Transformer Help

[GTechno13]

I want to dig this back up on a slightly different note. (maybe I should have created a new thread?) I am rebuilding a vending machine with my own control circuitry and am using the same configuration as discussed above to achieve dual positive supply. The motors require 24VDC and then the 12V will supply a pair of linear regulators to run the brains. I want to use the original transformer from the machine but it makes no sense to me. It has 11 wires coming out of it! I don't know what these kind of transformers are called and googling "transformer with lots of wires" doesn't work. I am aware of dual coil primary and secondary transformers but this is different. I found a picture that is very close to the same thing except for the primary two wires going to the smaller connector are red. **broken link removed** My transformer as it sits in the picture has the primary two wires coming out the right side bottom. On the right side top there are four wires colored brown brown yellow yellow upper to lower(grouped like). On the top left side there are 5 wires protruding and they go blue blue orange purple orange. (the TWO blues and purple are hard to see in the pic). Is there something I can search for which shows whats going on here?

Also the transformer is marked "1200323" -below that- "EWC 8710" I believe I found the company, EWC, which made it and I sent them an email about it but they have not made transformers for many years and so they may have no information on it and I would like to know this holiday weekend so I can work on this while I'm out of school.

Thanks!

 

[Reloadron]

I agree you may want to just start a new thread.

As to the transformer you have, really hard to tell. You can begin going wire by wire and looking for resistance measurements. At least figure out with some luck and resistances what goes with what.

Ron

 

[panic mode]

why not toss it out and install 24VDC power supply (or better +/- 12V supply so you get both 12 and 24V)?
as for testing transformers, don't trust much measured resistance. i'd ratger:
1. identify windings (simple continuity check)
2. get another source of low AC voltage (such as 6 or 12V, can be from other transformer)
3. connect any of the windings of unknown transformer to the mentioned AC source (substitute powered winding as needed)
4. power up and measure voltages on all other windings
5. one or two windings with highest voltage are likely the primary.

 

[carbonzit]

On the basis of that picture, I'd be inclined to say that all the wires going to the larger Molex connector are probably secondaries, and those going to the smaller one are probably the primary. Try measuring the resistance of the suspected primary vs any of the secondaries. (The primary looks to either be split or have a couple of taps; perhaps it's made to run on two or more input voltages.)

Then you could try applying power to the suspected primary using a low voltage from another transformer as suggested above. You should then see only very low voltages on any of the secondaries.