Foreword Electrical Drives play a vital role in engineering and industry both in this country and abroad. It is therefore essential that students of electrical engineering have a proper grounding in this subject. Conventional courses in Electrical Machines, however, are not adequate for the purpose as clec- tric motors do not by themselves constitute an electrical drive and their characteristics have to be studied keeping in mind the types of control schemes (such as those using thyristor circuits) and the dynamics of the load. On the other hand, courses on ‘Control Systems’, ‘Industrial Elec- tronics’ and ‘Power Electronics’ do not devote sufficient attention to elect- tical motor characteristics and mechanical load demands. It is thus necessary to have a course on the fundamentals of electrical drives, suitable for study by undergraduate students of electrical engineering. This book A First Course on Electrical Drives—is designed to meet the need for a text- book in English for sucha course. The writing of the book has been suppor- ted by the Curriculum Development Cell of the Indian Institute of Techno- logy, Bombay. The book gives a comprehensive introduction to the dynamics of drives, the characteristics, starting and braking of de and ac motors, as also their loading conditions, ratings and heating. There are separate chapters devoted to solid state controlled drives and industrial applications. The MKS sys- tem of units has been used throughout and Indian Standards Specifications have been adhered to. In addition to worked examples, most chapters include a number of problems designed to test the student’s grasp of the subject. The author, Dr. S.K. Pillai, has over twenty years experience of teach- ing and research in electrical engineering, and he has developed the material of this book over the past ten years while conducting lecture, tutorial and laboratory classes for final year undergraduate students of Electrical Eagi- neering at the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay. The style and organization of the work reflects the discerning insight of a teacher into the requirements of a student and each topic is developed step by step in a clear and cogent manner. I am confident, therefore, that this book will be welcomed by students and teachers alike. April 16, 1982 R.E. BEDFORD Dy. Director Indian Institute of Technology Bombay