# Need help hooking up a remote switch for this VFD



## cpd62 (Sep 20, 2013)

I just got an ABB ACS 150 VFD.  I'd like to mount it under my bench which has a cabinet (that will protect from dust).  

I have included a link to the wiring diagram for the I/O. http://www.joliettech.com/abb_acs150_component_drives-control_connections.htm

If all I want to do is add a remote switch and potentiometer do I need to just connect the switch to DI1 and what do I connect to control speed remotely?  I basically need to know what other parts do I need and how to connect.  As I'm writing this I'm thinking their customer service should have the answers but you guys tend to have prettyh good practical insight.

Your thoughts are welcomed.

Christian


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## richard.nott (Sep 21, 2013)

if you're going remote shouldn't you be hooking up fwd/rev/stop/start/speed control circuits. when using a relay circuit for a maintaining type circuit you'll have to know the voltage of your relay and if it is less than 220 volts you'll have to include a transformer. as far a cable most hook direct to the vfd with 14-4 portable cable while the control circuit will need 18-10 portable cable. on my teco fm50 when you go remote you take all control away from the keypad as the keypad becomes disabled.
Richard


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## UncleRuss (Sep 21, 2013)

Do you have a keypad with pushbuttons on the drive?  This is referred to as local control.  Separate witches are referred to as remote control.  Richard is quite right in stating that when you use a remote control you loose control at the keypad.  Local/Remote is set via a programming parameter you have to set via programming.

The connection chart you have in your example is for a two wire, maintained switch control scheme.  If you want to use pushbuttons you need to choose a three wire, momentary switch control scheme.  This is also set via a programming parameter you must set.  If you choose three wire, the functions of the input terminals 7-11 will change and a different schematic is needed to reflect the changes.
Potentiometer connections are not shown on the chart that I see.  Probably uses the same terminals shown for a 10vdc reference signal for speed control with yet again another control parameter setting changed.  Most drives I have installed use a 5K ohm three wire pot for a reference signal or an analog input such as 4-20ma.

Just grab the manual, ABB usually has pretty decent ones, stare at it, then state loudly *"I will be the master of you."  *You are then ready to program.  Step by step enter all the parameters.  True line voltage, cycles, motor service factor, full load amperage, number of poles/speed, and all the other questions pertaining to your motor and installation.  Acceleration/ deceleration time, max frequency, minimum frequency etc..  Things like preset speeds, skip frequency and such you will probably never utilize.  If in doubt, leave at the default setting until you learn better or have a problem.  In no time your machine will be a happy machine and you will be a happy owner/operator.


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## twstoerzinger (Sep 21, 2013)

If you don't need Forward / Reverse, then you only need to decide what type of Start - Stop feature you want.
The usual options are:

A two-position, maintained contact, rotary switch (On - Off) 
Two momentary push buttons (one for Start and one for Stop) 
The "Macro" you select determines which of the above you use. If you like the traditional "drum switch" feel that is on older machinery, then use the rotary switch. If you like the "panic button" feature of the push buttons, then use that set-up. In either case, you don't need external relays or voltage - the drive supplies everything you need to run the switches. You can get push buttons in a wide range of prices and quality. Try McMaster-Carr and search for "push button switches" to see a wide selection of PB switches. +24V on the control terminal board goes to the remote switch(es). The switches come back to the drive on "DI1" (term 7) on the drive (and DI2 if you are using the 2 button option). "Gnd" and "DCOM" are jumpered together to use in on-board power system.

For speed control, you want to run in 10V mode - set S1(switch 1) in the "U" position to select this mode. For the speed control pot, you want a single turn, LINEAR, wire-wound pot. A 5000 (5K) ohm pot is typically used (1K is the minimum that the drive can support). Be sure the pot is linear (not audio which is a log profile). You want a pot without a switch inside. You should be able to get a panel mount pot with dial for $10 or so. I prefer wire wound over carbon, but you get to pick. ABB doesn't show how to connect the pot in their literature (they think this drive will be used with a 4-20 mA output or a 0-10VDC output), but they have the +10VDC power available on the control terminal strip labeled "+10v". The two "ends" of the pot are wired to "+10v" and to the "Gnd" (NEXT to "+10V"). The wiper of the pot is connected to "AI" (analog input) terminal. If the pot ends up delivering speed increase in the wrong direction, just reverse the +10v and GND connections to the pot. McMaster Carr only has switched pots (I think), so you may want to look somewhere else for a pot. If you have a favorite electronics supply, try there. Otherwise search Amazon for dozens of low cost pots.

You will need a small electrical enclosure for the switch(es) and the pot. This is all low voltage, so a simple, shop made box is acceptable. It probably only needs to be 4x4x4" or so. The main feature is that the box needs to keep out swarf and dust.

