Transformer Report (History of Development)
... must also be different, in inverse ratio to the voltages. Thus if current is decreased by the transformer, voltage would increase. If voltage is decreased by the transformer, current would increase, making the power stay constant. An ideal transformer follows the equation: Vp = np = Is Vs ns Ip Where Vp is the voltage in the primary coil, Vs is the voltage in the secondary coil, Np is the number of turns of wire on the primary coil, and Ns is the number of turns of wire on the secondary coil. Step-up transformers consist of more turns in the secondary coil than the primary coil; have a higher output voltage than input voltage but a higher input current than output current. Step-down transformers consist of more turns in the primary coil than the secondary coil; have a higher input voltage than output voltage but a higher output current than input current. Michael Faraday invented an ‘induction ring’ on August 29, 1831. This was the first transformer, although Faraday used it only to demonstrate the principle of electromagnetic induction. Faraday’s induction ring The first practical transformer was revealed to the public in 1883 at the Royal Aquarium of London by a Frenchman, Lucian Gaulard, and an Englishman, John Dixon Gibbs. While neither man was an electrical engineer, they discovered that electricity can be transferred over long distances to light incandescent lamps. This theory was demonstrated in 1884 where lamps were powered in Rome, Italy via a power plant located in Tivoli. Their early devices used a linear iron core, which was later abandoned in favour of a more efficient circular core. Gaulard and Gibbs linear-cored transformer Gaulard and Gibbs circular-cored transformer George Westinghouse heard of this invention, bought the rights and instructed one of his engineers, William Stanley, to study its commercial viability. The Gaulard-Gibbs transformer system, while successful, was not commercially profitable as the specified series connections resulted in unacceptable voltage drops and instability due to changing loads. William Stanley recognized this limitation and modified the systems such that transformers were connected in parallel. He also recognized that the core was an enclosed magnetic circuit where voltage regulation was produced in the secondary winding. On March 20, 1886 William Stanley successfully demonstrated his modificati...