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Glad to hear the motor is working. It makes quite a sound starting up.

Good luck getting it to work with the VFD.
 
We have ignition ! Congrats.

 

How many days till lift-off?
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Mickeyd:
Not sure. Got a VFD problem. I really wanted this machine to operate on 110V, however I can either get a VFD the operates with the same voltage, or get one of the better ones that operate on 220V 1 phase. Either way it's going to cost several hundred dollars. The GE AF-300 mini VFD that I used for the Blue Whirlpool is really a cheap made VFD, as what goes to the motor from it is not clean, and you really hear over time how nasty the signal is. That is the drawback of using a device to which the input is 110V 1 phase and the output is 220V 3 phase.

qualin:
What you heard was the rotary phase converter and a 1.5 HP 460V 3 phase motor starting up on 230V 3 phase. Later in the video you hear the motor in the GE combo.
 
Strange place to find a rotary phase convertor-One of my freinds that works out here at the transmitter site-he has retired now-has a machine shop in his garage-his lathe and milling machine need three phase power.Of all places he found a phase convertor----one of the pawn shops here in town.The shop operator didn't understand what it was-he had it marked as a motor-Bobby was able to buy it for only a few dollars!Now he can run his lathe and mill!
 
Case off - terminals
The capacitors in these devices can store a VERY nasty surprise. Be careful when operating with the case off.

supremewhirlpol++11-22-2011-06-50-33.jpg
 
It's been sitting in a warehouse forever in a day->new old stock. It's ABB brand. ABB is known for their switching gear, especially in medium and high voltage. Their VFDs are very good too, similar to AB, and Yaskawa in quality. Model ACS-141-1K1-1U: The 140 series, 1 phase, 1K1:.55KW, heatsink version, 200V range. I went with the much more expensive ABB 220V version due to the motor being run several hours and due to the fact that VFD modules that power and control 3 phase motors from 110V product produce a nastier, more noisy output than the 220V 1 phase and 3 phase models. 110V models don't last as long, are not as efficient, and can eventually cause issues with the the insulation of the motor, due to the much more noisy output. This noisy output has lots of unpleasant things like voltage and current transients that are amplified due to the switching frequency of the IGBT's, the capacitances created by the switching, and the fact that one is trying to power a device that requires a higher voltage, and 3 phases, all from 110V 1 phase.

supremewhirlpol++11-22-2011-07-18-32.jpg
 
Kinda hard finding a place to mount the VFD in the GE combo. You want to mount it in a place that does not have the opportunity to get wet, or very warm. The top right front looks good for now.

supremewhirlpol++11-22-2011-07-23-13.jpg
 
Time to wire and test the VFD. This test is just to ensure that the VFD works. I've temporarily rugged up the belt and pulley system. I'm using one of the original idler pulleys for this test. It will be replaced with a much better one later. Usually the VFD has a test program or has factory settings for basic functionality. I wire the mains in, and the motor out.

supremewhirlpol++11-22-2011-07-33-8.jpg
 
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