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Tw eet
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Sep 1, 2006
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Ask any system designer to name the top three reasons for specifying a variable-frequency drive (VFD),
and you probably won't hear a lot of maintenance cost reduction responses in return. Instead, you'll likely
get answers ranging from range of precision and/or control to ease of installation to energy reduction the
latter of which tops everyone's list. That's because using a VFD to control the speed
Ask any system designer to name the top three reasons for
specifying a variable-frequency drive (VFD), and you
probably won't hear a lot of maintenance cost reduction
responses in return. Instead, you'll likely get answers
ranging from range of precision and/or control to ease
of installation to energy reduction the latter of which
tops everyone's list. That's because using a VFD to control
the speed of a centrifugal fan or pump at 80% of rated
speed, for example, can cut energy costs in half. This dramatic energy savings is one
reason designers like to use VFDs in today's commercial and residential HVAC systems.
So where does the savings come from? Doesn't adding another piece of equipment
increase the costs of maintenance by providing more equipment to maintain? Not
necessarily. In fact, converting a process from fixed speed to variable speed can
significantly reduce wear and tear on mechanical systems by reducing start/stop cycles.
VFDs can also eliminate the need for such active components as vanes, dampers, and
valves. Ultimately, you have less equipment to maintain, and longer runtime between
failures.
Simply slapping a drive into an existing system, however, isn't going to cut it. To get the
desired cost savings, first you need to understand the features offered by the particular
drive you have or are planning to buy. Then, you need to think about how to implement
those features in a way that will reduce system maintenance and overall operating costs.
Smoothing acceleration. When a load transitions from steady-state speed to
accelerating or decelerating, the transition is usually instantaneous. However, the mass of
the load doesn't instantly follow. This difference causes a jerking action that puts
considerable stress on mechanical components.
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VFDs can control acceleration and deceleration along the torque/speed curve to eliminate
the jerkiness and thus reduce the stress on components. This method has long been
recognized as an aid in the handling of very light conveyor loads (e.g., a bottling line),
extending the life of mechanical components in any application that has fast transitions.
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Simply preventing an overload trip isn't enough. If done incorrectly, the deceleration and
subsequent reacceleration can place extreme mechanical stress on the application. And, of
course, this creates a potential for causing premature equipment failure with the
attendant downtime and repair costs. This is why a VFD needs a flying start mode.
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In flying start mode, the drive responds to a start command by identifying the motor
speed and then beginning its output synchronized in frequency, amplitude, and phase to
the spinning motor. The motor will then be reconnected at its existing speed, and be
smoothly accelerated to the commanded frequency. This process eliminates overcurrent
tripping and significantly reduces the time for the motor to reach its desired frequency.
Since the motor is picked up smoothly at its rotating speed and ramped to the proper
speed, little or no mechanical stress occurs.
Skip frequency. All rotating machinery from motorcycles to industrial fans and
pumps have mechanical resonance points. These are the frequency points at which
vibration can rapidly damage that specific equipment. If you're aware of these points and
avoid them by either accelerating beyond or decelerating below them so the motor
doesn't run at those points you can prevent the rapid damage. VFDs with skip features
allow you to do exactly that. In fact, most drives offer multiple skip frequency parameters
to mitigate different resonance points.
More
The skip frequencies do not affect normal acceleration and deceleration. The drive output
will ramp through the band, uninterrupted. When the operator issues a command to
operate continuously inside the established band; however, the drive will alter the output
to remain outside the band until a new command is issued.
If you know the mechanical resonant frequencies of your equipment, you can program
the drives to skip through operation at those frequencies. That is, your equipment will
run at those frequencies only momentarily, rather than continuously just long enough
to arrive at a safe frequency of operation. How can you determine what these resonant
frequencies are? Y ou may find this information in the equipment manual. A more
common method is simply observing the equipment for noticeable changes in heat (for
example, at bearings), noise, or motion when the operating frequency changes.
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Monitoring the system. While drives don't possess the extensive monitoring capabilities
of devices designed specifically for predictive maintenance or monitoring, they do monitor
motor current and speed. Y ou can put that information out on your industrial network. A
distributed control system or PLC can provide reminders, warnings, and alarms to
maintenance personnel.
Using just motor current and speed, a control system can determine a load problem is
occurring. It can then call a designated cell phone for intervention before failure occurs.
Such a system can also call alternate numbers and take backup actions, which may
include more notifications or corrective action.
Overloads and current limits. Almost all drives have a built-in electronic motor
thermal overload. When a motor runs outside its safe operating limits, the overload can
reduce the output current (or shut off the motor) to prevent thermal damage or outright
failure.
Overload software uses an algorithm incorporating motor current, speed, and time as
inputs to model the temperature of the motor. This may also be done with thermister
feedback directly from devices buried in the motor windings, using actual temperature
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Re late d Article s
The Basics of Variable-Frequency Drives
Speed Control of Motors
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