Magnetic-amplifier design part I - The core

A practical approach is developed for the design of the toroidal magnetic amplifier, based on synthesizing the design from design charts, and thus avoiding the necessity of having available detailed data from previous equipment. Starting with a known power supply frequency, together with a desired gain and time constant, the load voltage and current are utilized in determining the core. With the core specified, additional charts are presented for the winding layout design. The usual heat transfer and resistance computations serve as a check on the initial design synthesis and these complete the design process. A straightforward and practical step-by-step design procedure is outlined. This paper, the first of two on this subject, is concerned with the design approach and the core determination. Part II will cover the windings and the completion of the design.