Introduction To The

Drives
 Electric power drives
Definition: An electric drive is a form of
machine equipment designed to convert
electrical energy into mechanical energy and
provide electrical control of the processes.
 Need for Variable speed drives:
• In general, variable speed drives are used to:
o Match the speed of a drive to the process requirements
o Match the torque of a drive to the process requirements
o Save energy and improve efficiency
• There are many and diverse reasons for using variable speed drives.
Some applications, such as paper making machines, cannot run
without them while others, such as centrifugal pumps, can benefit
from energy savings.
• Modern electrical VSDs can be used to accurately maintain the
speed of a driven machine to within ±0.1%, independent of load,
compared to the speed regulation possible with a conventional
fixed speed squirrel cage induction motor, where the speed can
vary by as much as 3% from no load to full load.
• It is obvious that the speed of a motorcar must continuously be controlled
by the driver (the operator) to match the traffic conditions on the road
(the process). In a city, it is necessary to obey speed limits, avoid collisions
and to start, accelerate, decelerate and stop when required. On the open
road, the main objective is to get to a destination safely in the shortest
time without exceeding the speed limit. The two main controls that are
used to control the speed are the accelerator, which controls the driving
torque, and the brake, which adjusts the load torque.
• Another important issue for most drivers is the cost of fuel or the cost of
energy consumption. The speed is controlled via the accelerator that
controls the fuel input to the engine.
 Fundamental Principles associated
with variable speed drive applications.
• Forward direction: Forward direction refers to motion in one particular
direction, which is chosen by the user or designer as being the forward
direction. The Forward direction is designated as being positive (+ve).
• Reverse direction: Reverse direction refers to motion in the opposite
direction. The Reverse direction is designated as being negative (–ve).
• Force :Motion is the result of applying one or more forces to an object.
Motion takes place in the direction in which the resultant force is applied.
So force is a combination of both magnitude and direction. A Force can be
+ve or –ve depending on the direction in which it is applied.
• Linear velocity: linear velocity is the measure of the linear distance that a
moving object covers in a unit of time. It is the result of a linear force
being applied to the object. In SI units, this is usually measured in meters
per second (m/sec). Kilometers per hour (km/hr) is also a common unit of
measurement. For motion in the forward direction, velocity is designated
Positive (+ve). For motion in the reverse direction, velocity is designated
Negative (–ve).
• Angular velocity (ω) or rotational speed (n): Angular velocity is the result
of the application of torque and is the angular rotation that a moving
object covers in a unit of time. In SI units, this is usually measured in
radians per second (rad/sec) or revolutions per second (rev/sec).
• Torque: Torque is the product of the tangential force F, at the
circumference of the wheel, and the radius r to the center of the wheel. In
SI units, torque is measured in Newton-meters (Nm). A torque can be +ve
or –ve depending on the direction in which it is applied. A torque is said to
be +ve if it is applied in the forward direction of rotation and –ve if it is
applied in the reverse direction of rotation.
• Using the motorcar as an example, Figure illustrates the relationship
between direction, force, torque, linear speed and rotational speed. The
petrol engine develops rotational torque and transfers this via the
transmission and axles to the driving wheels, which convert torque (T) into
a tangential force (F). No horizontal motion would take place unless a
resultant force is exerted horizontally along the surface of the road to
propel the vehicle in the forward direction. The higher the magnitude of
this force, the faster the car accelerates. In this example, the motion is
designated as being forward, so torque, speed, acceleration are all +ve.
• Linear acceleration (a): Linear acceleration is the rate of change of linear
velocity, usually in m/sec².
− Linear acceleration is the increase in velocity in either direction
− Linear deceleration or braking is the decrease in velocity in either
direction
• Rotational acceleration (a): Rotational acceleration is the rate of change of
rotational velocity, usually in rad/sec².
− Rotational acceleration is the increase in velocity in either direction
− Rotational deceleration or Braking is the decrease in velocity in either
direction
In the example in Figure, a motorcar sets off from standstill and
accelerates in the forward direction up to a velocity of 90 km/hr (25
m/sec) in a period of 10 sec. In variable speed drive applications, this
acceleration time is often called the ramp-up time. After traveling at 90
km/hr for a while, the brakes are applied and the car decelerates down to
a velocity of 60 km/hr (16.7 m/sec) in 5 sec. In variable speed drive
applications, this deceleration time is often called the ramp-down time.
• .

From the example outlined in Figure, the acceleration time (ramp-up time) to
20 km/hr in the reverse direction is 5 secs. The braking period (ramp-down
time) back to standstill is 2 sec.
• Power: Power is the rate at which work is being done by a machine. In SI units, it is
measured in watts. In rotating machines, power can be calculated as the product
of torque and speed. Consequently, when a rotating machine such as a motor car
is at standstill, the output power is zero. This does not mean that input power is
zero! Even at standstill with the engine running, there are a number of power
losses that manifest themselves as heat energy.

