Ghatal Govt.

Polytechnic Industrial Drives: Unit-V

Unit: V
Techniques of Motor Control
❖ Magnetic control of ac motor:
▪ Operation of Control circuit & Power circuits of reversing the direction of rotation of
induction motor with Interlocking systems:
If a three-phase motor is to be driven in only one direction, and upon its initial energization it
is found to be rotating opposite to what is desired, all that is needed is to interchange any two
of the three-line leads feeding the motor. This can be done at the motor starter or at the motor
itself.

Fig-1: Three-phase motor rotation

Once two of the lines have been switched, the direction of the magnetic fields created in the
motor will now cause the shaft to spin in the opposite direction. This is known as reversing the
phase rotation.
Reversing Magnetic Starters
If a motor is to be driven in two directions, then it will require a Forward / Reverse motor
starter, which has two three-pole horsepower-rated contactors rather than just one as in the
conventional starter. Each of the two different motor starters powers the motor with a different
phase rotation.
When the forward contactor is energized, power contacts connect line L1 to T1, line L2 to T2
and line L3 to T3 at the motor. When the reverse contactor is energized, the power contacts
connect line L1 to T3, line L2 to T2 and line L3 to T1 at the motor.
Since the two motor starters control only one motor, only one set of overload relay heaters need
be used. The return paths for both starter coils connect in series with the normally closed
contacts of the overload relay so that if an overload occurs in either direction, the starter coils
will be de-energized and the motor will come to a stop.
Note that the two contactors must be electrically and mechanically interlocked so that they
cannot be energized simultaneously. If both starter coils became energized simultaneously, a
short circuit will occur with potentially hazardous results.
Forward / reverse starters will come with two sets of normally open auxiliary contacts to act as
holding contacts in each direction. They will also come with two sets of normally closed
auxiliary contacts to act as electrical interlocks.

Prepared by Sanjoy Pondit, Lecturer, Dept. of Electrical Engineering, Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic
Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic Industrial Drives: Unit-V

T1
T2
T3

Fig. 2: Elementary diagram of Control circuit & Power circuits of reversing the direction of
rotation of induction motor with Interlocking systems
Mechanical Interlock
Forward / reverse starters must never close their power contacts simultaneously. The best way
to provide this is through electrical interlocks, which prevent the one coil from being energized
if the other is engaged. A failure in electrical interlocking can cause both coils to be energized
at the same time.
If both become energized, some form of mechanical interlock is required to prevent both
armatures from pulling in. Represented on schematic diagrams as a dotted line between the two
coils, a mechanical interlock is a physical barrier that is pushed into the path of one coil’s
armature by the movement of the adjacent coil. This means that even if both coils are energized,
only one armature will be able to pull in fully. The coil that is prevented from pulling in will
make a terrible chattering sound as it tries to complete the magnetic circuit. Mechanical
interlocks should be relied on as a last resort for protection.
Electrical Interlocks
Electrical interlocking is accomplished by installing the normally closed contact of one
direction’s coil in series with the opposite direction’s coil, and vice versa. This ensures that
when the forward coil is energized, pushing the reverse pushbutton will not energize the reverse
coil. The same situation is in effect when the reverse coil is energized. In both situations the

Prepared by Sanjoy Pondit, Lecturer, Dept. of Electrical Engineering, Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic
Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic Industrial Drives: Unit-V

stop button will need to be pressed to de-energize the running coil and return all its auxiliary
contacts back to their original state. Then the opposite direction coil can be engaged.

