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Segmented switched reluctance electric machine with interdigitated disk-type rotor and stator construction

  • US 7,427,845 B2
  • Filed: 08/29/2006
  • Issued: 09/23/2008
  • Est. Priority Date: 02/20/2001
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
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1. An unipolar current electrical machine having a housing, a stator mounted in the housing, and a rotor, the rotor having a shaft with an axis therethrough and being supported by bearings for rotation about the axis in the housing, comprising:

  • the stator having a plurality of stator elements each in the form of an annular disk, spaced apart from each other, each stator element comprising a plurality of magnetically isolated magnetic teeth;

    a plurality of electrical windings on each of the stator elements, each winding being associated with a group of magnetic teeth of the stator element, each group of magnetic teeth being arranged at a predetermined angular position with respect to an adjacent group of magnetic teeth, each of the windings being arranged such that, when energized with a current flowing in the windings, a magnetic flux is created in a first direction;

    the rotor having a plurality of rotor elements, the rotor elements being spaced from each other and interstitially disposed with me stator elements in an interdigitated manner;

    each rotor element being in the form of a circular disk mounted on the shaft, each rotor element comprising a plurality of magnetically isolated magnetic teeth arranged in a annular portion of the circular disk;

    means for completing a magnetic flux path in a second direction through the magnetic teeth of the rotor elements and through corresponding groups of teeth on successive stator elements;

    a modular control unit arranged to individually control electrical energy applied to each winding of each stator element, the control unit comprising;

    a microprocessor controller, a load sensing means, a rotor angle position sensor, and a plurality of stator control modules, each associated with a respective stator element,each stator control module comprising a plurality of electrical switching devices, each connected to a winding of the respective stator element;

    the microprocessor controller being responsive to the load sensing means and the rotor angle position sensor to generate control signals to the control modules;

    each control module being responsive to the control signals to control the flow of current to each connected winding of the stator element in a pulse-width control manner,the flow of current to each winding being turned on at a first predetermined rotor angle position and turned off at a second predetermined rotor angle position by the control unit in response to control signals from the controller load sensing means and a current sensing means,thus causing the rotor to rotate at a speed and rotational direction responsive to the control signals, with a power output proportional to the load.

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