variable frequency drive

How a Variable Frequency Drive Works

Knowledge / March 9, 2022 / Leave a Comment

Using a variable frequency drive (VFD) can save you on energy costs and consumption. VFDs can also tighten processes, reduce maintenance, increase production, and prolong the life of your equipment. What Is a VFD? A VFD or variable frequency drive is an electronic device used to control an AC induction motor or synchronous motor. A VFD controls the torque, speed, and direction of the motor, smoothly starting and accelerating the motor to the desired speed at a controlled acceleration rate.  Deceleration is also controlled, and braking is available as an option. VFDs allow you to use a single motor for …

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VFD Troubleshooting and Preventive Maintenance

Instructions, Products / March 9, 2022 / Leave a Comment

Modern VFDs are designed to be reliable and the internal failures are led to minimum. Still problems outside of the drive contribute to a large number of drive failures and are a major cause of nuisance tripping. Fast troubleshooting and failure preventing are crucial for the modern manufacturing. Single variable frequency drive failure may cause a complete manufacturing system to stop producing which will cause losses to the business. Implementing redundant systems in critical operations assures the operation of the process if one unit fails.Having skilled maintenance technicians, trained to troubleshoot the system as fast as possible and minimize the down …

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Single Phase to Three Phase Conversion

Instructions, Knowledge / June 5, 2024 / Leave a Comment

What is phase conversion? A phase converter is a device that produces three-phase electrical power from a single-phase source, allowing the operation of three-phase equipment at a site that only has single-phase electrical service. Why would I need phase conversion? A large number of applications and equipment once considered “industrial” require three-phase power. The general use of three-phase equipment is increasing on farms and ranches, in home wood and metal shops, or in other locations where utility-provided 3-phase isn’t readily available. Even when 3-phase is available nearby, the costs of bringing in new service, adding additional transformers and wire can …

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How to Run a 3 Phase Motor on Single Phase Power

Instructions / March 9, 2022 / Leave a Comment

Motors usually come in two different types, single or three phase. The number of phases on the motor is determined by how the motor is wound. It is easy to find out how many phases your motor has by looking at one of two factors. First, you can check the motor nameplate data which is usually located on a paper or metal label attached to the side of the motor. Second you can simply look at the number of electrical leads coming out of the motor. If your motor has three black leads and a green lead then it is …

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How to Properly Operate a Three-Phase Motor Using Single-Phase Power?

Instructions / March 9, 2022 / Leave a Comment

There are several methods to operating a three-phase motor using single-phase power to make what would be an otherwise expensive and arduous process a little easier. Three-phase power involves three symmetrical sine waves that are 120 electrical degrees out of phase with one another (See Figure 1). One method of converting single-phase power that worked well for decades was connecting two phases to the incoming 220 V single-phase power and create a “phantom leg” for the third phase by using capacitors to force an offset between the main and auxiliary windings. In this case, the offset is 90 electrical degrees. …

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Can a VFD Convert Single-Phase Power to Three-Phase?

Instructions, Knowledge / March 9, 2022 / Leave a Comment

Using VFDs To Convert Single-Phase To Three-Phase Can a Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) convert my single-phase power supply to run a three-phase motor? Many who call us are looking at the ability to combine phase conversion and speed control in one device and like the potential to save money, hassle, and space. Like most things, however, there is not a simple answer to this question. Single-phase AC power is common in many residential and agricultural settings, although it can also be seen in some industrial locations. It typically will only have two phases (L1 & L2) and possibly a neutral. …

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VFDs for Single Phase Applications

Instructions / March 7, 2022 / Leave a Comment

VFDs and Single Phase AC Motors As a 3 phase converter supplier providing technical support, we had a lot of farm and agricultural customers. Their applications ranged from running fans, pumps, elevators, agitators, augers, conveyors, etc. The farm installations often didn’t have access to three-phase power and had to make do with single-phase 230V. People often wanted to run the motors at reduced speeds so they asked, “Is it possible to add a VFD to my single phase motor?” In general, single-phase motors cannot be run with VFDs.  However, it is possible to input a single-phase to a VFD and output …

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Digital Inverters vs. Rotary Phase Converters

Comparison / March 9, 2022 / Leave a Comment

There is a lot of discussion about the different technologies available to create 3 phase power from single phase.  Click here for information on economical VSD’s carried by ATO. ATO ROTARY PHASE CONVERTERS While rotary converters have been around a very long time, they still have their place and fulfill a role that VSD’s simply can’t. While some selling VSD’s claim a long list of faults in ‘old fashioned rotary converters’, the fact is that most of these issues are an exaggeration of the truth. Phase Converters made by us use modern electronic and microprocessor based technology in conjunction with …

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When Would You Choose a Variable Frequency Drive?

Instructions, Knowledge / March 9, 2022 / Leave a Comment

A Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) is a great choice if you have a sigle motor that either needs 3 phase power or to be speed controlled. It is a cost effective choice for phase conversion if the motor will be controlled directly from the VFD rather than from buttons or a computer on your machine. Examples where a VFD is great option include a stand-alone pump or compressor, a saw that has simple on and off controlls, or a fan. It is not suitable to power both a motor and it’s on-board computer system. It is also not ideal when …

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How to Convert to 3 Phase Power?

Comparison, Instructions, Knowledge / March 9, 2022 / Leave a Comment

My machine needs 3 phase power We get calls daily from people who purchased a machine — it’s a really awesome machine — but it needs 3 phase power and their shop only has single phase. Most of the time, they didn’t realize they needed 3 phase until they went to hook up the machine and, well, couldn’t. They need 3 phase, but they don’t really know much about it. Before jumping in to buy the first option, they want to know a bit more about how to convert 1 phase to 3 phase supply make sure that what they …

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