Old magneto of Vilan Lighthouse
by RicardMN Photography
Title
Old magneto of Vilan Lighthouse
Artist
RicardMN Photography
Medium
Photograph
Description
Old magneto of Cape Vilan Lighthouse, on the west coast of Galicia, Spain, in Costa da Morte ("Coast of Death"), specifically close the village of Camariñas.
A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce periodic pulses of alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, a magneto does not contain a commutator to produce direct current. It is categorized as a form of alternator, although it is usually considered distinct from most other alternators, which use field coils rather than permanent magnets.
Magnetos were used for specialized isolated power systems such as arc lamp systems or lighthouses, for which their simplicity was an advantage.
De Méritens is best remembered today for his production of magneto generators specifically for lighthouses. These were favoured for their simplicity and reliability, in particular their avoidance of commutators. In the sea air of a lighthouse, the commutator that had been used previously with dynamo generators was a continual source of trouble. The lighthouse keepers of the time, usually semi-retired sailors, were not mechanically or electrically skilled enough to maintain these more complex machines.
This de Méritens magneto generator shows the 'ring wound' armature. As there is now only a single rotor disk, each horseshoe magnet comprises a stack of individual magnets, but acts through a pair of pole pieces.
Baron Auguste de Méritens (1834-1898), and A. de Méritens & Cie. of 44 Rue Boursault, Paris
De Méritens is best known for his work on magneto-electric generators, particularly those used for arc lighting and lighthouses. He also developed arc lamps.
In 1881 he was awarded a French patent for the first arc welding process. This used a carbon electrode to generate an arc to the workpiece. The process achieved relatively low temperatures and was not successful with steel. However it was widely used commercially, for welding lead plates to manufacture storage batteries. De Méritens produced his welding equipment with an enclosed hood and fume extraction pipe, to control the hazardous lead oxide fumes from the hot lead.
De Méritens' generators became popular for lighthouses. They bore a superficial resemblance to the earlier 'Alliance' machines, but gave a more even output current, advantageous for use with arc lamps, thanks to the use of a distributed rotor winding using ring-wound armatures, instead of individual bobbins. The photo show such a machine, with 5 rows of 8 horseshoe magnets attached to the frame via brass rails, and 5 armature rings, each having 16 coils. The rotor wheels were probably spoked brass or bronze castings, with the spokes covered by sheet metal discs to minimise windage. (Description from Wikipedia and gracesguide.co.uk).
Uploaded
June 15th, 2019
Statistics
Viewed 590 Times - Last Visitor from Ottawa, ON - Canada on 04/25/2024 at 11:05 AM
Embed
Share
Sales Sheet