You will want to run shielded cable between the drive and the remote control box. You will need a total of 6 conductors. Where I live, Home Depot has shielded, 6 conductor, 18 ga cable available "by the foot" so you don't need to buy a whole spool to get 10 feet. You can also run two parallel grounded cables if you cannot find 6 conductors in a cable. Ground the cable shield on the "SCR" (signal cable shield) terminal on the drive only. Do not ground the shield on the remote box with the switch and pot. At this end, trim the shield back and tape it so that it does not contact the box or any other grounded part which could set up a troublesome "ground loop."

The ABB manual is going to tell you to run shielded power cables as  well. The shielded cable is expensive and a little hard to find. The  shielded cable is for industrial use with long (100 feet or so) cable  runs with sensitive control electronics in the vicinity. For a home  installation, with short leads (10 ft or so), standard SO cable or  wiring in a flex conduit can be used.

If the machine has an older motor (more than 10 years or so), set the switching frequency at the lowest value (4 kHz I believe for this drive). This setting may produce some annoying motor whine, but it is the least likely to damage an older motor. This drive allows you to set the switching frequency as high as 16 kHz which older ears like mine almost cannot hear. If you do this, the drive output is derated to 75%, and there is the possibility of setting up high voltage spikes in the motor windings. Most EEs will say that voltage spikes are not an issue if the motor is designed for 460 / 230 V and is running in the 230 V connection. I have two VFDs in my shop which run at 3 kHz - I have learned to accept some motor whine as normal operation.

Terry S.


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## UncleRuss (Sep 21, 2013)

Wise information from Terry S.


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## cpd62 (Sep 21, 2013)

twstoerzinger said:


> If you don't need Forward / Reverse, then you only need to decide what type of Start - Stop feature you want.The usual options are:
> 
> A two-position, maintained contact, rotary switch (On - Off)
> Two momentary push buttons (one for Start and one for Stop)
> The "Macro" you select determines which of the above you use. If you like the traditional "drum switch" feel that is on older machinery, then use the rotary switch. If you like the "panic button" feature of the push buttons, then use that set-up. In either case, you don't need external relays or voltage - the drive supplies everything you need to run the switches. You can get push buttons in a wide range of prices and quality. Try McMaster-Carr and search for "push button switches" to see a wide selection of PB switches. +24V on the control terminal board goes to the remote switch(es). The switches come back to the drive on "DI1" (term 7) on the drive (and DI2 if you are using the 2 button option). "Gnd" and "DCOM" are jumpered together to use in on-board power system.For speed control, you want to run in 10V mode - set S1(switch 1) in the "U" position to select this mode. For the speed control pot, you want a single turn, LINEAR, wire-wound pot. A 5000 (5K) ohm pot is typically used (1K is the minimum that the drive can support). Be sure the pot is linear (not audio which is a log profile). You want a pot without a switch inside. You should be able to get a panel mount pot with dial for $10 or so. I prefer wire wound over carbon, but you get to pick. ABB doesn't show how to connect the pot in their literature (they think this drive will be used with a 4-20 mA output or a 0-10VDC output), but they have the +10VDC power available on the control terminal strip labeled "+10v". The two "ends" of the pot are wired to "+10v" and to the "Gnd" (NEXT to "+10V"). The wiper of the pot is connected to "AI" (analog input) terminal. If the pot ends up delivering speed increase in the wrong direction, just reverse the +10v and GND connections to the pot. McMaster Carr only has switched pots (I think), so you may want to look somewhere else for a pot. If you have a favorite electronics supply, try there. Otherwise search Amazon for dozens of low cost pots.You will need a small electrical enclosure for the switch(es) and the pot. This is all low voltage, so a simple, shop made box is acceptable. It probably only needs to be 4x4x4" or so. The main feature is that the box needs to keep out swarf and dust.You will want to run shielded cable between the drive and the remote control box. You will need a total of 6 conductors. Where I live, Home Depot has shielded, 6 conductor, 18 ga cable available "by the foot" so you don't need to buy a whole spool to get 10 feet. You can also run two parallel grounded cables if you cannot find 6 conductors in a cable. Ground the cable shield on the "SCR" (signal cable shield) terminal on the drive only. Do not ground the shield on the remote box with the switch and pot. At this end, trim the shield back and tape it so that it does not contact the box or any other grounded part which could set up a troublesome "ground loop."The ABB manual is going to tell you to run shielded power cables as  well. The shielded cable is expensive and a little hard to find. The  shielded cable is for industrial use with long (100 feet or so) cable  runs with sensitive control electronics in the vicinity. For a home  installation, with short leads (10 ft or so), standard SO cable or  wiring in a flex conduit can be used.If the machine has an older motor (more than 10 years or so), set the switching frequency at the lowest value (4 kHz I believe for this drive). This setting may produce some annoying motor whine, but it is the least likely to damage an older motor. This drive allows you to set the switching frequency as high as 16 kHz which older ears like mine almost cannot hear. If you do this, the drive output is derated to 75%, and there is the possibility of setting up high voltage spikes in the motor windings. Most EEs will say that voltage spikes are not an issue if the motor is designed for 460 / 230 V and is running in the 230 V connection. I have two VFDs in my shop which run at 3 kHz - I have learned to accept some motor whine as normal operation.Terry S.


