Motors, Drives, Thermostats, And More
Motors
A.O. Smith (Milwaukee) introduced two brushless DC motors for the appliance industry that the company said will consume less than half the energy of conventional, C-frame subfractional horsepower motors. The company said several manufacturers have already expressed interest in the new motors.The company also announced that it has more than doubled the size of its product engineering operations in the last year, to meet the needs of its heating and air conditioning customers.
Emerson Climate Technologies (St. Louis) introduced Emerson Motors’ PerfectSpeed™ residential motor. The motor’s design allows it to adjust operation to meet conditions that are set by other components in home heating and air conditioning, such as the thermostat.
The motor comes in two configurations: a fan motor for air conditioning units and a blower motor with electric control for furnaces. Using an advanced control system with electronically commutated motor technology, the blower motor with electric controls automatically adjusts its speed to match the humidity and temperature needs, and provides “soft” start-and-stop operation, the company said.
Monics Co., Ltd. (Seoul, Korea), displayed its brushless permanent magnet (BPM) motors and fans for the “digital, intelligent era” — the successful commercialization of all-phase-excited brushless DC motors. The company said it has applied the BPM to a wide range of applications in the air conditioning industry.
TECO-Westinghouse Motor Co. (Round Rock, Texas) featured its rolled steel ODP, EPACT motors for HVAC applications, rated for AC, three-phase, 60-Hz, 208-203/460 V; also rated for 50 Hz, 190/380 V.
The motors offer multiple mountings and an optional C-face conversion kit, plus a 90-degree rotatable, oversized, and gasketed conduit box.
Drives
ABB (New Berlin, Wis.) introduced new harmonic control equipment, 12- and 18-pulse input bridge units, expanding its ACH DriveIT low-voltage 400 variable-speed AC drive family. The new drives are available in 10 through 700 hp at 200-480 VAC, in plenum-rated NEMA 1 or 12 enclosures; most units are built to contain both the transformers and drives. When required, the company said the transformers are available in separate enclosures.The ACH 400 drives have a built-in impedance rating/feature — at 3 percent. For applications where lower levels of harmonic distortion are a requirement, the company offers Universal Harmonic Filter (UHF) from Mirus, 12- or 18-pulse rectifiers, or an active rectifier.
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Jeff Miller, HVAC sales manager for ABB Automation Technologies, Drives, Motors and Machines, commented that “Commercial buildings include an ever-growing number of voltage-sensitive electronic devices — from PCs to sophisticated control systems — that make minimization of harmonics a growing concern for ensuring users’ comfort.”
Danfoss Graham (Milwaukee) introduced the VLT® BACLink™ portal, which provides connectivity of VLT 2800 and 6000 drive families to BACnet networks. This stand-alone gateway features a modular design, and ensures compatibility to all native BACnet systems, the company said, and systems using BACnet interfaces.
Each portal can support up to 2,000 objects, the company said. This means the portal can typically control a mix of one to 10 2800s and 6000s when using the most common integration points.
TECO-Westinghouse also displayed the MA7200 sensorless vector AC inverter, which offers precise speed and torque control, the company said. It can be operated in its sensorless vector or in V/Hz mode to meet the application.
Its graphical LCD operator features easily read parameters and status in plain English text on a two-line by 20-character lighted LCD. It also offers flexible input/output (I/O) options and built-in PID control.
Yaskawa Electric (New Berlin, Wis.) introduced the E7, a “Generation 7” AC drive dedicated to BAS applications. The company said the E7 provides size and cost reductions “while achieving a step change in performance and quality.”
The product is designed specifically for HVAC applications, such as air handlers, cooling towers, and pumps. It is supported by the company’s re-sources, including worldwide customer support, application, and engineering teams. The E7 is also available with LonWorks® communication. Virtual training is readily available.
Sidebar: Manufacturers Showcase Thermostats For A Variety Of Applications
Braeburn Systems LLC (Geneva, Ill.) displayed its Model 5000 digital heat/cool, 5-2 programmable thermostat with space for customization by contractors on the interchangeable subbase.The programming features weekday/ weekend programming, battery power with relay output, preprogramming for quick installation, compressor short-cycle protection — and it meets California Title 24 and Energy Star® guidelines.
The company’s Model 3200 digital, multistage, nonprogrammable heat pump thermostat also offers a large display with a bright backlight for visibility, short-cycle protection, and an adjustable first- and second-stage temperature differential.
Kav-Kor Automatic Controls (Kibbutz Bet Alfa, Israel) showed the Alfa 240 room thermostat with cool/off/heat modes, fan speed selector, economy in heat mode, fuse protection, and restart delay protection.
White-Rodgers, part of the Emerson Comfort Group (St. Louis), introduced its Comfort-Set thermostat, the core component of the ComfortPlus system.
The thermostat eliminates noticeable temperature swings and maintains temperature to within 1 degree of its setting, the company said.
Publication date: 03/03/2003
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