D.

C generators
 It requires the knowledge of basic electrical and electronic
engineering and A.C circuits phasor diagrams
 To study and understand different types of DC generators, and
its construction
 To study and understand the operation of D.C Generator .
 To study and understand the applications of D.C Generators.
 After this unit, the student will be able to
 Identify different parts of a DC machine & understand its operation
 Understand different excitation and starting methods of DC
machines
 D.C. Generators: Principle of operation – Action of commutator – constructional
features –armature windings – lap and wave windings – simplex and multiplex
windings – use of laminated armature – E. M.F Equation.Armature reaction –
Cross magnetizing and de-magnetizing AT/pole – compensating winding–
commutation – reactance voltage – methods of improving commutation.
 Methods of Excitation – separately excited and self excited generators – build-up
of E.M.F - critical field resistance and critical speed - causes for failure to self
excite and remedial measures. Load characteristics of shunt, series and compound
generators
An electrical machine is a device which converts mechanical
energy into electrical energy or vice versa
 An electric generator is an electrical
machine which converts mechanical energy
into electrical energy.
 A generator works on the principle of
electromagnetic induction.
 It states that whenever a conductor moves in
a magnetic field, an emf gets induced within
the conductor. This phenomenon is called as
generator action.
 A motor is an electrical machine
which converts electrical energy
into mechanical energy.
 When a current carrying conductor
is placed in a magnetic field, the
conductor experiences a mechanical
force and this is the principle
behind motoring action
 Faraday's first law:
 Faraday's second law:
 Whenever a conductor is placed in a varying magnetic field
an EMF gets induced across the conductor (called as
induced emf), and if the conductor is a closed circuit then
induced current flows through it.
 Magnetic field can be varied by various methods –
1.By moving magnet
2. By moving the coil
3. By rotating the coil relative to magnetic field
 Faraday's second law of electromagnetic induction states
that, the magnitude of induced emf is equal to the rate of
change of flux linkages with the coil.
 The flux linkages is the product of number of turns and the
flux associated with the coil.
E = N (dΦ/dt) (volts)
 It states that, when an emf is induced
according to Faraday's law, the polarity
(direction) of that induced emf is such
that it opposes the cause of its production.
 Thus, considering Lenz's law
E = -N (dΦ/dt) (volts)
 The negative sign shows that, the
direction of the induced emf and the
direction of change in magnetic fields
have opposite signs.
If thumb indicates direction of
current wrapped fingers indicate
direction of flux and vice versa
 magnetic field
 Set of conductors
 There is a relative motion between magnetic field and set of
conductor
 All the generators works on a principle of dynamically induced e.m.f.

This principle nothing but the Faraday’s law of electromagnetism

induction.

 It states that, ‘whenever flux linking with a conductor or a coil changes,

an electromotive force is set up in that conductor or coil.’

 The change in flux associated with the conductor can exist only when

there exists a relative motion between a conductor and the flux.

 The relative motion can be achieved by rotating conductor with respect to flux or by
rotating flux with respect to a conductor. So a voltage gets generated in a conductor, as
long as there exists a relative motion between conductor and the flux.

 Such an induced e.m.f. which is due to the physical movement of coil or conductor with
respect to flux or movement of flux with respect to coil or conductor is called
dynamically induced e.m.f.

E=Blvsinθ

 Magnitude of e.m.f is found by faraday’s law and direction of induced emf is decided by
fleming’s right hand rule
 The above figure shows constructional details of a simple 4-pole
DC machine. A DC machine consists of two basic parts; stator
and rotor.
 Basic constructional parts of a DC machine are described below.
 Yoke: The outer frame of a dc machine is called as yoke. It is
made up of cast iron or steel. It not only provides mechanical
strength to the whole assembly but also carries the magnetic flux
produced by the field winding.
 Poles and pole shoes: Poles are joined to the yoke with the help
of bolts or welding. They carry field winding and pole shoes are
fastened to them. Pole shoes serve two purposes; (i) they support
field coils and (ii) spread out the flux in air gap uniformly.
 Field winding: They are usually made of copper. Field coils are
former wound and placed on each pole and are connected in
series. They are wound in such a way that, when energized, they
form alternate North and South poles.
 Armature core is the rotor of a dc machine. It is cylindrical in
shape with slots to carry armature winding.
 The armature is built up of thin laminated circular steel disks
for reducing eddy current losses.
 It may be provided with air ducts for the axial air flow for
cooling purposes. Armature is keyed to the shaft.
 It is usually a former wound copper coil which rests in armature
slots.
 The armature conductors are insulated from each other and also
from the armature core.
 Armature winding can be wound by one of the two methods; lap
winding or wave winding.
 Double layer lap or wave windings are generally used. A double
layer winding means that each armature slot will carry two different
coils.
 Physical connection to the armature
winding is made through a commutator-
brush arrangement.
 The function of a commutator, in a dc
generator, is to collect the current
generated in armature conductors.
 Whereas, in case of a dc motor,
commutator helps in providing current
to the armature conductors.
 A commutator consists of a set of copper segments which are
insulated from each other.
 The number of segments is equal to the number of armature
coils.
 Each segment is connected to an armature coil and the
commutator is keyed to the shaft.
 Brushes are usually made from carbon or graphite.
 They rest on commutator segments and slide on the segments
when the commutator rotates keeping the physical contact to
collect or supply the current.
Armature winding

