ABB Ability Digital Powertrain Condition-Based Maintenance

ABB has extended the scope of its ABB Ability Digital Powertrain concept that connects drives, motors, pumps and bearings with a condition-based maintenance service option for drives. The option provides the earliest possible warning of any abnormal conditions that might cause a drive to fail prematurely. The service is targeted for drives in critical applications in the oil and gas, metals, water and wastewater, and pulp and paper industries, where it is essential to avoid costly unplanned plant shutdowns.

The Condition-Based Maintenance service continuously monitors key components in a variable speed drive (VSD) — the fans, the semiconductors and capacitors. Thermal, voltage and power sensors collect data on the ambient temperature and load variations of the components and measure the daily impact on their lifetime. Cloud-based algorithms and statistical analysis estimate the level of stress on components and calculate their remaining life.

If failure is predicted before the next planned maintenance operation, management can make a fully informed decision to take action and prevent an unplanned shutdown. In some cases, the Condition-Based Maintenance service could indicate that the drive components are under less stress than normal and will last longer than expected, allowing regular preventive maintenance intervals to be extended to increase productivity and reduce costs.

The ABB Condition-Based Maintenance service is available initially for ACS800 and ACS880 air-cooled drives. The accuracy of the remaining life prediction will vary according to the specific application.