• Energy: Energy is the product of power and time and represents the rate at which
work is done over a period of time. In SI units it is usually measured as
kiloWatthours (kWh). In the example of the motorcar, the fuel consumed over a
period of time represents the energy consumed.
energy= power * time
• Moment of Inertia: Moment of inertia is that property of a rotating object
that resists change in rotational speed, either acceleration or deceleration.
In SI units, moment of inertia is measured in kgm². This means that, to
accelerate a rotating object from speed n1 (rev/min) to speed n2 (rev/min),
an acceleration torque TA (Nm) must be provided by the prime mover in
addition to the mechanical load torque. The time t (sec) required to
change from one speed to another will depend on the moment of inertia J
(kgm²) of the rotating system, comprising both the drive and the
mechanical load. The acceleration torque will be:
From the above power, torque and energy formulae, there are four possible
combinations of acceleration/braking in either the forward/reverse directions that
can be applied to this type of linear motion. Therefore, the following conclusions
can be drawn:
• 1st QUADRANT, torque is +ve and speed is +ve. Power is positive in the sense
that energy is transferred from the prime mover (engine) to the mechanical load
(wheels). This is the case of the machine driving in the forward direction.
• 2nd QUADRANT, torque is –ve and speed is +ve. Power is negative in the sense
that energy is transferred from the wheels back to the prime mover (engine). In
the case of the motor car, this returned energy is wasted as heat. In some types of
electrical drives this energy can be transferred back into the power supply system,
called regenerative braking. This is the case of the machine braking in the forward
direction.
• 3rd QUADRANT, torque is –ve and speed is –ve. Power is positive in the sense
that energy is transferred from the prime mover (engine) to the mechanical load
(wheels). This is the case of the machine driving in the reverse direction.
• 4th QUADRANT, If torque is +ve and speed is –ve. Power is negative in the sense
that energy is transferred from the wheels back to the prime mover (engine). As
above, in some types of electrical drives this power can be transferred back into
the power supply system, called regenerative braking. This is the case of the
machine braking in the reverse direction.
 Torque- Speed curves for variable
speed drives
• In most variable speed drive applications torque, power, and speed
are the most important parameters.
• Curves, which plot torque against speed on a graph, are often used
to illustrate the performance of the VSD.
• The speed variable is usually plotted along one axis and the torque
variable along the other axis.
• Sometimes, power is also plotted along the same axis as the torque.
• Since energy consumption is directly proportional to power, energy
depends on the product of torque and speed. For example, in a
motorcar, depressing the accelerator produces more torque that
provides acceleration and results in more speed, but more energy is
required and more fuel is consumed.
• Again using the motorcar as an example of a variable speed drive,
torque–speed curves can be used to compare two alternative methods of
speed control and to illustrate the differences in energy consumption
between the two strategies:
i. Speed controlled by using drive control: adjusting the torque of the
prime mover. In practice, this is done by adjusting the fuel supplied to
the engine, using the accelerator for control, without using the brake.
This is analogous to using an electric variable speed drive to control the
flow of water through a centrifugal pump.
ii. Speed controlled by using load control: adjusting the overall torque of
the load. In practice, this could be done by keeping a fixed accelerator
setting and using the brakes for speed control. This is analogous to
controlling the water flow through a centrifugal pump by throttling the
fluid upstream of the pump to increase the head.
Using the motorcar as an example, the two solid curves in Figure represent
the drive torque output of the engine over the speed range for two fuel
control conditions:
• High fuel position – accelerator full down
• Lower fuel position – accelerator partially down
The two dashed curves in the Figure represent the load torque changes over
the speed range for two mechanical load conditions. The mechanical load
is mainly due to the wind resistance and road friction, with the restraining
torque of the brakes added.
• Wind & friction plus brake ON – high load torque.
• Wind & friction plus brake OFF – low load torque
As an example, assume that a motorcar is traveling on an open road
at a stable speed with the brake off and accelerator partially depressed.
The main load is the wind resistance and road friction.
• The engine torque curve and load torque curve cross at point A, to give a
stable speed of 110 km/h. When the car enters the city limits, the driver
needs to reduce speed to be within the 60 km/h speed limit. This can be
achieved in one of the two ways listed above:
• Fuel input is reduced, speed decreases along the load-torque curve A–B. As
the speed falls, the load torque reduces mainly due to the reduction of
wind resistance. A new stable speed of 60 km/h is reached at a new
intersection of the load–torque curve and the engine–torque curve at
point B.
• The brake is applied with a fixed fuel input setting, speed decreases along
the drive-torque curve A–C due to the increase in the load torque. A new
stable speed is reached when the drive–torque curve intersects with the
steeper load– torque curve at 60 km/h.
• what is the difference in energy consumption between the two different
strategies at the new stable speed of 60 km/h? The drive speed control
method is represented by Point B and the brake speed control method is
represented by Point C. From below formula, the differences in energy
consumption between points B and C are: