The main causes of failure of engines used in industrial automation and how to avoid them.
Power supply failure.
Motors and all components that make simpler and more complex industrial automation systems require high quality, reliable power supply. All kinds of disturbances, transient states or momentary power outages cause interruptions and distortions of the ideal voltage waveform. And while such an event can cause a slight flickering of light in office fluorescent lamps, it is able to seriously damage the elements of the production line and stop the entire automated process. The more so because industrial plants are increasingly moving towards full digitization and automation at a fast and rapid pace.
For this reason, advanced industrial automation systems require a constant supply of high quality power supply voltage.
Research by the Electric Power Research Institute, Palo Alto, California has shown that power supply quality problems cost the US economy around $ 15 billion a year, and 80% of all problems arising from the quality of electricity are generated on the energy side. Problems grow exponentially when additional requirements imposed by subsequent, newer, more modern and more sensitive automation systems, motors, sensors and microprocessor systems overlap the parameters of electricity quality.
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Piscataway, NJ and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), Geneva, Switzerland (iec.ch), conducted extensive research and developed standards for the quality of electricity for industrial applications. These are:
- IEEE 1100-2005, Recommended practices for power supply and grounding. Electronic equipment.
- IEEE 519-2014, Practices and requirements recommended for harmonic control in electricity systems
- IEC 62586-1 and 2 ED. 2.0 B: 2017, Measurement of electricity quality in supply networks, part 1 and 2
The first step to solve the problem is to understand that the quality of the supply voltage in the plants is not the responsibility of the electricity supplier or the manufacturer of new equipment with higher requirements for voltage quality, but the electricity consumer. Potential problems with the quality of electricity should be taken into account at the design phase of the industrial line or system to which new systems are added. It is necessary to test the quality of the supply voltage in terms of compliance with the system requirements and adjust the power supply to meet growing needs. It is also necessary to constantly monitor the quality of the supply voltage. Such actions allow to avoid many failures in which it may be too late for any remedial actions. The more so because inadequate power supply can lead to irretrievable loss of new equipment.