Reversing Control Circuit

Fig. 3: Forward/Reverse control circuit

When designing the control schematic for forward / reverse circuits, we start with the
standard three-wire circuit, add a second normally open pushbutton, and add a holding contact
branch for the second coil. A single stop button is sufficient to disable the motor in both
directions.
The two coils are mechanically interlocked and the normally closed instantaneous contacts
provide electrical interlocking.
If the forward pushbutton is pressed, as long as the reverse coil is not engaged, current will find
a path through the normally closed reverse contact and energize the forward coil, causing
all contacts associated with that coil to change their state. The 2-3 holding contact will close
and the normally closed electrical interlock will open. If the reverse pushbutton is pressed while
the forward coil is engaged, current will not be able to get past the forward normally closed
contact, and nothing will happen.
In order to send the motor in the reverse direction, the forward coil must be de-energized. To
do this, the stop button must be pressed, then the reverse pushbutton will be able to energize
the reverse coil.
Regardless of the direction the motor is spinning in, this circuit will operate as a standard three-
wire circuit providing low-voltage protection (LVP) until either the stop button is pressed, or
an overload occurs.
Pushbutton Interlocks
Pushbutton interlocking requires the use of four-contact momentary push buttons with each
pushbutton having a set of normally open and normally closed contacts.
To achieve pushbutton interlocking, simply wire the normally closed contacts of one
pushbutton in series with the normally open contacts of the other pushbutton, and the holding
contacts will be connected in parallel with the appropriate button’s normally open contacts.
This circuit still requires the installation of electrical interlocks.
Pushbutton interlocking doesn’t require the motor coils to be disengaged before reversing
direction because the normally closed forward contacts are in series with the normally open
reverse contacts, and vice-versa. Pushing one button simultaneously disengages one coil while
starting the other. This sudden reversal (plugging) can be hard on the motor, but if quick
reversal of the motor is required, this circuit can be a solution.
In other words, when the forward button in fig. 2 is pressed, coil F is energized and the normally
open (NO) contact F closes to hold in the forward contactor. Because the normally closed (NC)
contacts are used in the forward and reverse push-button units, there is no need to press the
stop button before changing the direction of rotation. If the reverse button is pressed while the

Prepared by Sanjoy Pondit, Lecturer, Dept. of Electrical Engineering, Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic
Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic Industrial Drives: Unit-V

motor is running in the forward direction, the forward control circuit's de-energized and the
reverse contactor is energized and held closed.
▪ Operation of Control circuit & Power circuits of Simple ON-OFF motor control
circuit:

Control circuit & Power circuits of Simple ON-OFF motor control circuit

▪ Operation of Control circuit & Power circuits of Automatic Sequential control of

motor:
Sequence control forces motors to start or stop in a pre-determined order. One motor cannot
start until some other motor is in operation. Sequence control is used by such machines as
hydraulic presses that must have a high-pressure pump operating before it can be used, or by
some air conditioning systems that require that the blower be in operation before the
compressor starts.
Circuits that permit the automatic starting of motors in sequence are common. There are a
number of methods that can be employed to determine when the next motor should start. Some
circuits sense motor current.
When the current of a motor drops to a predetermined level, it will permit the next motor to
start. Other circuits sense the speed of one motor before permitting the next one to start. One
of the most common methods is time delay. The circuit shown in Ill. 4 will permit three motors
to start in sequence. Motor 1 will start immediately when the start button is pressed. Motor 2
will start five seconds after motor 1 starts, and motor 3 will start five seconds after motor 2
starts.
Timer coil TR1 is connected in parallel with 1M starter coil. Since they are connected in
parallel, they will energize at the same time. After a delay of 5 seconds, TR1 contact will close
and energize coils 2M and TR2. Motor 2 will start immediately, but timed contact TR2 will

Prepared by Sanjoy Pondit, Lecturer, Dept. of Electrical Engineering, Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic
Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic Industrial Drives: Unit-V

delay closing for 5 seconds. After the delay period, starter coil 3M will energize and start motor
3. When the STOP button is pushed, all motors will stop at virtually the same time.

▪ Operation of Control circuit & Power circuits of DOL starter:

A direct online starter consists of two buttons, a GREEN button for starting and a RED for
stopping purpose of the motor. The DOL starter comprises an MCCB or circuit breaker,
contactor and an overload relay for protection. These two buttons, i.e. Green and Red or start
and stop buttons control the contacts.
To start the motor, we close the contact by pushing the Green Button, and the full line voltage
appears to the motor. A contactor can be of 3 poles or 4-poles. Below given contactor is of 4-
pole type.
It contains three NO (normally open) contacts that connect the motor to supply lines, and the
fourth contact is “hold on contact” (auxiliary contact) which energizes the contactor coil after
the start button is released.
If any fault occurs, the auxiliary coil gets de-energized, and hence the starter disconnects the
motor from supply mains.
DOL Starter Working Principle:
The working principle of a DOL starter begins with the connection to the 3-phase main with
the motor. The control circuit is connected to any two phases and energized from them only.
When we press the start button, the current flows through the contactor coil (magnetizing coil)
and control circuit also.

Prepared by Sanjoy Pondit, Lecturer, Dept. of Electrical Engineering, Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic
Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic Industrial Drives: Unit-V

The current energises the contactor coil and leads to close the contacts, and hence 3-phase
supply becomes available to the motor. The control circuit for a DOL Starter is shown below.
If we press the stop button, the current through the contact becomes discontinued, hence supply
to the motor will not be available, and the similar thing will happen when the overload relay
operates. Since the supply of motor breaks, the machine will come to rest.
The contactor coil (Magnetizing Coil) gets supply even though we release start button because
when we release start button, it will get supply from the primary contacts as illustrated in the
diagram of the Direct Online Starter.

