Reliance Electric Technologies, LLC

American Superconductor Corporation

David Infante Driscoll

Boris A Shoykhet

Viatcheslav V Dombrovski

Ira B Goldberg

Bruce B Gamble

Ahmed Sidi-Yekhlef

Robert E Schwall

Rajmohan Narayanan

Boris A Shovkhet

Burt Xudong Zhang

According to one embodiment, the present invention provides a rotor assembly. The exemplary rotor assembly includes a plurality of rotor laminations, which cooperate to form a rotor core, capped at each end by end members. Extending through the rotor core and the end members, a plurality of rotor channels is configured to receive electrically conductive members therethrough. Each of the electrically conductive members has external portions, which extend beyond the rotor channel, and an interior portion that is housed within the rotor channel. By flexing the external portions, a compression force that secures the laminations and the end members with respect to one another may be provided. Advantageously, the external portions may be fused to one another and/or to the end members. As one example, the external portions may be fused through the introduction of a molten metal into the end member. Advantageously, fusing of the external portions to the end members and/or one another increases the mechanical integrity of the rotor and provides for good electrical communicativeness between the conductive members, for example.

Rotor for an induction device

A system for cooling a superconductor device includes a cryocooler located in a stationary reference frame and a closed circulation system external to the cryocooler. The closed circulation system interfaces the stationary reference frame with a rotating reference frame in which the superconductor device is located. A method of cooling a superconductor device includes locating a cryocooler in a stationary reference frame, and transferring heat from a superconductor device located in a rotating reference frame to the cryocooler through a closed circulation system external to the cryocooler. The closed circulation system interfaces the stationary reference frame with the rotating reference frame.

Superconductor rotor cooling system

A rotating coupling allows a vacuum chamber in the rotor of a superconducting electric motor to be continually pumped out. The coupling consists of at least two concentric portions, one of which is allowed to rotate and the other of which is stationary. The coupling is located on the non-drive end of the rotor and is connected to a coolant supply and a vacuum pump. The coupling is smaller in diameter than the shaft of the rotor so that the shaft can be increased in diameter without having to increase the size of the vacuum seal.

Vacuum coupling of rotating superconducting rotor

A high temperature superconductor (HTS) synchronous motor or generator includes permanent magnets disposed in the rotor. The permanent magnets can be magnetized after the rotor assembly is manufactured. The permanent magnets reduce flux density perpendicular to the superconducting coil. The magnets can be disposed in the d-axis of the motor. The motor is particularly useful in propulsion applications.

Hybrid superconducting motor/generator

A superconducting electromechanical rotating (SER) device, such as a synchronous AC motor, includes a superconducting field winding and a one-layer stator winding that may be water-cooled. The stator winding is potted to a support such as the inner radial surface of a support structure and, accordingly, lacks hangers or other mechanical fasteners that otherwise would complicate stator assembly and require the provision of an unnecessarily large gap between adjacent stator coil sections. The one-layer winding topology, resulting in the number of coils being equal to half the number of slots or other mounting locations on the support structure, allows one to minimize or eliminate the gap between the inner radial ends of adjacent straight sections of the stator coilswhile maintaining the gap between the coil knuckles equal to at least the coil width, providing sufficient room for electrical and cooling element configurations and connections. The stator winding may be potted to the support structure or other support, for example, by a one-step VPI process relying on saturation of an absorbent material to fill large gaps in the stator winding or by a two-step process in which small gaps are first filled via a VPI or similar operation and larger gaps are then filled via an operation that utilizes the stator as a portion of an on-site mold.

Superconducting electromechanical rotating device having a liquid-cooled, potted, one layer stator winding

A method and apparatus for manufacturing a rotor for use with a rotating machine is provided that employs a superconducting coil on the rotor. An adhesive is applied to an outer surface of the rotor body, which may include a groove disposed within an outer surface of the rotor body. A superconducting coil is then mounted onto the rotor body such that the adhesive bonds the superconducting coil to the rotor body.

Growing community of inventors

South Euclid, OH, United States of America

David Infante Driscoll