“A bunch of things are coming together.” That's how V Sukumar, a senior applications manager for Fairchild Semiconductor, begins a discussion of trends in motor control for the white-goods market.

Single- and three-phase alternating current (AC) motor speed can be controlled by controlling the frequency of the voltage coming to it. Motor speed has a lot to do with the capacity of refrigeration ...

Speed, torque, and horsepower are three inter-related parameters in motor control. The speed of a motor, measured in revolutions per minute (rpm), defines a motor's ability to spin at a rate per unit ...

The way we control the speed of fan motors or pump motors has tremendously changed in the past two decades with the introduction of variable-frequency drives (VFDs), aka variable-frequency controllers ...

The AC induction motor (ACIM) is the most popular motor used in consumer and industrial applications. The motor is highly reliable, as its simple design has no brushes that could wear out, and it can ...

For the PDF version of this article, click here. More than 80% of the motors bought each year continue to be low-cost single-phase ac motors. Because these motors are not very efficient when ...

Utility power plant generators are usually designed for a power factor (PF) of .8 to .9. If demand-side PF is lower than the designed PF, the generator current will rise above the equipment's rated ...

Choosing the right motor and VFD type depends on a variety of factors, however, it is necessary to first look at how the characteristics of a motor change when the speed is reduced —Sponsored article ...

Note: This specialization requires purchase of a hardware kit in order to apply your knowledge and skill with real world tools. The hardware will be used to complete the lab exercises across the four ...

Any electrical motor, from an idealized viewpoint, consists of two sets of magnets—one set stationary, one set free to move—placed in special geometric relation to one another. For most practical ...

Advanced materials reduce drive size by 15% compared to previous generations. The new drive family features a common user interface and options from 0.5 to 700 hp. A quickstart menu incorporates macro ...