Lorinda Lakay Doorsamy

Wesley Doorsamy

 The use of Variable Speed Drives or VSDs are

becoming commonplace on conveyor drives.

VSDs provide increased operating freedom,

through speed control, and have inbuilt softstart capabilities the conveyor geared reducer.

This paper explores the effects of the VSD on

Induction motor controlled by a VSD

Flexible Input coupling

Geared Reducer

 The VSD commonly used on

conveyors are Variable Voltage Variable Frequency convertors. It controls the speed through frequency variation. While, the torque is controlled through voltage variation.

 A motor controlled by a VSD is de-rated for

maximum torque operation below 40Hz operation. operation to a minimum of 5Hz for continuous operation.

A torque limitation exists, which limits VSD

 The VSD operation is categorised into four quadrants

of operations.
Forward drivingbraking Forward drivingaccelerating

Reverse drivingaccelerating

Dynamic Braking

Reverse drivingbraking

 The VSD can gradually increase voltage and

frequency, ramping up the motor.

To decrease stopping times, dynamic braking

can be used to maintain a smooth deceleration.

Reduced Mechanical Wear

The VSD can limit the peak torque during startup, limiting the mean peak stress experienced in the reducer

The AGMA relationship for stress:

shows that for a 50% decrease in peak torque, there is a 50% decrease in bending stress and a 70% decrease in the contact stress.

Reduced Mechanical Wear

The reduction in
stress translates directly into improvements in life.

Fault ride-through capabilities

The fault ride-through capability is the ability
of the VSD to free-wheel the motor in the event of an electrical disturbance.

Once the event passes, the VSD will ramp the

motor up to full operating conditions.
after electrical trips.

This avoids the harsh effects of DOL start-ups

 While VSDs have many advantages, this paper

is aimed to encourage thinking about the disadvantages so that they can be mitigated.

Induced shaft failure

Rotating equipment are
often subject to both mechanical and electrical disturbances, which in this case is often seen as torque oscillations. Shaft failures are induced by the frequency and not the magnitude of these oscillations.

Induced shaft failure

Rotating equipment are often
subject to both mechanical and electrical disturbances, which in this case is often seen as torque oscillations. Shaft failures are induced by the frequency and not the magnitude of these oscillations. EVEN THE SMALLEST OSCILLATIONS, IF CLOSE TO THE SHAFT NATURAL FREQUENCY, ARE DANGEROUS!

Bearing failure
Bearing failure due to VSD use
occurs as a result of induced voltages transmitted from the motor shaft through the input coupling. oil film within the bearing cause pitting, fluting and ultimately failure.

These voltages break down the

Bearing failure
To prevent the voltages from
being transmitted to the bearings, it is recommended that an insulating coupling be used as a high-speed coupling. spider type or pin and bush type couplings.

Insulating bearings include

Lubrication failure
lubricated.

Conveyor geared reducers are generally splash

Splash lubrication is recommended for

tangential gear speeds of 4-15m/s.

The lubrication of the gear unit must be

considered for all operating speeds.

Lubrication failure

If the VSD is used for low speed operation, The use of troughs and oil ports must be

generally input speeds below 800rpm, the use of a shaft-driven oil pump is recommended. investigated to adequate feed oil supplied to the bearings.
Pump size 0,37kW 0,55kW Oil Flow [l/min] 9-14 18-22

Thermal failure

Most conveyor reducers are cooled through

convection and radiation. shaft driven fan.

The convection in generated through a input

Air flow is based on input shaft speed. At slow speed VSD operation, this speed may

be inadequate to cool the unit leading to over heating.

Thermal failure
Although the VSD does not
supply maximum load at slow speed operation, the heat generated is usually higher than that which the unit can dissipate through radiation alone. The AGMA defined heat transfer coefficient of a reducer is determined relative to airspeed over the unit, which is proportional to the motor speed.
Air speed Heat transfer over unit coefficient [m/s] [kW/(m2C)]

2,5 5,0
10,0 15,0

0,015 0,024
0,042 0,058

Thermal failure

It is important that gear units operate at

moderate temperatures.

The higher the operating temperature, the

shorter the life of the lubricating oil. 80C.

The optimal operating temperature range is 60-

 Lets consider a case study of a typical conveyor

reducer.
Nominal motor power Absorbed power Required ratio VSD operation 110kW @ 1480rpm 85% 12:1 5% 100% speed 100% load 20% 75% speed 100% load - 20% 50% speed 100% load - 20%

25% speed empty- 15% Mechanical service factor

Thermal service factor

1,5
1,0 @ 40C

 Unit selected on nominal operating

parameters:
Unit rating Service factor Unit ratio Unit thermal rating Input bevel ratio Second reduction gears 168kW @ 1450rpm 1,53 11,598:1 (3,35% variation) 84kW @ 40C 2,05:1 19 tooth pinion

42 tooth wheel 8 module

11Helix angle

 Looking at the thermal rating of the unit for all

operating conditions:
Percentage of Motor nominal speed Thermal rating of the Unit [kW] Absorbed Power of Motor [kW] Thermal Rating

100
75 50 25

84,0
60,8 35,2 17,9

76,5
56,2 37,5 18,8

It is recommended that either the unit be

upsized, or a secondary cooling system is used.

 If lubrication is considered:
1480 2,05 = = 326,60 42 19 8 = 42 = 342,29 cos 11 2 0,3423 5,85 = 326,60 = 60 2

 Considering the VSD operational conditions:

Percentage motor nominal speed
100 75 50 25

Wheel tangential speed [m/s]

5,85 4,39 2,93 1,46

Adequate Splash lubrication

Hence a shaft driven pump is required for VSD operation. This case study shows that thermal rating and lubrication
must be investigated for VSD operation.

 While VSD use can be beneficial and it can also

be detrimental is not properly investigated. the conveyor reducer.

The correct use of a VS can improve the life of While incorrect use can drastically reducer
reliability of the gear unit.

The negative effects of VSD on the gear unit

can, however, be mitigated as shown.

 It is up to the conveyor manufacturer and end

user to specify all operating points when requesting a gear unit.

It is the responsibility of the gear

manufacturers to ensure compliant operation at all specified operating points.