ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING LABORATORY
The Scott Laboratory of Electrical Engineering.—This laboratory was
initially equipped and endowed by Mrs. Frances Branch Scott, of Richmond,
Va., as a memorial to her late son, an alumnus of this University. During the
year 1910 the equipment was substantially increased through the generosity of
the Hon. Charles R. Crane, of Chicago, Ill., a friend of the University. In recent
years a large number of new machines, measuring instruments and pieces of
auxiliary apparatus have been purchased. Improvements are constantly being
made and items of equipment added. As a result the laboratory is now well supplied
with the best modern equipment.
Power is supplied to the laboratory from the University distribution system
through a transformer vault located in the building. There is also installed a
motor generator set consisting of a synchronous motor driving an alternator and
a three-wire direct-current generator. A complete three-panel switchboard for
the control of this set is equipped with the necessary instruments and includes
an automatic voltage regulator for the alternator. Power is carried from the
switchboard to distribution panels located at convenient points. Universal plug-and
receptacle-connections facilitate the setting up of all experimental combinations.
For the machine testing there are available several direct-current motor
generator sets with automatic control; numerous series, shunt and compound
motors and generators; synchronous and induction motor driven generator sets;
high voltage direct-current generator; steam turbine driven three-phase alternator
with exciter and control switchboard; two experimental test sets for
alternating current single or polyphase generator operation; single-phase induction
motor; single-phase repulsion-induction motor; two-phase induction
motor; three-phase squirrel cage induction motors of the general purpose, high
reactance and double cage types; wound rotor induction motors; induction generator;
wound rotor induction motor set for concatenation; Fynn-Weichsel
synchronous induction motor; frequency changer set; synchronous motors; rotary
converter; are welding generator set; constant potential transformers; constant
current transformer; polyphase transformer; induction regulator; mercury arc
and thermionic rectifiers; a number of different types of A. C. and D. C. fractional
horsepower motors; prony brakes for all motors; adjustable resistances,
inductances and capacitances.
The instrument room is unusually well equipped with all of the types of
high grade portable meters required for the laboratory tests, including frequency
and power factor meters, watthour meters, synchroscopes, tachometers,
instrument transformers, recording voltmeters, ammeters and wattmeters.
For testing and calibrating the portable instruments and for more precise
work in electrical measurments there are available a set of laboratory standard
instruments with standard shunts and resistances; standard cells; standard condensers,
inductances and resistances; galvanometers of the best modern type
and numerous other pieces of apparatus of the highest precision such as the
Wolff potentiometer, Siemens and Halske-Thomson double bridge, Carey-Foster
bridge, Koepsel permeameter, Fahy simplex permeameter and others.
For experiments in illumination and photometry there are a Station photometer
with Lummer-Brodhun screen, a Macbeth illuminometer, General Electric
and Weston portable foot-candle meters.
Equipment for the study of communication and power transmission includes
a complete artificial transmission line; an adjustable frequency test oscillator;
bridge; vacuum tube voltmeter-ammeter; representative pieces of modern telephone
equipment including two central office ringer sets; equipment for the study
of vacuum tube performance; model network distribution system; all with the
necessary auxiliary apparatus.
The laboratory is equipped with three oscillographs which are available for
the study of wave forms and transient phenomena. Two of the oscillographs are
of the latest portable type—one a six element and the other a one element. All
are complete with the necessary accessories for both visual observation and
photographic recording.