Terms Related to Armature Winding

Types of Armature Winding

 DC WINDINGS

1)Lap Winding 2)Simplex Lap Winding 3) Duplex Lap Winding

4)Condition for Lap Winding 5)Wave Winding

6) Progressive Wave Winding 7)Retrogressive Wave Winding

8)Comparison of Lap Winding and Wave Winding

The armature winding is the main current-carrying winding in which

the electromotive force or counter-emf of rotation is induced.

The current in the armature winding is known as the armature current.

The location of the winding depends upon the type of machine.

The armature windings of dc motors are located on the rotor, since

they must operate in union with the commutator.

In DC rotating machines other than brushless DC machines, it is

usually rotating.
 Conductor: The length of wire
embedded in the slot

 Turn: The two conductor placed

in different slots when connected
together to form a turn.
 Coil: The two active conductor i.e
back and front conductor
constitute one coil. The coil may
be single turn coil or multi turn
coil.
 Coil side: a coil consists of two coil side placed in different slots approximately

a pole pitch apart

 Pole pitch:it is defined as number of armature slots per pole.for example.if there

are 36 conductors and 4 poles,then the pole pitch is 36/4=9

 Coil span or coil pitch(Ys):it is the distance between the twosides of a coil

measured in terms of armaturee slots.

1.if the coil span is equal to pole pitch,the winding is called full pitch winding

2.if the coil span is less than pole pitch,the winding is called short pitch winding
According to the way of connecting the conductors, DC armature

windings are classified as:

 Pole pitch: It is defined as number of armature slots per pole. For
example, if there are 36 conductors and 4 poles, then the pole pitch
is 36/4=9.
 Coil span or coil pitch (Ys): It is the distance between the two
sides of a coil measured in terms of armature slots.
 Front pitch (Yf): It is the distance, in terms of armature conductors,
between the second conductor of one coil and the first conductor of
the next coil. OR it is the distance between two coil sides that are
connected to the same commutator segment.
 Back pitch (Yb): The distance by which a coil advances on the back of the armature is
called as back pitch of the coil. It is measured in terms of armature conductors.

 Resultant pitch (YR): The distance, in terms of armature conductor, between the
beginning of one coil and the beginning of the next coil is called as resultant pitch of the
coil.

YR=Yb-Yf for lap winding

YR=Yb+Yf for wave winding

 Commutator pitch Yc is defined as the distance between two commutator segments

which two ends of same armature coil are connected.

 We measure commutator pitch in term of commutator bars or segment.

In this winding the finishing end of one coil is connected to

one commutator segment and the starting end of the next coil
situated under the same pole and connected with same commutator
segment.
A winding in which the number of parallel path between the

brushes is equal to the number of poles is called simplex lap

winding.
• A winding in which the number of parallel path between the
brushes is twice the number of poles is called Duplex lap
winding.
 If, Z = the number conductors
 P = number of poles
 YB = Back pitch
 YF = Front pitch YC = Commutator pitch
 YA = Average pole pitch YP = Pole pitch YR = Resultant pitch
 Then, the back and front pitches are of opposite sign and they
cannot be equal.
 YB = YF ± 2m m = multiplicity of the winding. m = 1 for Simplex
Lap winding m = 2 for Duplex Lap winding When, YB > YF,
 it is called progressive winding. YB < YF, it is called retrogressive
winding.
 Back pitch and front pitch must be odd. Resultant pitch (YR) = YB -
YF = 2m
 YR is even because it is the difference between two odd numbers.
 Commutator pitch (YC) = ±m Number of parallel path in the
Lap winding = mP
 Advantages of Lap Winding
 This winding is necessarily required for large current
application because it has more parallel paths.
 It is suitable for low voltage and high current generators.
 Disadvantages of Lap Winding
 It gives less emf compared to wave winding. This winding
requires more no. of conductors for giving the same emf, it
results high winding cost.
 It has less efficient utilization of space in the armature slots.
In this winding the end of one coil is connected to the starting of

another coil of the same polarity as that of the first coil.

