Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering

Faculty of Engineering
University of Sri Jayewardenepura
Robotics, Vision, and Automation Laboratory

Course Industrial Automation and System Design

Course Code EE3204
Practical Work Hard Wired Control System using Push Buttons, Relays, Timer Relays,
and Contactors
Duration 3h
Outcomes By the end of this practical work, a student should be able to
• Grasp the basic concepts of a hard-wired control system
• Understand the standard notations and ratings of push buttons, relays,
timer relays and contactors
• Understand the connections and working principle of push buttons,
relays, timer relays and contactors
• Design a simple hard wired control system using push buttons, relays,
timer relays and contactors

I. Preliminary Reading
1. Push Button Switches
The push button switch is an electrical appliance that can be manually set and generally reset
automatically. It is usually used to issue start or stop instructions in a circuit to control the on
and off, of electrical coil currents such as electromagnetic starters, contactors, and relays.

2. Control Relay / Auxiliary Contactor

A control relay consists of at least two contacts and an excitation coil. These contacts may be
normally open (NO) or normally closed (NC). These contacts are closed or opened by exciting

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the coil. The rated coil voltage can be either AC or DC (Ex: 24VDC, 230VAC). These relays
are used for switching of control circuits and cannot be used for power switching with relatively
higher ampacity. It can be used for switching small lights, sirens, indication lamps, etc.

3. Timer Relay
A Timer Relay is a combination of an electromechanical output relay and a control circuit. The
contacts will open or close, before or after a pre-selected, timed interval. Most common type
of timer relays are,
• On-delay (Pick-up delay) timer relays
• Off-delay (Drop-out delay) timer relays

4. Contactors
A contactor is an electrical device which is used for switching an electrical circuit on or off. It
is considered to be a special type of relay. However, the basic difference between the relay and
contactor is that the contactor is used in applications with higher current carrying capacity,
whereas the relay is used for lower current applications. Contactors can be field mounted easily
and are compact in size. There are mainly two types of contacts in an electrical contactor,
1. Main Contacts or Power Contacts
It is the main contact mechanism in an electrical contactor which used to connect the load to
the source. The main contacts or power contacts in a contactor are designed to carry high
current and high voltage. The number of power contacts in a contactor depends upon its Pole
rating means in a 3-pole contactor there are three main contacts whereas in a 4-pole contactor
there are four main contacts. Main or power contacts are NO (Normally Open) contacts means

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they will make contact only when the magnetic coil of the contactor is energized. All the
electrical contactors have the main or power contacts but some of them may not have auxiliary
contacts.
2. Auxiliary Contacts
Auxiliary contacts also called helping contacts which used for control, indication, alarm, and
feedback circuits. Generally, in a contactor both NO (Normally Open) and NC (Normally
Closed) contacts available.

5. Designations of the Electrical Equipment

Every piece of electrical equipment and its components is clearly identified by a combination
of letters numbers in the circuit diagrams.
The designations of the electrical equipment should be taken from the following standards:
• DIN EN 61346-2 (2000-12)
• IEC 61346-2 (2000)
• DIN EN 61346-1 (1997-01)
• IEC 61346-1 (1996)
• DIN 6779-1 (1995-07)
• DIN 6779-2 (1995-07)
In the following table you will find a list of the currently used code letters and their former
equivalents with an example of the electrical device.

Code letter old Example of an electrical device Code letter new

F fuses (fine, HH, signal fuse) F
G frequency converters T
G generators G
H optical and acoustic indicators P
H signal lamp P
K auxiliary relay K
K auxiliary contactor K
K semiconductor contactor T

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 K power contactor Q
K timing relay K
L choke coils R
N isolating amplifier, reverser amplifier T
Q load disconnector Q
Q circuit breaker for protection Q
Q motor circuit breaker Q
Q star-delta switch Q
Q disconnector switch Q
R setting resistor R
R measuring resistor B
R heating resistor E
S command devices S
S pushbutton S
S limit switch B
Table 1: Standard Code Letters for Electrical Components

6. Connection Designations on Contactors, Buttons and their Meanings

The connection designations (terminal designations) of low voltage switching devices are
treated in the following standards:

• DIN EN 50005: Industrial low voltage switching devices connection designations and code
numbers General rules
• DIN EN 50011: Industrial low voltage switching devices connection designations, code
numbers and code letters for certain auxiliary contactors
• DIN EN 50012: Industrial low voltage switching devices connection designations and code
numbers, auxiliary switching elements of certain contactors

Designation Designation
x1 x2 normally closed contact
x3 x4 normally open contact
x5 x6 normally closed contact, timing relay
x7 x8 normally open contact, timing relay
A1 connection of the coil (e.g. 230V or L+)
A2 connection of the coil (e.g. N or L-)
The letter x stands for the consecutive numbering of the connection in this piece of
equipment
Table 2: Terminal Designation Numbers of Electrical Switching Devices

7. Topics for Self-Study

1. Working principle of different types of timing relays
2. Automated Star-Delta starting method for motors using contactors, timer relays etc.

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Preliminary Work
1. Explain the working principle of the contactor by drawing its main components.
2. Explain the techniques used by contactors to suppress arc during operation.
3. Refer Figure 1 below and,
a. Identify and clearly mark the Main Input Contacts, Output Contacts, Coil, Aux
Contacts.
b. Locate and state the current and voltage rating of the contactor.
c. State whether the contactor is 2-pole, 3-pole, or 4-pole.
d. What is the coil voltage of the contactor?

