ROBERT J BUDENHOLZER
Engineers in Monroeville, PA

5140204, Aug 18, 1992

Jul 5, 1991

7/726102

Douglas H. Cashmore - Tulsa OK
Robert J. Budenholzer - Monroeville PA
Luciano Veronesi - O'Hara Township, Allegheny County PA

Westinghouse Electric Corp. - Pittsburgh PA

H02K 132, H02K 324, H02K 3487

310 61

Heat pipes having predetermined configurations and positioned within the wedges and wedge retainers for maintaining the rotor field windings in position for efficiently collecting heat generated along the length of the rotor field windings and rotor surface and transporting this heat to the ends of the rotor where it is transferred to a coolant medium such as a gas or spray liquid are disclosed. The particular heat pipe positioning and configuration provides an optimal amount of heat transfer surface area for transferring heat from the wedge material to a volatile fluid within the heat pipe. Heat is thus efficiently transferred to the volatile fluid which changes the volatile fluid from a liquid phase to a vapor phase where the vapor flows at a high speed to a condenser section beyond the axial length of the rotor field windings where heat is dissipated from the volatile fluid to the cooling medium.

6844637, Jan 18, 2005

Aug 13, 2003

10/641209

Matthew Bertram Smith - Leechburg PA, US
Robert Joseph Budenholzer - Monroeville PA, US

Curtiss-Wright Electro-Mechanical Corporation - Cheswick PA

H02K 900

310 54, 310 59

A rotor assembly end turn cooling system and method in which cooling fluid is introduced at both ends of each cooling fluid passageway and at various points therebetween and spent cooling fluid is exhausted through exhaust openings disposed at various points between the ends of each cooling fluid passageway, including near the end turn corners. Multi-layered bore baffle shells and/or helical exhaust ducts having multiple channels control the flow of cooling fluid through the passageways and into axial rotor slots for expulsion into the rotor-stator gap. Each duct or channel may increase in cross-sectional area in the flow direction to maintain constant fluid flow velocity in the duct or channel. Improved end turn cooling and reduced cooling fluid temperatures maintain more consistent temperatures in the end turns and reduce the maximum hot-spot temperature to provide greater generator power densities and longer rotor coil insulation life.