Advanced Machines & Power Electronics Design Laboratory

The Kettering University Advanced Machines & Power Electronics Design (AMPED) Laboratory, established in 2011, focuses on the development and testing of electrical machines and power-electronic circuit system prototypes. Projects typically last for 6 to 12 months to produce a prototype. The facilities in the AMPED lab are capable of testing systems at power levels up to 10 kW (without power recirculation), with DC voltage levels up to 600 V and three-phase 60 Hz AC voltages up to 480 Vrms. Converter efficiencies and Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) measurements are conducted using Yokogawa WT1600 power analyzers. Fluke thermal imagers (e.g.Ti25) are used to verify thermal operation of systems. The embedded control of power-electronic systems typically utilize Texas Instruments digital signal processors (DSPs).

Projects include:

• Electric vehicle battery chargers (level 1, level 2, and DC fast chargers).
• Electric alternator systems (e.g. 400 V to 12 V step-down converters).
• Three-phase inverter / motor drive and grid-connected systems.
• Three-phase permanent magnet synchronous machine design & construction.
• Magnetics (inductor & transformer) design & construction.
• Wireless charging circuits using low-frequency air-core transformers.
• Battery management systems which include cell monitoring, cell passive balancing, and/or cell active balancing.
• Renewable energy conversion systems (solar & wind energy harvesting).