08/03/2015

HowaControlSystemWorkswithinanAutomaticTransferSwitch
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HowaControlSystemWorkswithinan
AutomaticTransferSwitch

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Ordinarily,normalpowerisprovidedbyautilitycompanyandconnectedtoonsiteapplications.Whentheprimary

FuelType

powersourcehasceasedtowork,powerfromaneworusedgenerator can be either manually or automatically

transferredtotheonsiteapplicationviaatransferswitch.Atransferswitchesprimaryjobistoredistributepower
fromagridtoabackupsourceofpower.Thisarticlewillexplainhowthecontrolpaneldirectsanautomatictransfer
switch.
Thecontrolpanelsystemofatransferswitchiswhatmakestheunitautomaticin
nature.Manualtransferswitchesareoperatedbyonsitepersonnelandareusedin

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situations where the load is not of an emergency nature requiring immediate

Caterpillar

restorationofthepowersupply.Withanautomatictransferswitch,powerfailures

Cummins

aredetectedimmediatelyandthetransitionfromutilitypowertogeneratorpoweris
seamless.Thecontrolpanelsjobistodetectapowerfailureandinitiateprocedures
to start the new or used generators engine. Once the new or used generator

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Kohler
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reachesthecorrectvoltageandfrequency(fortheenduseapplication)thecontrol
system signals the switch to transfer from the normal source of power to the
generator.Theengineeringbehindanautomatictransferswitchisquitecomplexas
time delays and other components play a pivotal role in obtaining instantaneous
backuppower.
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One of the main functions of the control panel is the detection of a drop in voltage or a complete failure of the

normalsourceofpower.Ingeneral,allphasesaremonitored.Failurepointsaredefinedasadropinvoltagebelow
apresetsettingonanyphase.Voltageandfrequencyinformationisprovidedbythesensorsinthecontrolpanelto
determineloadavailability.Theminimalvoltageandfrequencymustbeattainedbeforetransferoftheloadtothe
neworusedgenerator.Thisistoensurethegeneratorsethastheabilitytoaccepttheload.

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TimeDelays
Automatic Transfer Switches come with a wide variety of time delay systems. Time delay functionality is a

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necessaryfeatureforanautomatictransferswitchbecauseoffalsealarmstriggerswiththenormalpowersource
fromautilitycompany.Themostprevalenttimedelayoverridesanymomentarynormaloutagesthatwouldcause
afalseenginestartandthustransfertheload.Thistimedelayisanywherebetween06seconds,withonesecond

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beingthemostcommonsetting.Thedelaymustbeshortenoughtoconnectthebackuppowersourceallthewhile
meeting city, state and federal codes. James Naas, Generator Sales
ManageratDieselServiceandSupply,statedthatmanycompanieswillalso
buyanuninterruptiblepowersupplybatterytocurbanytimedelays.
Oncenormalpowerisrestored,anothertimedelayisneededtoensurethe
loadisstableenoughtoswitchfrombackuppower.Typically,thisdelayis
between zero to thirty minutes. The control panel should automatically
bypassthistimedelayinreturningtothenormalsourceiftheneworusedgeneratorfailsandthenormalsourceof
powerisworkingproperlyagain.
Thethirdmostcommontimedelayinvolvesacooldownperiodfortheengine.Duringthistimeperiodthecontrols
runtheengineunloadedbeforeshuttingitoff.
Inmostinstancesitisusuallydesirablefortheloadtobetransferredtothebackupgeneratorassoonastheproper
voltage and frequency are reached. However, in some situations end users want to sequence different transfer
switchesontothebackupgenerator.Whenthisapplicationisrequiredthecontrolsshouldincludeanadditionaltime
delay which can be adjusted on each transfer switch so that the loads can be transferred to the new or used
generatorinwhateverorderdesired.

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08/03/2015

HowaControlSystemWorkswithinanAutomaticTransferSwitch
EngineControlContactPoint
The controls will include a contact point that signals
thenenginecontrolstostartwhennormalpowerfrom
the grid fails. In most modern designs this contact is
usually a dry contact which closes upon failure of
normal power. When the contact closes it completes
the circuit from the cranking batteries to the engine
start control systems. Conversely, this contact point
opens to shut down the new or used generator.
Regular testing should be done on the contact point to ensure there is no failure of the circuit. In some transfer
switchestherearebackupcontactpointsinduplicatecircuitstoensurethereisnoonesinglepointoffailure.

ControlSystemTesting
Periodic testing should be a regular part of maintaining an emergency power system. All control systems should
includeamanuallyoperatedswitchtosimulatenormalsourcepowerfailure.Thecontrolsdescribedinthisarticle
are considered the standard for operating an automatic transfer switch. The guidelines described should be the
minimum standard that end users should consider before purchasing an automatic transfer switch. There are a
numberofspecificcontrolsystemsavailabletohandleavarietyofapplications.Itisbesttospeakwithanelectrical
contractortodeterminewhichcontrolsystemsuitsyourspecificneeds.
Referenced: Daugherty, Herbert. 'Automatic Transfer Switches' p. 190,200 OnSite Power Generation 4th Edition.
BocaRaton,Florida:ElectricalGeneratingSystemsAssociation,2006.
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