Electronic motor starter

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10778000-B2
Application number	US-201716072890-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 27, 2017
Priority date	Jan 28, 2016
Publication date	Sep 15, 2020
Grant date	Sep 15, 2020

Abstract

An electronic motor starter has a main switch configured as a semiconductor, forming a semiconductor contactor and having at least one semiconductor switch for switching a phase of a supply of a motor winding, a first connection of each semiconductor switch being connected to a corresponding first main current contact of the motor starter; an auxiliary switch configured as a semiconductor switch and connected between at least one pair of auxiliary contacts of the motor starter; a transducer for measuring currents connected between a second connection of each main semiconductor switch and a corresponding second main power contact of the motor starter; and a controller foe the main and auxiliary switches being powered via motor starter control contacts, for being fed transducer measurement signals, and being configured to control the main and/or auxiliary switch according to the supply via the control contacts and/or according to the transducer measurement signals.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An electronic motor starter comprising:
a main switch configured as a power semiconductor, which forms a semiconductor contactor and has at least one semiconductor switch for switching a phase of a main power supply of a motor winding, a first connection of each of the at least one semiconductor switch being connected to a corresponding first main current contact of the motor starter;
an auxiliary switch configured as a semiconductor switch and connected between at least one pair of auxiliary contacts of the motor starter;
an electronic transducer configured to measure currents of phases of the main power supply, which is connected between a second connection of each of the at least one semiconductor switch of the main switch and a corresponding second main power contact of the motor starter; and
an electronic controller for the main switch and the auxiliary switch, which is powered via control contacts of the motor starter, and to which measurement signals of the electronic transducer are fed, and which is configured to control the main switch and/or the auxiliary switch according to the main power supply via the control contacts and/or according to the measurement signals.

2. The motor starter according to claim 1 comprising a messager that is controlled by the electronic controller and is configured to optically and/or acoustically generate messages regarding a status of the motor starter.

3. The motor starter according to claim 1 comprising an electronic parameterization unit that is configured to specify at least one parameter for the electronic controller.

4. The motor starter according to claim 3 , wherein the electronic parameterization unit is configured to specify as a parameter for the electronic controller at least one of the following parameters: a motor nominal current; a class of inertia for an overload release of a power supply of an electric motor; and/or a behavior after an overload release, including an automatic reactivation or a manual reactivation.

5. The motor starter according to claim 1 , wherein the electronic transducer has current transducers and/or Hall sensors and/or measuring instruments configured to measure the currents of the phases of the main power supply.

6. The motor starter according to claim 1 , wherein the electronic controller is configured to adjust a rated voltage rate of the motor starter on the basis of a supply voltage applied at the control contacts.

7. The motor starter according to claim 1 , wherein the main switch has a plurality of semiconductor switches that are interconnected as reversing starters, the plurality of semiconductor switches comprising the at least one semiconductor switch.

8. The motor starter according to claim 1 , wherein the main switch is configured as a direct starter, having a semiconductor switch of the at least one semiconductor switch for at least one phase of the phases of the main power supply of the motor winding.

9. The motor starter according to claim 8 , wherein the main switch has one semiconductor switch of the at least one semiconductor switch for each phase of the main power supply of the motor winding.

10. The motor starter according to claim 1 comprising an interface configured to read out process data from the motor starter and to transmit to a control center and/or to receive data, including parameters for the electronic controller.

11. The motor starter according to claim 1 , wherein electronic components of the motor starter are arranged and wired jointly on a carrier element or on a plurality of carrier elements that are wired together.

12. The motor starter according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit is configured to control the main switch to soft start an electric motor and is configured to control the auxiliary switch to operate an auxiliary circuit to interrupt or close a signal line connected to the auxiliary contact pair.

13. The motor starter according to claim 1 configured to deactivate a main circuit and an auxiliary circuit without mechanical components.

14. The motor starter according to claim 13 , wherein the auxiliary switch is configured as a break contact or a make contact.

Assignees

• Eaton Intelligent Power Ltd
• Eaton Intellectual Power Ltd

Inventors

• Meid Wolfgang

Classifications

• H02P1/28

  by progressive increase of voltage applied to primary circuit of motor · CPC title

• H02H3/006 Primary

  Calibration or setting of parameters · CPC title

• H02H7/08

  for dynamo-electric motors · CPC title

• H02H7/0816 Primary

  concerning the starting sequence, e.g. limiting the number of starts per time unit, monitoring speed during starting · CPC title

• H02P1/16

  for starting dynamo-electric motors or dynamo-electric converters · CPC title