This winding forms a wave with its coil, that’s why it is named as

wave winding. It is also called series winding because its coils are
connected in series.
If after one round of the armature the coil falls in a slot right to its

starting slot the winging is called Progressive wave winding.

If after one round of the armature the coil falls in a slot left

to its starting slot the winging is called Retrogressive wave winding.

 Difference between lap and wave winding
Lap winding
 In this winding all the pole groups of the coils
generating
 e.m.f in the same direction at any instant of time
are connected in parallel by the2. Lap winding
is also known as parallel windings.
 brushes.
 . The number of parallel path is equal to the
number of poles i.e., A = P.
 The number of brush required by this windingis
always equal to the number of poles.
 . The machine using lap winding requires
equalizer rings for obtaining better
commutation.
 The machine using lap winding requires
equalizer rings for obtaining better
commutation.
 . Lap windings are used for low voltage and
high current machines.
 Lap windings are generally used for machines
of ratings above 500 kW.
Wave winidng
 . In this winding all the coils carrying current in
the same direction are connected in series i.e.,
coils carrying current in one direction are
connected in one series circuit and coils carrying
current in opposite direction are connected in other
series circuit.
 . Wave winding is also known as series winding.
 . The number of parallel paths is always equal to 2
i.e., A = 2.
 The number of brushes required by this winding is
always equal to 2.
 The machine using wave winding does require
dummy coils to provide the mechanical balance
for the armature.
 Wave windings are used for high voltage and low
current machines.
 Wave windings are used for high voltage and low
current machines.
 Wave windings are generally used for machines of
ratings below 560 kW
 Lamination highly reduces
the eddy current loss and
 steel sheets provide low
reluctance path to magnetic
field i.e decreases hysteresis
loss
P = Number of poles of the generator
Φ = Flux produced by each pole in webers (Wb)
N = Speed of armature in r.p.m.
Z = Total Number of Armature Conductors
A = Number of parallel paths in which the
'Z' number of conductors are divided
So A = P for lap type of winding
A = 2 for wave type of winding
 Now e.m.f. gets induced in the conductor according to
Faraday's law of electromagnetic induction. Hence average
value of e.m.f. induced in each armature conductor is,
 e = Rate of cutting the flux = dΦ/dt
 Now consider one revolution of conductor.
 In one revolution, conductor will cut total flux produced by
all the poles i.e. Φ x P.
 While time required to complete one revolution is 60/N
seconds as speed is N r.p.m.

 This is nothing but the e.m.f. equation of a d.c. generator.

Eg = PΦNZ / 60A
 A=p for lap winding
 A=2 for wave winding
 In a DC machine, two kinds of magnetic fluxes are present;
'armature flux' and 'main field flux'. The effect of armature flux on
the main field
MNA And GNA
 EMF is induced in the armature conductors when they cut the
magnetic field lines.
 There is an axis along which armature conductors move parallel to
the flux lines and, hence, they do not cut the flux lines while on that
plane.
 MNA (Magnetic Neutral Axis) may be defined as the axis along which no
emf is generated in the armature conductors as they move parallel to the
flux lines.

 Brushes are always placed along the MNA because reversal of current in
the armature conductors takes place along this axis.
GNA (Geometrical Neutral Axis) may be defined as the axis which is
perpendicular to the stator field axis.

 Effect of armature flux on main field flux is called as armature reaction.

 Consider, no current is flowing in the armature conductors and
only the field winding is energized
 . In this case, magnetic flux lines of the field poles are uniform
and symmetrical to the polar axis.
 The 'Magnetic Neutral Axis' (M.N.A.) coincides with the
'Geometric Neutral Axis' (G.N.A.).
 The second figure in the above image shows armature flux
lines due to the armature current. Field poles are de-energised.
 Now, when a DC machine is running, both the fluxes (flux due
to the armature conductors and flux due to the field winding)
will be present at a time.
 The armature flux superimposes with the main field flux and,
hence, disturbs the main field flux (as shown in third figure the
of above image).
 This effect is called as armature reaction in DC machines.
 All conductors lying within angles AOC = BOD = 2θ at the
top and bottom of the armature, are carrying current in
 such a direction as to send the flux through the armature from
right to left.
 It is these conductors which act in direct opposition to the
main field and are hence called the demagnetising armature
conductors.
 Consider the remaining armature conductors
lying between angles AOD and COB.
 These conductors carry current in such a
direction as to produce a flux at right angles to
the main flux.
 This results in distortion of the main field.
Hence, these conductors are known as cross-
magnetising conductors & constitute
distorting ampere-conductors.
 Since armature demagnetising ampere-turns are neutralized by
adding extra ampere turns to the main field winding, it is
essential to calculate their number.
 But before proceeding further, it should be remembered that
the number of turns is equal to half the number of conductors
because two conductors-constitute one turn.
 Let Z = Total number of armature conductors P = Number of poles
I = Armature conductor current in Ampere = Ia/2 for simplex wave
winding
= Ia/P for simplex lap winding θm = Forward lead of brush in mechanical
degrees.
 The conductors which are responsible for demagnetizing ampere-turns are
lying in the region spanning 4 θm degrees. The region is between angles
AOC and BOD, as shown in the Fig. 2.
 Total number of armature conductors lying in angles AOC and BOD.
 Armature reaction distorts the main flux, hence the position of M.N.A. gets
shifted .
 Brushes should be placed on the M.N.A., otherwise, it will lead to sparking
at the surface of brushes.

 So, due to armature reaction, it is hard to determine the exact position of the
MNA
 For a loaded dc generator, MNA will be shifted in the direction of the
rotation. On the other hand, for a loaded DC motor MNA will be shifted in
the direction opposite to that of the rotation
 it carries the same current but in the
opposite direction as that of the
armature current, then this will
nullify the armature field.
 Such an additional winding is called
as compensating winding and it is
placed on the pole faces.
 Interpoles are the small auxiliary poles
placed between the main field poles.
 Winding on the interpoles is connected
in series with the armature.

 Each interpole is wound in such a way

that its magnetic polarity is same as
that of the main pole ahead of it.
 Interpoles nullify the quadrature axis
armature flux.
 The currents induced in armature conductors of a d.c.
generator are alternating.
 These currents flow in one direction when armature
conductors are under N-pole and in the opposite direction
when they are under S-pole.
 As conductors pass out of the influence of a N-pole and enter
that of S-pole, the current in them is reversed.
 This reversal of current takes place along magnetic neutral
axis or brush axis i.e. When the brush spans and hence
shortcircuits that particular coil undergoing reversal of
 current through it.
 This process by which current in the short-circuited coil is
reversed
 while it crosses the M.N.A. is called commutation. The brief
period during which coil remains short-circuited is known as
commutation period Tc.

 If the current reversal i.e. the change from + I to zero and then to −I
is completed by the end of short circuit or commutation period, then
the commutation is ideal.
 If current reversal is not complete by that time, then sparking is
produced between the brush and the commutator which results in
progressive damage to both. The brush width is equal to the width
of one
 commutator segment and one mica insulation. In Fig (a) coil B is
about to be short circuited because brush is about to come in touch
with commutator segment ‘a’.
 It is assumed that each coil carries 20 A, so that brush current is 40 A. Prior to
the beginning of short circuit, coil B belongs to the group of coils lying to the
left of the brush and carries 20 A from left to right. In Fig (b) the current
through coil B has reduced downfrom 20 A to 10 A.

 As area of contact of the brush is more with segment ‘b’ than with segment ‘a’,
it receives 30 A from the former, the total again being 40 A.

 Fig (c) shows the coil B in the middle of its short-circuit period, the brush
contact areas with the two segments ‘b’ and ‘a’ are equal.

 The current through it has decreased to zero. The two currents of value 20 A
each, pass to the brush directly from coil A and C.
 There are two practical ways of improving commutation i.e. of
making current reversal in the short-circuited coil as sparkless
as possible.
 These methods are known as
(i) resistance commutation
(ii) emf commutation
 This method of improving commutation consists of low-
resistance Cu brushes by comparatively high-resistance carbon
brushes.
 When current I from coil C reaches the commutator segment
b, it has two parallel paths open to it.
 The first part is straight from bar ‘b’ to the brush and the other
parallel path is via the short-circuited coil B to bar ‘a’ and then
to the brush.
 If the Cu brushes are used, then there
is no inducement for the current to
follow the second longer path, it would
preferably follow the first path.
 But when carbon brushes having high
resistance are used, then current I
coming from C will prefer to pass
through the second path.
Advantages
 (i) they are to some degree self lubricating and polish the
commutator and
 (ii) should sparking occur, they would damage the
commutator less than when Cu brushes are used.
 (i) Due to their high contact resistance a loss of approximately 2
volt is caused.Hence, they are not much suitable for small machines
where this voltage forms an appreciable percentage loss.
 (ii) Owing to this large loss, the commutator has to be made some
what larger than with Cu brushes in order to dissipate heat
efficiently without greater rise of temperature.
 (iii) because of their lower current density (about 7-8 A/cm2 as
compared to 25-30 A/cm2 for Cu brushes) they need larger brush
holders.
 In this method, arrangement is made to neutralize the
reactance voltage by producing a reversing emf in the short-
circuited coil under commutation.
 This reversing emf, as the name shows, is an emf in opposition
to the reactance voltage and if its value is made equal to the
latter, it will completely wipe it off, there by producing quick
reversal of current in the short-circuited coil which will result
in sparkless commutation.
 The reversing emf may be produced in two ways:
 (i) either by giving the brushes a forward lead sufficient
enough to bring the short-circuited coil under the influence of
next pole of opposite polarity or
 (ii) by using interpoles.
The first method was used in the early machines but has now
been abandoned due to many other difficulties it brings along
with.a
 Conditions to build up voltage in shunt generator:

 The shunt winding should have residual magnetic field.

 The direction of shunt winding and armature winding

should be in such a way that flux generated by them
should aid together.

 The shunt winding should have critical winding

resistance.
 When the armature is rotated, the residual flux in field winding
will induce small voltage in armature.
 The induced voltage in armature generates a flux and it will
aid(add) with field flux and the net flux will increase further.
 This process will be repeating until the actual treminal voltage is
reached.
 Once the terminal voltage is reached then the winding will get
saturated and hence there won't be any further increase in flux, also
the voltage gets constant.
 Shunt Generator :with all condition below satisfied the voltage buildup will
rapidly happen upto saturation represented by B-H curve. It will not start
from zero but little about zero point due to residual nature.
 poles should contain residual flux field winding and armature winding
should be correctly connected so that initial mmf will act on residual flux
 resistance of the field winding should be less than Critical field resistance
speed of the generator greater than critical speed
 load resistance should be greater than critical value
 Brushes should have proper contact
 poles should contain residual flux
 field winding and armature should be
correctly connected
 total resistance
 [ Ra+ Rse+RL<critical resistance
 speed > critical speed
 generator should be on load
 The critical field resistance is defined as the maximum field
circuit resistance (for a given speed) with which the shunt
generator would excite.
 The shunt generator will build up voltage only if field circuit
resistance is less than critical field resistance.
 It is the speed at which generaotor fails to build up voltage
 Generator will build up the voltage if generator speed is above
critical speed
 1.No residual magnetism. The start of the build-up process
requires some residual magnetism in the magnetic circuit of the
generator.
 If there is little or no residual magnetism, because of inactivity
or jarring in shipment, no voltage will be generated that can
produce field current.
 The voltage generated due to residual magnetism is applied to the field.
 Current should flow in the field coils in such a direction as to produce lines
of flux in the same direction as the residual flux.
 If the field connections are reversed, the lines of flux produced by the
current flow will oppose the residual flux so that the generated voltage will
decrease rather than increase when the field circuit is dosed,
 In this instance it is necessary to reverse the field connections with respect
to the armature.
 Field circuit resistance too. high. A field circuit resistance
greater than critical value will prevent an appreciable build-up.
At no load, resistance greater than the critical may be caused
by the following:
 Open field circuit connection. The effects of an open circuit
are apparent. The field circuit resistance is much greater than
the critical value; hence generator will not build- up.
 A dirty commutator does not permit good contact between the
brushes and the commutator.
 This poor contact shows up as a high resistance to the flow of
current in the field circuit and produces the same effect as a
high field circuit resistance -.
 To overcome this difficulty, a separate source of
direct current is applied to the field for a short pedal,
of time and then removed.
 The magnetic field should now be sufficient to allow
voltage to build-up. This process of resestablishing of
flux is called field flashing
 Magnetic or Open Circuit Characteristic of Separately Excited
DC Generator
 Internal or Total Characteristic of Separately Excited DC
Generator
 External Characteristic of Separately Excited DC Generator
 This characteristic shows the relation between generated emf at no load (E0)
and the field current (If) at a given fixed speed.
 The O.C.C. curve is just the magnetization curve and it is practically similar for
all type of generators

