Motor condition monitor predicts failures

A Turkish research company has developed a motor condition monitoring system that, it claims, can predict imminent mechanical and electrical failures in electric motors before any damage is done.

Artemis, a subsidiary of Turkey`s largest company, Arcelik, says that its Motor Condition Monitor (MCM) can predict problems such as bearing failures, mechanical imbalances, broken rotors, and deteriorating stator insulation.

Artemis has drawn on modelling technologies first used in the defence and aerospace industries. Its system analyses current and voltage readings and compares them with a mathematical model based on readings from a normal motor. The system then generates simple messages that indicate the status of the motor and tell the operator what action to take.

Unlike power and current spectrum analyses, motor circuit analysis and other methods that simply process voltage and current signals, the MCM performs condition assessments using algorithms that compute nearly 20 parameters and compare them to reference values.

The MCM can operate as a standalone monitor or it can be built into a drive or motor control centre. The results can be transferred to a PC for remote monitoring or trend analysis. Artemis is now applying similar techniques to other types of equipment including pumps, compressors and fans. It the longer term, it plans to use the techniques to analyse the performance of jet engines, the human heart and even the stock market.