▪ Operation of Control circuit & Power circuits of Automatic Star-Delta starter:

Operation & Working of Automatic Star Delta Starter:
From L1 The phase current flows to thermal overload contact through fuse, then OFF push
button, On push button Interlocking contact 2, and then C3. This way, the circuit is completed,
as a result;
1. Contactor coil C3 and timer coil (I1) is energized at once and the motor winding then
connected in Star. When C3 is energized, its auxiliary open links will be closed and vice versa
(i.e. close links would be open). Thus C1 Contactor is also energized and Three Phase Supply
will reach to the motor. Since winding is connected in Star, hence each phase will get √3 times
less than the line voltage i.e. 230V. Hence Motor starts safely.
2. The close contact of C3 in the Delta line opens because of which there would be no
chance of activation of contactor 2 (C2) .
3. After leaving the push button, Timer coil and coil 3 will receive a supply through Timer
contact (Ia) , Holding contact 3 and the close contact 2 of C2.
4. When Contactor 1 (C1) is energized, then the two open contact in the line of C1 and
C2 will be closed.
5. For the specific time (generally 5-10 seconds) in which the motor will be connected in
star, after that the Timer contact (Ia) will be open (We may change by rotating the timer knob
to adjust the time again) and as a result;
Contactor 3 (C3) will be off, because of which the open link of C3 will be close (which is in
the line of C2) thus C2 will also energize. Similarly, When C3 off, then star connection of
winding will also open. And C2 will be closed. Therefore, the motor winding will be connected

Prepared by Sanjoy Pondit, Lecturer, Dept. of Electrical Engineering, Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic
Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic Industrial Drives: Unit-V

in Delta. In addition, Contact 2 (which is in the line C3) will open, by which, there would not
be any chance of activation of coil 3 (C3).
Since the motor is connected in Delta now, therefore, each phase of the motor will receive full
line voltage (400V) and the motor will start to run in full motion.

Star Delta starter Power Circuit Diagram

1a
1a

Star Delta starter with Control Diagram

Prepared by Sanjoy Pondit, Lecturer, Dept. of Electrical Engineering, Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic
Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic Industrial Drives: Unit-V

Concept of Phase locked loop in dc motor speed control using block diagram:
Phase Locked Loop Control(PLL):
A PI controller ideally should provide perfect speed regulation. However, due to imperfections
in sensing and control circuits, the closed-loop schemes described earlier can at best achieve a
speed regulation of 0.2%. The Phase Locked Loop Control (PLL) can achieve a speed
regulation as low as 0.002% which can be useful in conveyers for material handling, paper and
textile mills, and computer peripherals.
The Phase Locked Loop Control are available as inexpensive integrated circuits. Their circuit
is shown in Fig. 1(a). Two pulse trains reference pulse train of frequency f * and the feedback
pulse train of frequency f are compared in a phase detector. Output of the phase detector
produces a pulse-width modulated output Vc. Pulse-width of Vc depends on the phase
difference between the two input pulse trains and polarity depends on the sign of phase
difference (i.e., lag or load) between them.
The output of the phase detector is filtered by the loop filter to obtain a dc signal and applied
as control voltage to a voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO); the output of which is the feedback
signal f. Because of the closed-loop, VCO output frequency changes in a direction that reduces
the phase difference. When steady state is reached, f becomes exactly equal to f* and the loop
is said to have locked.
Control voltage required by VCO to produce f equal to f* comes from the phase difference
between the two input signals. If now f* is altered, f will follow the change and control voltage
required by VCO will be obtained by the adjustment of phase difference between the two input
signals.

Fig 1:
An electrical drive employing Phase Locked Loop Control is shown in Fig. 1(b). The VCO is
replaced by converter, motor and speed encoder. Output of the loop-filter forms the control
signal for the converter. It alters the converter operation such that the motor speed adjusts to
make the frequency of speed encoder output signal f equal to the frequency of reference signal
f*. By changing f* the motor speed can be changed.
Excellent speed regulation is the main feature of this drive. However, it has two important
disadvantages: transient response is slow and it has a low-speed limit below which it becomes
unstable.

Prepared by Sanjoy Pondit, Lecturer, Dept. of Electrical Engineering, Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic
Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic Industrial Drives: Unit-V

AC/DC motor drive using Microcomputer block diagram:

AC/DC motor drive using Microcontroller block diagram:

Prepared by Sanjoy Pondit, Lecturer, Dept. of Electrical Engineering, Ghatal Govt. Polytechnic