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Unknown 3PH converter panel, please help, newbie setup

tkunz

Plastic
Joined
Oct 16, 2019
Hi All
I just received a panel and 3ph 5hp motor, pic of the inside of the panel attached. The front cover of the panel was accidentally left behind, so I do not know the name, but I think the manufacturer started with the letter "I".

I am trying to find out the correct wiring for the terminals in the picture. This unit came from a home, residential shop, but the owner disconnected everything before I could get a picture of where things went. I think I understand the theory of how it works, so I am pretty sure I wire the L1, L2, & L3 on the bottom of the terminals to the idler motor. The Neutral terminal at the top is understood, but what is most confusing to me is the other 3 terminals, labeled 120, 240 & 240. I'm not sure if I use all 3 or just the 120, or what exactly it's looking for.

If this picture looks familiar to someone, I would appreciate a link to a users manual or if someone already has the answers or suggestions outright, please let me know.

Thanks!
Tom
 

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updated, grainy photo of box from a distance

Addendum: Attached is a photo which I found that had the original setup of the box in the room. I don't know if this would help anyone identify the make/model of it.
 

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Dunno... but...

Addendum: Attached is a photo which I found that had the original setup of the box in the room. I don't know if this would help anyone identify the make/model of it.

Dunno who made that, but they did a tidy job of it.

What you have there, could have been commercially made, if so, one of the others that have worked with whoever did, will chime in to let you know...

but what you have there, is a very straightforward converter... and it follows the Fitch Williams design.

On the lower left, in oval, you have Motor Run capacitors... they're always active while the converter is running.

On upper left, you have Motor Start capacitors... they're temporarily connected to the idler motor through one of the contactors (on right hand side) to 'kick' the idler motor into spinning on startup.

On the right side of the panel, in black, appears to be a 'potential relay'... which senses generated leg voltage, and determines when the idler motor has sucessfully started.

The other contactor is probably a 'main control' contactor, which powers up the idler motor.

The two small 'ice-cube' control relays probably provide for some sort of remote control.

The terminal strip in the bottom is self-explanatory in that 240v single phase comes in from your circuit breaker panel, and the L1, L2, L3 are output to your idler motor.

How your load (your machine tool) is connected, I'm not certain from the angle I see, but they MAY have expected that you'd connect it in parallel with the idler, which is the functional method of operation, BUT it means that the converter panel could try to start with the machine tool load engaged, which is not a good thing... I would have included an output contactor that would only close once the converter is started and running...

But don't take this as gospel... it's not sitting in my lap, so I can't look through all the wires and tell you for certain... just an educated guess and good start.
 
Maker likely expected the load motor would have its own contactor in the machine, which accounts for no output contactor. That is pretty much how it would be if the machine/motor were wired to a 3 phase source.

Agree that the construction is clean, leading me to think that the builder had a clue. And it is not the sort of "fussy clean" that might indicate someone who built it pretty but wrong.

No idea if the sizes of cap are good for the motor you will use with it, but you can consult the Fitch data to get an idea.
 
The box has few few components. Trace out the wiring and draw schematic yourself. That would take 5-20 minutes. Then post the schematic here.
 
The second contactor is controled by the psr and makes the connection to the start caps to save the psr contacts from the high current. These contactors have 120 volt coils, allowing remote control of the rpc from the machine tool or several machine tools. A very clever design. Otherwise a classic rpc. 2 wires 240 in, 3 wires to the idler and load contactors and on to the motors.
 
Thanks for all the info from everyone. I found the front panel and book for the unit. It is made by Elimia Industrial. I got it wired up and tested, runs great!
Thanks again!
 








 
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