Pit & Quarry, October 2017

Load imbalance and or disturbances Foundation looseness Bearing faults Whether traditional or more innovative methods are employed the same operating parameters must be captured to provide useful signals to maintenance personnel These include Operating temperature What is the baseline versus manufacturer rebuilder specifications Is there a trend Are application demands changing impacting operating temperature Has the motor been relocated to an application different from that which it was originally selected Simplistic measurements of the motors temperature such as the infamous calibrated hand should be avoided for obvious reasons Not only is this practice unsafe but its terribly inaccurate Temperature of the windings and bearings is the No 1 clue as to a motors health as most other anomalies manifest themselves as motor heating Vibration Vibration levels outside specification can provide useful clues as to irregularities within and external to a motor from defects in material or workmanship to misalignment or an inappropriate mounting arrangement with inadequate support structure Vibration is also used to detect bearing faults long before bearings actually fail By tracking vibration over time many mechanical faults can be detected well in advance before they become catastrophic failures Sound level Excessive sound levels can be traced to electrical or mechanical issues Mechanically induced sound is most often another symptom of vibration levels while electrical noise can be attributed to issues within the motor or power supply Good systems can discern the difference Voltage Measurement of motor voltage and equally important the balance of voltage between each of the three phases is a critical piece of data used to determine motor health Current Because the motors output torque is directly related to input current measuring this important parameter helps you understand whether the motor is operating within its specified limits Measuring and plotting this data over time provides useful clues as to whether anything in the motors operation or within the application has changed which could signal imminent failure With the use of motor current signature analysis even more detailed data such as failed windings or a broken rotor bar can be gleaned from just the motors current TEXT ALERTS Today more than ever data from numerous sources is available This can aid in improving operations performance and reliability These continuous data streams exceed human capability to effectively analyze interpret and act on this information Available IIoT based systems run the spectrum from relatively simple motor sensors which monitor vibration temperature current and voltage to GPS based remote monitoring equipment capable of transmitting operating conditions and trends anywhere in the world More sophisticated systems offer predictive and adaptive functionality to sense trouble and command the system to reduce loading while maintenance personnel are dispatched to investigate the situation Imagine the downtime you can prevent when your monitoring system automatically sends you an email or text message alerting you to an equipment failure before it actually fails Imagine no more because the days when you can do all that are here P Q Dan Phillips is the director of PTS lifecycle services at Regal Beloit America Inc Theresa Smigura is innovative development engineer in R D and IIoT at the company and Rick Munz is Regal Beloits product marketing manager of general industries commercial and industrial systems www regalbeloit com AGGREGATE SYSTEMS pitandquarry com October 2017 PIT QUARRY 35