Siemens Achieves New Record with The World's Largest High Speed Variable Frequency Drive
Siemens Energy & Automation, Inc. has announced that its Siemens Robicon Perfect Harmony drives have reached a technical milestone with the introduction of an 8 MW Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) that operates with an output frequency of 500 Hz making it the world’s largest high speed VFD.

This milestone is just the latest for the series of high-speed Siemens Robicon Perfect Harmony drives. While the basic VFD topologies have been limited to output frequencies in the 120 to 200 Hz range, Siemens has already manufactured and installed drives that operate at frequencies between 315 and 400 Hz.

The Siemens Robicon Perfect Harmony power-cell based multilevel arrangement provides a unique topology that allows operation up to 500 Hz, regardless of the VFD power rating. Tests on the VFD control were set to operate the motor in encoderless vector control with 920 Hz IGBT switching frequency, resulting in an effective switching frequency of 9.2 kHz and a sample frequency of 9.2 kHz. This test drive demonstrated very high quality waveform to the motor with low harmonic distortion.

An integrated consistency check establishes the validity of the configuration and reduces the possibility of errors even before the network has been installed. A reporting function quickly creates offers, provides mounting instructions for installation personnel and documents the system for acceptance testing and troubleshooting.

This latest VFD will be used to drive permanent-magnetic motors, such as those found in natural gas processing and transportation applications that require high-speed compression. Siemens is one of the few companies to design a VFD that can operate with these physically smaller, more efficient permanent-magnetic motors.

For more information visit www.siemens.com
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Safety Integrated Drive Technology - Craig Nelson, Product Manager, Siemens

Medium Voltage Motor Drives Market Grows Rapidly as Energy Prices Soar
According to the latest statistics from IMS Research, the global medium voltage motor drives market experienced unprecedented growth in 2007. Record high energy prices combined with product replacement and emerging medium voltage applications have contributed to increasing the market by nearly 34 percent over 2006 levels, to exceed $1.5 billion. It is forecast to continue growing by an average of 21 percent per year in terms of revenues to surpass $4 billion by 2012.

The Chinese medium voltage motor drives market, which benefitted from various energy savings initiatives undertaken by the Chinese government in recent years and the continued expansion of Chinese industry, was reported to be the fastest growing. The Chinese market is expected to surpass the Western European market to become the largest in the world by 2012. The markets in Central and Eastern Europe, Russia and India are also expected to grow rapidly as a result of ongoing infrastructure expansion in these regions. The US medium voltage drives market is expected to grow at a slower pace over the forecast period as the slowdown in the US economy leads to reduced capital spending, lowering the demand for costly medium voltage drives.

The metals, oil and natural gas, and power generation industry sectors continued to lead the market in medium voltage motor drive utilization. In addition, rapidly growing segments such as the mining and marine sectors provide opportunity for further growth. According to IMS Research analyst Alex Chausovsky, “Rapidly increasing energy costs, coupled with record profits at oil and natural gas and mining companies driven by skyrocketing commodity prices, will continue to provide ample opportunities for medium voltage drive suppliers.”

For more information visit www.imsresearch.com
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Variable Speed Drives & Motion Control: Global Market Update - Alex Chausovsky

Yaskawa’s New J1000 Drive Takes the Stage
Yaskawa Electric America, Inc., has introduced their new J1000 AC drive.
“The new J1000 was designed with three main principles in mind consisting of quality, reduced cost of ownership and maintainability,” Yaskawa MicroDrive product manager Todd Ammerman said. “All of these allow for the customer to get the most out of their products at a cost-effective price.”

The quality of design stems partially from a reduction in the number of parts, therefore resulting in an increased Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF) rate of 28 years. The craftsmanship of design also increases the lifetime of components such as fans, capacitors and thermal optimization.

The reduced cost of ownership is achieved by the compact design, side-by-side mounting and the ability to operate a larger motor with the normal duty rating. It also provides overexcitation braking, which in turn reduces stop times without the need for external braking resistors. Even faster stopping can occur, thanks to a standard internal braking transistor.

As far as maintainability is concerned, both hardware and software peripherals such as DriveWizardPlus and the USB Copy Unit (Y-Stick) may be used. This will allow for file storage that can be used to program multiple drives quickly or for future back-up use. Maintainability is also provided by lifetime monitors that continuously monitor the health of the key components.

The J1000 is available from 1/8 to 7.5 HP. The voltage classes are 200 to 240 V single-phase, 200 to 240 V three-phase, and 380 to 480 V three-phase, all of which are 50/60 Hz. The J1000 shares a common programming language with its V1000 cousin as well as future released products, ensuring quick set-up modes, easy programming, and reduced start-up times.

The J1000 is well suited for major applications of industries such as material handling, food and beverage, fan and pump control, packaging, agricultural machines and industrial washers. It includes CE, UL and cUL global certification approval as well as keeping the environment safe by being RoHS compliant.

For more information visit www.yaskawa.com
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Present State & Futuristic Vision of Motor Drive Technology, Mahesh Swamy