 The data for O.C.C. curve is obtained by operating the generator at no load and
keeping a constant speed.
 Field current is gradually increased and the corresponding terminal voltage is
recorded.
 Now, from the emf equation of dc generator, we know that Eg = kɸ.
Hence, the generated emf should be directly proportional to field flux
(and hence, also directly proportional to the field current).
 However, even when the field current is zero, some amount of emf is
generated (represented by OA in the figure below).
 This initially induced emf is due to the fact that there exists some
residual magnetism in the field poles.
 Due to the residual magnetism, a small initial emf is induced in the
armature.
 This initially induced emf aids the existing residual flux, and
hence, increasing the overall field flux.
 This consequently increases the induced emf. Thus, O.C.C.
follows a straight line.
 However, as the flux density increases, the poles get saturated
and the ɸ becomes practically constant.
 Thus, even we increase the If further, ɸ remains constant and
hence, Eg also remains constant. Hence, the O.C.C. curve looks
like the B-H characteristic.
 An internal characteristic curve shows the relation between the
on-load generated emf (Eg) and the armature current (Ia).
 The on-load generated emf Eg is always less than E0 due to
the armature reaction
 Eg can be determined by subtracting the drop due to
demagnetizing effect of armature reaction from no-load
voltage E0. Therefore, internal characteristic curve lies below
the O.C.C. curve.
 An external characteristic curve shows the relation between terminal
voltage (V) and the load current (IL).
 Terminal voltage V is less than the generated emf Eg due to voltage drop in
the armature circuit.
 Therefore, external characteristic curve lies below the internal
characteristic curve.
 External characteristics are very important to determine the suitability of a
generator for a given purpose.
 Therefore, this type of characteristic is sometimes also called
as performance characteristic or load characteristic.
 If there is no armature reaction and armature voltage drop, the voltage will remain
constant for any load current.

 Thus, the straight line AB in above figure represents the no-load voltage vs. load current
IL.

 Due to the demagnetizing effect of armature reaction, the on-load generated emf is less
than the no-load voltage.

 The curve AC represents the on-load generated emf Eg vs. load current ILi.e. internal
characteristic (as Ia = IL for a separately excited dc generator).

 Also, the terminal voltage is lesser due to ohmic drop occurring in the armature and
brushes.

 The curve AD represents the terminal voltage vs. load current i.e. external characteristic
 To determine the internal and external load characteristics of a DC shunt
generator the machine is allowed to build up its voltage before applying
any external load.
 To build up voltage of a shunt generator, the generator is driven at the
rated speed by a prime mover.
 Initial voltage is induced due to residual magnetism in the field poles.
 The generator builds up its voltage as explained by the O.C.C. curve.
 When the generator has built up the voltage, it is gradually loaded with
resistive load and readings are taken at suitable intervals. Connection
arrangement is as shown in the figure below.
 Unlike, separately excited DC generator, here, IL≠Ia. For a
shunt generator, Ia=IL+If.
 Hence, the internal characteristic can be easily transmitted to
Eg vs. IL by subtracting the correct value of Iffrom Ia.
 The curve AB in above figure identical to open circuit characteristic (O.C.C.)
curve.
 This is because in DC series generators field winding is connected in series
with armature and load.
 Hence, here load current is similar to field current (i.e. IL=If). The curve OC
and OD represent internal and external characteristic respectively.
 In a DC series generator, terminal voltage increases with the load current. This
is because, as the load current increases, field current also increases.
 However, beyond a certain limit, terminal voltage starts decreasing with
increase in load. This is due to excessive demagnetizing effects of the armature
reaction.
 The above figure shows the external characteristics of DC
compound generators.
 If series winding amp-turns are adjusted so that, increase in
load current causes increase in terminal voltage then the
generator is called to be over compounded.
 The external characteristic for over compounded generator is
shown by the curve AB in above figure.
 If series winding amp-turns are adjusted so that, the terminal voltage
remains constant even the load current is increased, then the generator is
called to be flat compounded.
 The external characteristic for a flat compounded generator is shown by the
curve AC.
 If the series winding has lesser number of turns than that would be required
to be flat compounded, then the generator is called to be under
compounded.
 The external characteristics for an under compounded generator are shown
by the curve AD.