Carter rotary converter

[KevinW]

Anyone happen to know anything about this 6vdc to 115vac converter?
What type of battery would operate this?
This must be one of the first inverters.

 

[Nigel Goodwin]

Fairly obviously lead acid is what would have been used.

 

[Visitor]

It probably would have been used in a vehicle or plane. Is it 60Hz or 400Hz output?

 

[Diver300]

The WWII Jeeps and 2½ ton trucks both had 6 V systems, so either of those could have been used to power that converter.

 

[KevinW]

60Hz, thanks for the comments.

 

[JimB]

Similar rotary converters were used in military radio equipment during WW2.

In those applications, the input was usually from a 12v battery in the case of a land vehicle, or 26/28v in the case of an aircraft.
The output was usually DC at whatever voltage the particular equipment required.

JimB

 

[KevinW]

It has a vacant hole for a possible voltage gauge and a 0-100 dial, I'm not sure what that's for?

 

[augustinetez]

Just ask the manufacturer https://www.cartermotor.com/products/converters/ - give them the details on the plate on the top.

 

[ChrisP58]

I'm not sure that the type of battery would be important.

What is important is for the battery to deliver whatever current is needed to power whatever load you have on the output, plus the conversion (in)efficiency.

Remember to factor in the voltage ratio when you calculate that. Even with a conversion efficiency of 100%, 1 Amp of output current at 115 Volts will need ~ 19.2 Amps of input current at 6 Volts.

 

[Nigel Goodwin]

I'm not sure that the type of battery would be important.

As I said in post #2, it obviously would have been designed for lead acid, as that's all there was back then - but in modern times there are alternatives available. It's also rated for 6V, which is a common lead acid battery size, and what military vehicles used in the ancient times the converter was made.

What is important is for the battery to deliver whatever current is needed to power whatever load you have on the output, plus the conversion (in)efficiency.

Remember to factor in the voltage ratio when you calculate that. Even with a conversion efficiency of 100%, 1 Amp of output current at 115 Volts will need ~ 19.2 Amps of input current at 6 Volts.

Such devices are really VERY inefficient, and shouldn't have been used for most of the 20th century, never mind the 21st

They were just a crude and simple way to get mains to power valve radios etc. and efficiency wasn't a concern, as there were few alternatives.

 

[augustinetez]

Such devices are really VERY inefficient, and shouldn't have been used for most of the 20th century, never mind the 21st

They were just a crude and simple way to get mains to power valve radios etc. and efficiency wasn't a concern, as there were few alternatives.

Makes you wonder why they are still being made in the 21st century though (and in 6V version).

 

[Visitor]

Motor generator sets are far more common than Nigel would lead you to believe. A web search will show this.

One large-scale application is on board submarines. Batteries are an emergency power source. In normal operation, they do something called ring-around. The sub's turbine generator supplies AC to one MG set. The DC output is connected to the batteries.

The other MG set is operated from the batteries, and supplies AC to the power buss. The AC-->DC unit keeps the batteries topped off. The DC-->AC unit provides instantaneous power to the AC buss in the event of loss of power from the turbine generator.

Other major uses are in changing power frequency.

 

[Nigel Goodwin]

Makes you wonder why they are still being made in the 21st century though (and in 6V version).

Are they?, no one has suggested that so far.

 

[Nigel Goodwin]

Motor generator sets are far more common than Nigel would lead you to believe. A web search will show this.

I suspect we have wildly different understandings of 'far more common' - presumably you are one of those who consider Covid vaccine blood clots an unacceptable risk? (and it's probably at a similar level).

One large-scale application is on board submarines.

'Large scale'?, I must have missed the 20,000,000 submarines sailing round the globe?.

Other major uses are in changing power frequency.

I would imagine most would be done electronically these days.

 

[augustinetez]

Are they?, no one has suggested that so far.

You obviously didn't check out the link in post #8.

 

[schmitt trigger]

From their website, it appears they are focused on military customers.

 

[rjenkinsgb]

MG sets of various types are still relatively common in industry, though steadily being replaced by solid state control systems.

These types are used for power control or as servo drives and act as AC to DC converters with eg. 415V AC in.
(ie. With the generator field controlled by a much smaller electronic system than would be required for the final motor the generator operates).

They are often multi-section with the AC motor driving two or more generators on the same shaft.

Example; the factory that is in has three other machines at least with MG set drive systems, all different.

 

[KevinW]

I don't see this converter as useful considering the ac amperage is .43 amps.
I couldn't run a 60 watt bulb with it.