This is the Plasmasonic, a solid state Tesla coil (DRSSTC) capable of being modulated to music.
Two of these will form the basis of the electronic musical show.
“Continue reading” for conceptual details and technical details.
Design and manufacture is by Dan McCauley of Eastern Voltage Research. These will form the basis of the Dr Electric Show Tesla coils. They are very tidy modular units of high quality and design.
The advantages of electronic Tesla Coils is that there are no heavy transformers or variacs, hence they are easily transportable. Performance for size is also greater.
Here is the advertising video which is, well, advertising, but it shows them in action.
The following technical specifications are based on prototype systems are listed here:
- Primary Coil: 0.25″ DIA copper tubing
- Secondary Coil: 36 AWG magnet wire on phenolic coilform (prototype)
- Primary Capacitor: 0.28 uF @ 8 kV (prototype)
- Topload: 18″ x 4.5″ seamless aluminum toroid
- Power Section: CM300 IGBT half-bridge module
- Maximum recorded arc length (140 VAC input): 6 feet (prototype)
- Maximum recorded arc length (115 VAC input): 5 feet (prototype)
- Cooling: Two (2) 115 VAC muffin fans
- Input voltage: 115 VAC, 50/60 Hz
- Input Current: TBC
- Max. Input Power: TBC
- Dimensions: 15″ x 15″ x 36″
- Weight: 40 lbs
Advanced Tesla Coil Controller
This controller provides the smarts necessary to drive the high power IGBT based half-bridge circuit as well as the fault processing circuitry necessary to ensure safe, reliable operation of the system. It includes a peak current limiting circuit, a gate drive voltage UVLO (under voltage lock-out) circuit, as well as sequencing circuitry which works with the Power Distribution module to limit inrush current on application of power to the DC Power Supply / Half-Bridge Assembly. it also provides communication with the Power Distribution module and during certain fault conditions will remove power from the DC Power Supply and also initiate a crowbar shutdown during major fault conditions. This fault processing is employed to maintain high reliability of the system. It also provides an optically isolated communications link to the power distribution board to control sequencing, inrush, and fault handling.
Primary MMC Capacitor Assembly
This board contains the MMC capacitors which are part of the primary resonant circuit of the Tesla Coil. The prototype utilizes (8) 0.56 uF, 2 kV capacitors in a series / parallel arrangement which creates an effective capacitance of 0.28 uF @ 8 kV. The capacitors are mounted to a 0.124″ thick Printed Circuit Board (PCB) which is comprised of 6 oz. copper for maximum current carrying capacity. A high power muffin fan is also mounted to the assembly to provide cooling for the capacitors.
Handheld MIDI Controller
The handheld controller provides the drive signal to the Advanced Tesla Coil Controller necessary to operate the Plasmasonic. It is connected via fiber optic cable which is necessary for high voltage isolation. The handheld controller includes both a polyphonic MIDI interface which can converter MIDI signals from either a keyboard, guitar, computer, or other compatible instrument, and can create up to a two-note polyphonic playback of music with the Tesla Coil. There is also a standard interrupter mode which allows the user to vary both pulsewidth and pulse repetition frequency (PRF) during operation. The controller can be customized by the end user, and also provides a number of hardware implemented fault protection schemes including pulsewidth limiting.
DC Power Supply / Half-Bridge Assembly
This assembly is comprised both of a voltage-doubler rectifier power supply and a half-bridge switching circuit using a CM300 1200 V, 300 A IGBT module. This circuit takes the incoming 115 VAC and creates a bus voltage of nearly 350 VDC which is used by the IGBT based half-bridge to provide the high current switching necessary to drive the primary circuit of the Tesla Coil and generate the high voltages necessary to produce the output arcs one sees. Not shown on the prototype, there will be safety bleeders / balancing resistors placed across each capacitor, and the capacitor bank will also be placed in parallel which a much lower resistance bleeder, controlled via a relay, which will discharge the capacitors in the event of a fault or when power is removed from the system. The prototype photo above shows CM300,1200 V IGBT modules, however, in the end item assembly, CM300, 600 V IGBT modules will be used. A 0.124″ thick laminated bus bar utilizing 6 oz. copper connects the capacitors to the CM300 IGBT module.
Stepdown transformer 1500 W isolated
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Photo Date: Sept 2013