Figure 1
4. What is meant by Auxiliary Contact Adder Block? Explain the working principal and
functionality.
5. Can we expand the functionality of the contactor in Figure 1, using an Auxiliary Contact
Adder Block? Explain.
6. When selecting a contactor, coil operating voltage can be also selected from 24VDC to
110VDC, or 110VAC to 480VAC. What is the rationale behind selecting the coil voltage?
7. In electrical distribution systems, what is the significance of selecting the correct short-
circuit current rating (SCCR) for circuit protection devices?
8. Explain the factors influencing SCCR selection and how it ensures system safety.

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II. Practical Work
1. Check List Before the Practical Starts
No Description ✓
1 Identify the CONTACTOR CONTROL BOARD
2 24VDC supply is powered and secured
3 Identify the Push Buttons and their terminals (S1 to S5)
4 Identify the Indicator Lamps and their terminals (P1 to P3) / Voltage = _ _ _ _ _
5 Identify the Timing Relays and their terminals (K5 and K6) / Coil Voltage = _ _ _ _ _
6 Identify the Aux Contactors and their terminals (K1 to K4) / Coil Voltage = _ _ _ _ _
7 Identify the CONTACTOR BOARD
8 3-phase 400V connection is powered and secured
9 Identify the Contactors and their terminals (Q1 to Q5) / Coil Voltage = _ _ _ _ _
10 Identify the Circuit Breakers and their terminals (Q11 and Q12)
11 Identify the AC MULTIFUNCTION MOTOR and its terminals

2. Contactor Circuit with Button and Indicator Lamp - AND Circuit

Function of the circuit:
• An indicator lamp is switched on and off by two buttons and a contactor.
• The indicator lamp only lights up when both buttons are pressed. If one of the buttons is
released, the indicator lamp goes out.
Task:
• Complete the circuit diagram and label the contacts.
• Complete the contact table of the contactor with the corresponding current paths.
• Set up the circuit on the CONTACTOR CONTROL BOARD and test the function.

Figure 2

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3. Contactor Circuit with Self-hold
Function of the circuit:
• The indicator lamp is switched on with button S1 and switched off with button S3. The
contactor is self-holding after pressing S1.
Task:
• Complete the circuit diagram and label the contacts.
• Complete the contact table of the contactor with the corresponding current paths.
• Set up the circuit on the CONTACTOR CONTROL BOARD and test the function.

Figure 3

4. The Timing Relay - Relays with Pick-up Delay (On-Delay)

Function of the circuit:
• The indicator lamp P2 is switched by button S4 and the timing relay K5. Pressing the button
activates the timing relay and the indicator lamp is switched on with a delay. The indicator
lamp goes out if the button S4 is released at any time.
Task 1:
• Complete the circuit diagram and label the contacts.
• Set up the circuit on the CONTACTOR CONTROL BOARD.
• Set the time of the timing relay to approx. 3 seconds (potentiometer in the middle position).
• Press and hold down button S4.
• Observe the LED in the timing relay and the indicator lamp P2.
• Complete the flow diagram.

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 Figure 4
Task 2:
• Change the circuit diagram as shown in Figure 5.
• Label the used contacts.
• Press and hold down button S4.
• Observe the LED in the timing relay and the indicator lamp P2.
• Complete the flow diagram.
• Describe the function of the changed circuit.

Figure 5

Q1. Describe the function of the changed circuit by comparing it with the previous circuit.

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5. Automatic Star-Delta Circuit
Function of the circuit:
• A motor should start with the aid of a star-delta circuit.
• If button S1 is pressed, star contactor Q1 and mains contactor Q2 pull up. Both contactors
are held through their auxiliary contacts. At the same time, the time starts running on the
timing relay. After 5 seconds star contactor Q1 drops out, delta contactor Q3 pulls up and
holds through Q2. On pressing the button S3, all the contactors drop out and the motor
stops.
• Pressing button S1 again must not have any effect when the motor is running, i.e., star
contactor Q1 may not pull up.
Assignment list
Unit Component Function/Description
CONTACTOR CONTROL BOARD S1 On button
S3 Off button
K5 Timing relay
CONTACTOR BOARD Q1 Motor contactor star
Q2 Motor contactor mains
Q3 Motor contactor delta
Q11 Motor circuit breaker
AC MULTIFUNCTION MOTOR M Asynchronous motor for star-delta operation

Task:
• Complete the main circuit diagram (Figure 6) and number the contacts. Study the control
circuit (Figure 7) understand the functionality.
• Set the appropriate value on the motor circuit breaker.
• Set up the circuit on the CONTACTOR CONTROL BOARD and CONTACTOR BOARD
and test the function of your circuit set-up.

Figure 6 Page 9 of 10
 A E

D
B
F

Figure 7

Explain the purpose of,

Q1. Connection A?
Q2. Connections C & F?
Q3. Connection E?
Q4. Connection D?

Q5. Measure the voltage between U1 and U2 of the motor when running in Star configuration.
VU1U2 = _ _ _ _ _
Q6. Measure the voltage between U1 and U2 of the motor when running in Delta
configuration. VU1U2 = _ _ _ _ _

Q7. Pressing button S1 again when the motor is running does not have any effect on the
functionality of the system (Figure 7). However, keeping button S1 pressed will trigger
the timing relay. If you are to prevent this from happening, how do you reconfigure the
control circuit in Figure 7 ?

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