Introduction

Abstract

Following the discovery of the phenomenon of electromagnetic induction in the mid-nineteenth century, the design and construction of electrical machines developed very rapidly. By the beginning of the twentieth century, industry was using machines which were efficient, mechanically strong, and beautifully made—indeed many of these machines are still in excellent working condition. For about twenty years from 1900, much research and development went into optimising cost and reducing loss. Design techniques were largely tailored to this end. Here one must refer to the early voluminous work of Miles Walker, The Specification and Design of Dynamo-electric Machinery (Longman Green, London, 1915).