Wound-Rotor Asynchronous Machines for Use in Electrical Power Generation in Aviation

Modern electrical power generation systems in aviation use a three-stage synchronous generation architecture to produce electrical power. While this architecture is effective due to being both self-starting and brushless, a constant speed drive or additional power electronics are necessary to produce voltage at a constant frequency. To combat this issue, a new architecture is introduced utilizing a wound-rotor asynchronous machine (WRAM) for electrical power generation. This allows for the frequency and magnitude of generated voltage to be held constant using an inverter connected to the machine’s rotor windings. This paper presents a mathematical model for a WRAM and shows details of a manufactured WRAM analyzed using ANSYS simulation for power balance and efficiency. Lastly, a control algorithm is presented, and experimental data is shown to verify its performance.