> So many crazy machines were built before there was either a need or an effective way to standardize anything power related.
One of my favorite, somewhat related, such machinery was those multi-pole "generators" that were used to create carrier waves for radio transmission between the thin era of spark-gaps and vacuum tube oscillators.
Called an Alexanderson alternator for those curious. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexanderson_alternator
Re:Before 1948, LA's Power Grid Ran at 50hz
by mirimir on Saturday July 08, 2017 @10:57PM
(#14728142)
> Got a waterwheel doing 1000RPM and you need a big saw attached to it? Your saw will be running at 1000RPM (~16Hz).
Most "waterwheels" turned far more slowly than 1000 rpm. More like a few hundred at most. They used pulleys and belts, and eventually CVTs.
Edit: http://www.alternative-energy-tutorials.com/hydro-energy/wat...
So many crazy machines were built before there was either a need or an effective way to standardize anything power related. Keep in mind that many kinds of manipulations of electricity are easy and cheap now, but that certainly wasn't the case when people started converting from steam/water to electricity!