Thanks Terry.  Very thorough. I've been reading the manual once each night for the last three days. You filled in the gaps and stated it in the practical way I was seeking. I'll get to the main powering this weekend and add the remote features once I have the hardware. I'm on my way. Take care.


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## cpd62 (Sep 21, 2013)

One last concern about power cords and grounding.  The ABB manual suggests a shielded cable from the power to the VFD and the shield is twisted to be a ground.  I plan on using a spare 50ft. 12ga extension cord cut down to size for my power input.  I'm assuming it's a3 conductor cable.  The VFD suggests a ground (shield connected to ground), and 3 conductors (U1/L, V1/N, W1) be hooked up.  

I bought some conduit and 4 12ga conductor wires to connect motor to VFD.  Am I safe to just ground motor to VFD and leave out the ground from the power cord to VFD?  Otherwise I'm getting into shielded cable which is expensive and apparently not needed.

Thanks to all so far.

Terry you put me on the right track.   The ABB manual looks a lot friendlier now that I've read it 4 times and have the context of your comments.

Christian


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## Millalot (Sep 21, 2013)

I presume you have one of the full manuals for this VFD, if not here is a link which gives you all the details you need.
http://www.gobookee.net/abb-acs350-user-manual/
Have you got one??


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## cpd62 (Sep 21, 2013)

Millalot said:


> I presume you have one of the full manuals for this VFD, if not here is a link which gives you all the details you need.
> http://www.gobookee.net/abb-acs350-user-manual/
> Have you got one??



I do.  It's the acs150.  The manual doesn't answer my previous question.  If I don't use a shielded power cable, do I still need to hook up a ground from the power cord?  My cord only has 3 conductors and all 3 would go to the U1/L, V1/N, W1 connections.  From the manual it appears that you use the conducting shield of a shielded cable to connect to the ground screw for the power side.


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## Millalot (Sep 22, 2013)

cpd62 said:


> I do.  It's the acs150.  The manual doesn't answer my previous question.  If I don't use a shielded power cable, do I still need to hook up a ground from the power cord?  My cord only has 3 conductors and all 3 would go to the U1/L, V1/N, W1 connections.  From the manual it appears that you use the conducting shield of a shielded cable to connect to the ground screw for the power side.



Here is a small excerpt from the ABB manual, if you are going to use separate conducters in a conduit twist them all together including an earth should be OK


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## cpd62 (Sep 22, 2013)

Millalot said:


> Here is a small excerpt from the ABB manual, if you are going to use separate conducters in a conduit twist them all together including an earth should be OK



I've read this (4 times now) and I think it assumes you are running 3 phase power into the drive.  I am running single phase 220V into the drive.  So no matter what I do a 4 conductor system on the input side won't have anything to match.

I guess I needed to read the manual 5 times.  I just found a small line indicating that with single phase input you connect 2 conductors to U1 and V1/N and skip W1.
Problem Solved.

Thanks to all for the input.
Really getting to know the manual is the key (you have all emphasized this and it's true). 

-Christian


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## twstoerzinger (Sep 22, 2013)

Interesting that the ABB manual does not show an example of 240 VAC 1 Ph wiring.
I do not run shielded input wiring to either of my drives. Neither do I use an input choke. These are common in industrial applications where there is already lots of electrical noise.

*For the 240V 1 Ph input power wiring* (breaker panel to VFD input), you only need 3 conductors: L1, L2 and Ground (green lead in the US).
The drive does not use the "neutral" lead which would deliver 120 VAC. If the cable you have contains a black, white, and green wire, put a wrap of electrical tape on each end of the white lead to signal that it is not actually the neutral lead - may help someone in the future.
Single phase power goes into the drive on L1 and N.
(I don't know why they call it N, it is actually L2 of the 240V circuit. Westinghouse uses this same N lettering convention. I think they are reserving the _2 designations for the drive outputs)
In reality, it may not make a difference since all three of the 3 Ph leads go into a 3 phase rectifier. With single phase power, one of the rectifier legs is not used and all of the power comes in on two rectifier legs. It could be that the 1 Ph model does not even have one of the rectifier legs - in which case there might not even be a terminal on the unused leg.

