This is not the 1st part of my journey in HAWT experiments but it is the 1st post.
I somehow stumbled onto the concept of using a stepper motor as a generator. The number one advantage to me is not having a gearbox! this is really a major convenience. I have years of experience with CNC machines and have a pile of spare motors.
With the stepper connected to the vert. mill I was able to make RPM vs volts charts.
I used a double bridge rectifier to get all the results. Generally I consider HAWT RPMs to be in the range of 100 - 600 RPMs.
This is where the stepper is so convenient, it produces lots of voltage at these low revs.
With these good results I designed and machined a circuit board.
This little circuit board is mounted below the stepper.
The system for mounting the stepper to the horz. shaft is
Exactly like the mounting of stepper to a CNC axis. This makes the concept and the components readily available and easily understood.
The completed system; I will post regarding the rest of the mechanism subsequently. (it is a DOWN-WIND HAWT)
Further experiments have provided a more complete look into the power potential.
