Insulated accelerometer assembly for high voltage environment

• US 9,939,458 B2
• Filed: 08/27/2015
• Issued: 04/10/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 08/27/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: GE Infrastructure Technology, LLC (General Electric Company)
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: Castillo, Cesar Everardo, Jordan, Lawrence Edmund, Laskey, Timothy Joseph, Longwell, Ronald Irving, Wardell, David John
• Primary Examiner(s): Phillips, Forrest M
• Application Number:
  US14/837,560
• Publication Number:
  US 20170059608A1
• Time in Patent Office: 957 Days
• Field of Search: 310 68 B
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 1/023 for acceleration measuring devices
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 15/125 by capacitive pick-up
• CPC Class Codes: H02K 11/20 for measuring, monitoring, testing, protecting or switching rectifiers H02K11/04; power electronics H02K11/33

Abstract

An insulated accelerometer assembly for a vibrated component in a high voltage environment may include: an accelerometer; a high dielectric strength potting compound encapsulating the accelerometer; a structurally supporting insulator layer such as a glass epoxy layer or mica layer(s) surrounding at least a portion of the high dielectric strength potting compound; and a conductive layer over at least a portion of the glass epoxy layer.

Claims

1. An insulated accelerometer assembly for a vibrated component in a high voltage environment, the assembly comprising:

an accelerometer including a lead extending therefrom;

a high dielectric strength potting compound encapsulating the accelerometer and covering a portion of the lead;

a structurally supporting insulator layer surrounding at least a portion of the high dielectric strength potting compound, the structurally supporting insulator layer extending beyond an end of the high dielectric strength potting compound to form an overhang; and

a conductive layer formed over at least a portion of the structurally supporting insulator layer,

wherein the lead extends from the high dielectric strength potting compound and is surrounded by the overhang of the structurally supporting insulator layer.

2. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the structurally supporting insulator layer includes a mica layer.

3. The assembly of claim 2, wherein the mica layer includes a plurality of mica layers.

4. The assembly of claim 2, wherein the mica layer extends over the high dielectric strength potting compound over the lead.

5. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the structurally supporting insulator layer includes a glass epoxy layer.

6. The assembly of claim 5, wherein the glass epoxy layer extends beyond an end of the high dielectric strength potting compound.

7. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the conductive layer includes at least one conductive silicon carbide coating.

8. The assembly of claim 7, wherein the at least one conductive silicon carbide coating includes a plurality of coatings having different conductivity levels.

9. The assembly of claim 7, wherein the at least one conductive silicon carbide coating includes a plurality of surface portions having different surface roughness.

10. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the conductive layer includes a plurality of portions having different conductivity levels.

11. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the conductive layer contacts and covers a distinct portion of the lead.

12. The assembly of claim 1, further comprising an air gap positioned between the accelerometer and the high dielectric strength potting compound, the air gap surrounding the accelerometer to:

provide insulation to the accelerometer, and

allow for thermal expansion between the accelerometer and the high dielectric strength potting compound.

13. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the accelerometer includes a Micro Electro-Mechanical system (MEMs) capacitive circuit.

14. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the vibrated component is a stator end winding of a generator.

16. The dynamoelectric machine of claim 14, wherein the structurally supporting insulator layer includes one of:

a glass epoxy layer and a mica layer.

17. The dynamoelectric machine of claim 14, wherein the conductive layer includes a plurality of portions having different conductivity levels.

15. A dynamoelectric machine comprising:

a rotor;

a stator including a plurality of stator end windings; and

an insulated accelerometer assembly coupled to at least one of the plurality of stator end windings, the assembly including;

an accelerometer including a lead extending therefrom;

a high dielectric strength potting compound encapsulating the accelerometer and covering a portion of the lead;

a structurally supporting insulator layer surrounding at least a portion of the high dielectric strength potting compound, the structurally supporting insulator layer extending beyond an end of the high dielectric strength potting compound to form an overhang; and

a conductive layer formed over at least a portion of the structurally supporting insulator layer,

wherein the lead extends from the high dielectric strength potting compound and is surrounded by the overhang of the structurally supporting insulator layer.

18. An insulated accelerometer assembly for a vibrated component in a high voltage environment, the assembly comprising:

an accelerometer including a lead extending therefrom;

a high dielectric strength potting compound encapsulating the accelerometer and extending partially along the lead;

a structurally supporting insulator layer surrounding at least a portion of the high dielectric strength potting compound, the structurally supporting insulator layer extending beyond an end of the high dielectric strength potting compound to form an overhang; and

a conductive layer formed;

over at least a portion of the structurally supporting insulator layer, and

within the overhang formed by the structurally supporting insulator layer, the conductive layer formed within the overhang formed by the structurally supporting insulator layer directly contacting the high dielectric strength potting compound and a portion of the lead.