Smart Operation Point: Mastering power peaks in electrical machines and plants – without overdimensioning

Jürgen Dlugosch, Baumüller Nürnberg GmbH

Read min.

Baumüller Smart Value
Get more out of your drive technology with IoT: Baumüller Smart Value is all about the added value that smart drive technology gives mechanical engineers and machine operators. Baumüller Smart Value enhances the scope of our servo drives: It takes existing data, such as power, current, torque, speed and position, and provides users with important additional information (e.g. machine operating status) or decisions are made directly in the drive to prevent machine failures. The same can be said of the associated design software, which ensures that the motor / controller combination is optimally dimensioned for the respective application and the controller is parameterized. In addition, the design can be immediately verified and optimized on the digital twin using simulation technology.

Avoiding overdimensioning by maximum utilization of the electric drives

The problem

The need to provide power peaks in electrical machines (e.g. for shredders or presses) can cause overdimensioning in the drive design. That causes unnecessary costs and can be avoided. The actual output power, which can be achieved with a servo-controller, depends on the switching power of the installed IGBTs. This switching power of the IGBTs depends on various factors: Output current, output frequency, temperature rise, on-time.

IGBT

IGBT or Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistors, are power semiconductors, which are now found in virtually every industrial application. The IGBT is responsible for the fastest, and thus low-loss, switching of electrical currents. The power loss occurring at the IGBTs and the associated temperature rise is inversely proportional to the basic frequency. A pulse width modulated signal (PWM) is used here.

The objective

Avoiding overdimensioning by maximum utilization of the electric drives.

The solution

Short-term high loading of electric drives, in which a high torque is required at low speeds, leads to thermal loading. This stress has a negative effect on the life of IGBTs and thus the devices. Larger components are therefore often chosen to avoid premature failure, but this leads to higher production costs. It doesn't have to be like this. With the implementation of the Baumüller dynamic temperature model, the capacity utilization and thus the thermal load of the servo-controller can be recorded. The output frequency of the power module can then be reduced online in real time. This enables short-term higher output power of the devices without any negative effect on their life.

Additional benefits can be achieved by using this effect in reverse: The PWM frequency can be increased during idle running of the machine; this reduces the noise generated by the motor, caused by electromagnetic effects.

The benefits

  • Drive can be dimensioned smaller
  • Or: Productivity of the machine increases
  • Reserves for short-term power peaks are possible (e.g. in shredders, presses)
  • Noise impact due to the machine is reduced
  • High torque at lower speed can be achieved - resulting in less component wear

Proceed to our Baumüller servo drives.

Do you have any questions?

Jürgen Dlugosch
Senior Product Manager I Baumüller Nürnberg GmbH

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