Failed fuse detector and detecting method for rotating electrical equipment
First Claim
1. A brushless exciter with a failed fuse detector, comprising:
- a rotating member of said brushless exciter;
a plurality of diodes fixed to said rotating member and arranged in a manner which rectifies alternating current and produces a direct current field for excitation of a turbine generator;
a plurality of fuses fixed to said rotating member with each of said fuses connected in series with one of said diodes;
a plurality of current transformers fixed to said rotating member and disposed individually about each of said fuses;
a plurality of light emitting diodes fixed to said rotating member and individually connected in series with the secondary winding of each of said current transformers;
a plurality of stationary photodetectors disposed about said rotating member proximate the circular path of said light emitting diodes described during rotation of said rotating member; and
means for synchronizing the use of the photodetectors with the rotation of the rotating member to enable the selective determination of the conducting status of each of said fuses.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A method and arrangement of apparatus is provided for remotely and selectively determining the existence of a failed fuse in the rectifier circuit of a brushless exciter rotor. A current transformer is disposed about each fuse in such a way that uses the conductor which carries current to the fuse as the primary winding of the current transformer. A light emitting diode is connected in series with the secondary winding of the current transformer. The emitted light, indicating a current flow through the fuse, is sensed by a stationary photodetector. This method senses the existence of a current flow through the exciter fuses and thereby positively determines each fuse that has not failed. Electronic circuitry is used to synchronize the detection operation with the rotation of the brushless exciter rotor so that each fuse is inspected at a time when it is expected to be carrying its maximum current. Since this method looks for the existence of current through each fuse, it operates in a failsafe manner.
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Citations
23 Claims
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1. A brushless exciter with a failed fuse detector, comprising:
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a rotating member of said brushless exciter; a plurality of diodes fixed to said rotating member and arranged in a manner which rectifies alternating current and produces a direct current field for excitation of a turbine generator; a plurality of fuses fixed to said rotating member with each of said fuses connected in series with one of said diodes; a plurality of current transformers fixed to said rotating member and disposed individually about each of said fuses; a plurality of light emitting diodes fixed to said rotating member and individually connected in series with the secondary winding of each of said current transformers; a plurality of stationary photodetectors disposed about said rotating member proximate the circular path of said light emitting diodes described during rotation of said rotating member; and means for synchronizing the use of the photodetectors with the rotation of the rotating member to enable the selective determination of the conducting status of each of said fuses. - View Dependent Claims (2)
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3. Apparatus for selectively determining the conducting status of a plurality of conductors which are rigidly attached to a rotating device, comprising:
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a plurality of current transformers fixed to said rotating device and disposed individually about said conductors; a plurality of light emitting diodes fixed to said rotating device and individually connected in series with the secondary of each of said current transformers; a plurality of stationary photodetectors disposed about the circumference of said rotating member proximate the circular path of said light emitting diodes described during rotation of said rotating device; and means for synchronizing the use of the photodetectors with the rotation of the rotating device to enable the selective determination and indication of the conducting status of each of said conductors. - View Dependent Claims (4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A method for selectively determining the conducting capability status of a plurality of conductors which are rigidly attached to a rotating device, said method comprising:
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marking a location on said rotating device in such a way that the marked location is able to be detected remotely; detecting said mark remotely on each revolution of the rotating device when said mark passes a fixed point; disposing a current transformer about each of said conductors; connecting a light emitting diode in series with the secondary winding of each of said current transformers; remotely sensing the output of said light emitting diode with a fixed photosensitive device; synchronizing the selective application of the photosensitive devices to the angular position of the rotating device; and visually displaying the most recent conducting status of each of said conductors. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12)
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13. A brushless exciter with a failed fuse detector, comprising:
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a rotating member of said brushless exciter; a plurality of diodes fixed to said rotating member and arranged in a manner which rectifies alternating current and produces a direct current field for excitation of a turbine generator; a plurality of fuses fixed to said rotating member with each of said fuses connected in series with one of said diodes; a plurality of current transformers fixed to said rotating member and disposed individually about each of said fuses; a plurality of light emitting diodes fixed to said rotating member and individually connected in series with the secondary winding of each of said current transformers; and a stationary means for detecting the emission from said plurality of light emitting diodes. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15)
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16. A brushless exciter with a failed fuse detector, comprising:
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a rotating member of said brushless exciter; a plurality of diodes fixed to said rotating member and arranged in a manner which rectifies alternating current and produces a direct current field for excitation of a turbine generator; a plurality of fuses fixed to said rotating member with each of said fuses connected in series with one of said diodes; a plurality of current transformers fixed to said rotating member and disposed individually about each of said fuses; and a plurality of light emitting diodes fixed to said rotating member and individually connected in series with the secondary winding of each of said current transformers. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19)
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20. An electric machine with a failed electrical circuit component detector, comprising:
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a rotating member of said electric machine; a plurality of electrical circuit components rigidly attached to said rotating member; a plurality of current transformers rigidly attached to said rotating member and individually disposed about each of said electrical circuit components; a plurality of light emitting diodes rigidly attached to said rotating member and individually electrically connected in series with the secondary winding of each of said current transformers; and a stationary means for detecting the emission of a preselected one of said plurality of light emitting diodes. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23)
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Specification