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Trail Projects Regulator for Three Phase Generator

Trail Projects Today Topic is Regulator for Three-Phase Generator This regulator was designed for use with a  generator with a higher output voltage. This  type of generator can be found on some boats  and on vehicles for the emergency services.  They are really just an adapted version of the  standard alternator normally found in cars.  The field winding is connected to the 12 V  (or 24 V) battery supply, whereas the generator winding is configured for the AC grid  voltage (230 V or 115 V). This AC voltage now  has to be kept stable via the 12 V field winding. Although it’s perfectly possible to use a  switching regulator for this, we deliberately  chose to use the old and trusted 723.

Regulator for Three-Phase Generator Trail Diagram
Trail Projects Regulator for Three-Phase Generator
The generator is a three-phase type, with the  field winding rated for 12 VDC. The output voltage of the generator depends on its revs  and the current through the field winding.  Since the output voltage is relatively high, it  is fed via opto-couplers to the 723, which is  used in a standard configuration.  The output is fed via driver T1 to two  2N3055’s, connected in parallel, which sup-ply the current to the field winding. In the prototype we used TLP620 opto-couplers. These are suitable for use with alternating voltages because they have two anti-parallel LEDs at the input. The regulation works  quite well with these, with the output volt-age staying within a small range across a wide  range of revs.

However, the sensitivity of the two internal  LEDs can differ in this type of opto-coupler,  since it’s not always possible to ensure during  the manufacturing process that the distance  between each LED and the phototransistor is  exactly the same. For a more precise regulation it would be better to use two individual  opto-couplers per phase, with the inputs connected in anti-parallel and the outputs connected in parallel.

In order to ensure that there is sufficient isolation between the primary and secondary side  you should make a cutout in the PCB underneath the middle of each opto-coupler. Instead of a BD136 for T1 you could also use  a TIP32 or something similar. For T2 and T3  it’s better to use a type with a plastic casing,  rather than a TO3 case.