushes are short$circuited, as shown -n the second view, an immense armature current will flow unless the excitation is reduced. If the excitation is cut down to about " watt, # is reduced accordingly, and the normal full$load current of ")) amperes flows through the short$circuit path. This current produces the same armature reaction #, as before. The armature reaction #, induces a voltage in the armature in the same manner as flux # but this voltage appears on the commutator at .) degrees from the voltage induced by # . A voltmeter connected to points on the commutator.%is shown in the second view, will indicate approximately full$load voltage. In the next view, new brushes have been added to points .) degrees from the original brushes, and the original load of " ohm has been connected between them. The high voltage formerly existing between these points has almost disappeared. The reason for this is that current flowing in the armature coils between these brushes has created a second armature reaction #A which opposes the exciting field # and reduces its effect. The decrease in the effect of # reduces #, and conse'uently reduces the voltage across the new brushes. The lower view shows the last modification necessary to produce an amplidyne generator. The armature current from the new brushes has been ta!en through a compensating field winding and creates a magnetic field #/ opposed to #A. This field may be ad%usted to balance out #A and thus restore the full effect of the exciting field # . #, is restored to normal, and full$load current may be drawn from the new brushes. ,ince both #A and #/ depend on armature current, they will always be approximately balanced and the output voltage is nearly independent of the armature current. #ull$load output has been obtained with only I$watt excitation instead of ")). The amplification is "),))) to " instead of ")) to l. &ther refinements are necessary to produce the fast, stable operation necessary in a follow$up system, but the machine shown in the lower view of figure " is the basic form of all amplidyne generators. In the e'uipment now in use, excitation is supplied to two control windings which are oppositely wound. The direction of the magnetic field # and the polarity of the output of the generator depend upon which winding receives the stronger current. Thus, the direction of rotation of the follow$up motor, which receives its power supply from the amplidyne generator, can be controlled at will by supplying the stronger current to one or the other of the control fields. /y balancing the control currents, the amplidyne output is brought to zero and the motor stands still. The difference between the two control currents determines the amount of power supplied to the motor.
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