The laminations for the armature core are two inches in diameter, and are cut from soft iron one-sixteenth of an inch thick. They have eight channels, as shown in [Fig. 35], and the tubing on the commutator hub is divided into four parts so that the terminals from each coil can be brought to a commutator, as described for [Fig. 30]. In the eight-channel armature, however, there is but one coil of wire in each channel.
DETAILS OF SPLIT-RING DYNAMO
In [Fig. 36] a plan of the armature is shown, S representing the shaft, B B the bearings, L the laminations, C the commutators and hub, P the driving-pulley, and N N the nuts that hold the laminations together and lock them to the shaft. The shaft is half an inch in diameter, the laminations four inches thick, and the commutator barrel one inch in diameter and three-quarters of an inch long. The shaft is turned down from the middle to where P and C are attached; then at the front end it is made smaller, where it passes through the front bearing.
With the detailed description already given for the construction of the small dynamo, it should be an easy matter to carry out the work on this one, and a quarter horse-power generator should be the result. The field-magnet is wound with five or seven layers of No. 16 double cotton-insulated wire, and the armature with No. 22 silk or cotton-covered wire. The connections may be made for either the series or the shunt windings shown in [Figs. 14 and 15]. Another type of field is shown in [Fig. 37], where two plates of iron are screwed to one core, and the lugs are, in turn, made fast to the inner sides of the plates within which the armature revolves. The “Manchester” type is shown in [Fig. 38], where two cores, constructed by a top and bottom yoke, are excited by the coils, and the lugs are arranged between the cores, so that the armature revolves within them.
A Small Motor
The shapes, types, powers, and forms of motors are as varied and different as those of dynamos, each inventor designing a different type and claiming superiority. The one common principle, however, is the same—that of an armature revolving within a field, and lines of force cutting lines of force. A motor is the reverse of a dynamo. Instead of generating current to develop power or light, a current must be run through a motor to obtain power.
Motors are divided into two classes: the D C, or direct current, and the A C, or alternating current. For the amateur the direct-current motor will meet every requirement, and since the battery, or dynamo current, that may be available to run a motor, is in all probability a direct one, it will be necessary to construct a motor that is adapted to this source of power and for the present avoid the complications of the alternating current both in generation and in use.
The direct-current motor is an electrical machine driven by direct current, the latter being generated in any desired way. This current is forced through the machine by electro-motive force, or voltage; the higher the pressure, or voltage, the more efficient the machine. Be careful lest too much current (amperage) is allowed to flow, for the heat developed thereby will burn out the wiring.