Proper condition monitoring of critical equipment can act as an early warning system against impending problems. However, condition monitoring is not used everywhere, often because of the expense of installing proper sensors and cabling, especially if the monitoring system needs to retrofi tted to existing equipment.
The note describes how data from ABB's ACS variable‑speed drives can be harvested and processed for condition monitoring without additional sensors or hardware. It outlines the types of signals available (speed, frequency, torque, flux, current, power, temperature, etc.) and how they are stored in the drive’s memory table.
It then details signal‑processing techniques such as anti‑aliasing, spectral analysis, unfolding of aliased spectra, and principal component analysis (PCA) to reveal diagnostic information like motor defects, power‑quality issues, and process instabilities. The document also discusses the benefits of using existing drive data for predictive maintenance and provides examples from rolling‑mill applications.
DriveMonitor™ reads the contents of a drive’s hardware data logger, automatically collects and analyzes drive signals and parameters.