I recommend a manual, safety disconnect switch (fused or unfused) near the machine - especially if the breaker box is a long way off. You can get one at a home improvement store for about $30. It allows you to leave the drive powered down when you are not in the shop. Also keeps visitors (and kids) from starting a machine if they start pushing buttons. The disconnect will accept a padlock if you need that.

*For the 3Ph output wiring* (VFD to motor), you need 4 conductors: U2, V2, W2 and a Green lead ground. If you don't have the sheet metal "cable clamp" with your drive for ground connection, then use a grounding lug in the drive enclosure. Its important to have the green (chassis ground) continuous from the breaker box, to the drive, to the motor. This keeps the lathe frame from becoming "hot" in the event of an electrical failure (it forces the breaker to trip). For a 3 hp drive, I think you want 12 ga or heavier. I like stranded wire if there is going to be a flexible cable or conduit with motion, but solid is easier to work with if the conduit is fixed. The length of wire between the drive and motor can be a problem if it starts getting beyond 50 feet or so. Shorter is better. 6 to 10 feet should be no problem. I like to use SO cable (or one of the variants) for this link. Where I live you can get 12 ga four conductor SO cable by the foot at Home Depot. Remember that you do not want any switches, disconnects, or contactors between the VFD and the motor - it should be a direct connection from VFD terminal to motor terminal. 

Once you are up and running - if the motor runs the wrong direction you have two choices:

Find the reverse parameter in the drive setup logic and change it 
Switch any two of the 3 phase wires at the VFD output terminals (preserves the correct direction in drive logic) 
  One last thing to fret over is the *time since manufacture*. ABB says that the internal capacitors need to be reformed if the drive has been in storage for more than a year. For storage times of two years or less, the drive takes care of itself when it is powered up. If the storage time is more than two years, ABB has a quirky procedure to go through which requires a separate, adjustable voltage power supply. There is a code on the drive that gives its manufacture date to determine the storage time for a new drive. See: 
http://www05.abb.com/global/scot/sc...$file/Guide_for_capacitor_reforming_Rev_G.pdf
to read the details. I have never had to do this. If you find that the drive has actually been in storage for more that two years, you many want to take it to a motor shop where they will have the equipment to do this - I expect it only takes a few minutes.

You're getting close.
Terry S.


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## Millalot (Sep 22, 2013)

cpd62 said:


> I've read this (4 times now) and I think it assumes you are running 3 phase power into the drive.  I am running single phase 220V into the drive.  So no matter what I do a 4 conductor system on the input side won't have anything to match.
> 
> I guess I needed to read the manual 5 times.  I just found a small line indicating that with single phase input you connect 2 conductors to U1 and V1/N and skip W1.
> Problem Solved.
> ...



The manuals can be confusing, that one small line was left out of the excerpt I sent to you, but was included in the full manual, go figure.
Millalot.


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## chrishoag (May 12, 2014)

I believe that ABB will phase out the ACS150 series soon since now they have two new series in ACS250 & ACS310. If you are planning on buying ACS150 drives I suggest that you look at the newer series drives. ACS250 is a micro just like ACS150 and ACS310 is a general purpose drive.


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## Shiseiji (Mar 16, 2015)

twstoerzinger said:


> Interesting that the ABB manual does not show an example of 240 VAC 1 Ph wiring.
> 
> <snip>
> 
> ...



It's cryptic. Shown on page 41 of the  3AFE68576032 Rev C EN EFFECTIVE: 2011-01-01

Your posting is an incredible tutorial! After reading this, the manual was much easier to digest. LOL, guidance on momentary switches is found once, at the top of page 72 "3-wire macro section". The size of the potentiometer, 10K Ohm, is shown in the diagram. To me, the language in the section "This macro is used when the drive is controlled using momentary push-buttons." doesn't match the diagram.  The diagram shows open close switches for DI2 Forward (0) / Reverse (1), not the symbol for momentary switches, i.e a 90 degree rotated clockwise "E" with three dashes under it and over the switch.


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## Shiseiji (Mar 16, 2015)

Shiseiji said:


> It's cryptic. Shown on page 41 of the  3AFE68576032 Rev C EN EFFECTIVE: 2011-01-01
> 
> Your posting is an incredible tutorial! After reading this, the manual was much easier to digest. LOL, guidance on momentary switches is found once, at the top of page 72 "3-wire macro section". The size of the potentiometer, 10K Ohm, is shown in the diagram. To me, the language in the section "This macro is used when the drive is controlled using momentary push-buttons." doesn't match the diagram.  The diagram shows open close switches for DI*3* Forward (0) / Reverse (1), not the symbol for momentary switches, i.e a 90 degree rotated clockwise "E" with three dashes under it and over the switch.


Ops, make that DI3. Sorry.


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