Patent ID: 11916500
Assignee: RAYTHEON COMPANY
Field: Electrical machinery, apparatus, energy (Electrical engineering)
Classification: CPC H | IPC H

Claim 18:
19. A multi-mode synchronous electrical generator comprising:
a prime mover configured to rotate a drive shaft;
a rotor coupled to the drive shaft;
a polyphase stator circumscribing the rotor and including:
main stator windings that include first, second, and third stator phase windings wye-configured for three-phase operation, each of the first, second, and third stator phase windings having a plurality of series-connected inductive coils, the pluralities of series-connected inductive coils of the first, second, and third stator windings distributed about the stator in a circumferential layout;

a plurality of slip rings and current collection brushes for facilitating conduction of an electrical excitation power to the rotor regardless of whether the rotor is rotating or not rotating; and
a configurable rotor winding coupled to the rotor, the configurable rotor winding including:
first, second, and third rotor phase windings that generate magnetic fields in response to conducting electrical current therethrough,
wherein first, second, and third rotor phase windings are configurable either in a power-generation mode or in a grid-power mode, when configured in the grid-power mode, first, second, and third phase windings are wye-configured with phase shifting elements for receiving a single-phase AC excitation power, thereby creating a revolving magnetic field when configured in the grid-power mode, first and second phase windings are parallel-configured in series with third phase windings generating a plurality of DC magnetic poles in a stationary magnetic field;
first and second phase-shifting elements coupled to the first and second phase windings; and

first and second switching elements that enable or disable phase-shifting, by first and second phase-shifting elements, electrical current conducted by first and second phase windings, respectively.