Electrical Monitoring under Transient Conditions: A New Paradigm in Electric Motors Predictive Maintenance

Abstract

Electric motors condition monitoring is a field of paramount importance for industry. In recent decades, there has been a continuous effort to investigate new techniques and methods that are able to determine the health of these machines with high accuracy and reliability. Classical methods based on the analysis of diverse machine quantities under stationary conditions are being replaced by modern methodologies that are adapted to any operation regime of the machine (including transients). These new methods (especially those based on motor startup signal monitoring), which imply the use of advanced signal processing tools, have shown great potential and have provided spectacular advantages versus conventional approaches enabling, among other facts, a much more reliable determination of the machine health. This paper reviews the background of this recent condition monitoring trend and shows the advantages of this new approach with regard to its application to the analysis of electrical quantities. Examples referred to its application to real motors operating in industry are included, proving the huge potential of the transient-based approach and its benefits versus conventional methods.