A/B Ultra3000 Digital Servo Drive E05 fault

factoryrat

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Feb 2010
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Michigan
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Friday, 01/03/2014, at the end of the work shift, I was made aware that an Allen Bradley Ultra 3000 Digital Servo Drive faults occasionally with an E05 (Motor Over temperature) fault. I do not work in the area and was unaware of this problem. Our boss wants a solution. I talked briefly with the guy who runs the sealing equipment in that area and he told me the drive gets this fault a couple of times a day and he cycles power on the Ultra 3000 to clear the E05 fault and then the equipment will run again.

My boss said he notices it faults everyday about a half an hour after production is finished, equipment is idle. His office is only about 25 feet away from the equipment so when the Ultra 3000 faults an Alarm horn sounds (drives him crazy) he has to come out of his office onto the plant floor and silence the Alarm horn.

The operator of the equipment, in that area, said he also leaves the door of the Ultra 3000 Digital Servo Drive cabinet open to cool the drive control. But as I sit here at home (Saturday) thinking and writing about scenario I am realizing the OT Fault is on the Servo Motor.

These Ultra 3000 Digital Servo Drives are brand new to me – no experience / training. I do not know at this moment what type/brand the Servo Drive Motor is - but do the Motors actually have a thermal switch/sensor on them? I’m also thinking I should feel the Drive Motor to see if I actually feel any excessive heat.

The Ultra 3000 drives are on Device Net and we use A/B RS_Logix5000. On Friday, using Device Net, I quickly looked at the many parameters but do not know what they all are or if I can adjust any to get rid of fault - if Motor is not actually overheating.

If anyone can give me advice I would appreciate it. I would like to have some sort of a plan so when I go to work on Monday I can try and solve this problem. Thanks in advance.
 
Since it seems to happen at idle it could simply be a matter of poor tuning but...

When the alarm goes off has anyone felt the motor to see if it is actually hot?
 
Since it seems to happen at idle it could simply be a matter of poor tuning but...

When the alarm goes off has anyone felt the motor to see if it is actually hot?

I am sure no one has felt motor. Like I mentioned the operator told me he opened the cabinet that houses the Ultra3000 Drive thinking that it would cool the Servo Drive. And it did not dawn on me until I started to write post that the Drive was not overheating it was the Motor.

If I can get over to that area of plant I will definitely feel Motor or have someone else do it.

What do you mean by tuning? I hope that is not a dumb question but I do not know. This equipment was installed and turned over to us to operate and maintain with absolutely no training and minimal documentation.
 
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This is more of a Peter Nachtwey question, but pretty much most servo motors are always on or enabled, even when at rest. In theory they have 100% holding torque at zero speed. If tuning variables are not set right, it can try to "hold" too hard are rest and build heat.
 
This is more of a Peter Nachtwey question, but pretty much most servo motors are always on or enabled, even when at rest. In theory they have 100% holding torque at zero speed. If tuning variables are not set right, it can try to "hold" too hard are rest and build heat.

Thanks. Every little bit of info helps.

Do you know if there is a manual or document that would walk a novice through this tuning procedure?
 
If this just started happening it could be something simple like loose pin connections in the encoder cable at the motor end. Power it down and try unplugging the cable and reconnecting the cable at the motor end.
It think there were some connection issues on the older style AB cables.
 
If this just started happening it could be something simple like loose pin connections in the encoder cable at the motor end. Power it down and try unplugging the cable and reconnecting the cable at the motor end.
It think there were some connection issues on the older style AB cables.

I will get more history of problem on Monday. I wish I knew more now.

This Line was installed about one and a half years ago.

I think this problem has been going on for quite a while. It is a nuisance but can be reset quickly and has therefore been tolerated. There were a lot of other (more pressing) issues with this new automation that had to be troubleshot and fixed first.

I will take your advice and check connectors, cables, pin connectors. I will look for any kind of damage in work cell. Maybe something got damaged or connector is loose.
 
Do you know if there is a manual or document that would walk a novice through this tuning procedure?
Not really. You'll be best to get someone who has some experience with it to help you if it is your first time.

First as Rob said, if it just started doing it or has began doing it more frequently, then first you should check the mechanical and electrical integrity of the system. System rarely just go out of tune.
 
Since it happens after production -- maybe the servo is driven to a
"park" position that it can't actually reach, either due to obstruction or some mechanical changes that have affected position calibration. This would have the drive applying increasing torque to try and reach the commanded position, but not getting any closer. Eventually, the motor thermostat trips.
 
These Ultra 3000 Digital Servo Drives are brand new to me – no experience / training. I do not know at this moment what type/brand the Servo Drive Motor is - but do the Motors actually have a thermal switch/sensor on them? I’m also thinking I should feel the Drive Motor to see if I actually feel any excessive heat.

The Ultra 3000 drives are on Device Net and we use A/B RS_Logix5000. On Friday, using Device Net, I quickly looked at the many parameters but do not know what they all are or if I can adjust any to get rid of fault - if Motor is not actually overheating.
I know the Allen Bradley motors have thermal switches in them and the motors can run very hot (hot to the touch) without tripping the thermal switch. We run an MPL-B460 motor in a hoisting application and under normal operation you cannot keep your hand on the motor.
If the Ultra 3000 communicates over DeviceNet then it is an indexing drive. So move instructions(indexes) are programmed in the Ultra 3000. If you have the serial com cable and Ultraware software for the drive you can get online with it and look at the fault log. It might have some more information to help with troubleshooting.
 
Since it happens after production -- maybe the servo is driven to a
"park" position that it can't actually reach, either due to obstruction or some mechanical changes that have affected position calibration. This would have the drive applying increasing torque to try and reach the commanded position, but not getting any closer. Eventually, the motor thermostat trips.

Unless it was programmed poorly, should get a position error fault LONG before heating up and overtripping due to trying to drive to position. I'm in the camp that if it has started happening it's a cabling issue...If it's happened since inception, it's a tuning issue. Also, without knowing the mechanics of this system, if the system is parked such that there are forces on the system acting against zero position (think trying to hold a flapper valve open against gravity), then the motor could certainly heat up trying to hold position.
 
I know the Allen Bradley motors have thermal switches in them and the motors can run very hot (hot to the touch) without tripping the thermal switch. We run an MPL-B460 motor in a hoisting application and under normal operation you cannot keep your hand on the motor.
If the Ultra 3000 communicates over DeviceNet then it is an indexing drive. So move instructions(indexes) are programmed in the Ultra 3000. If you have the serial com cable and Ultraware software for the drive you can get online with it and look at the fault log. It might have some more information to help with troubleshooting.

Good information. I did not mention before but we have 7 more identical sealer applications in this area. So I will do the feel test on the other motors and compare temperatures with the faulty one. Hope I don't get a burned hand.🤞🏻

I would like to introduce another concern: As I was leaving work on Friday our Control Engr. was going to have a second shift Electrician swap faulting Ultra3000 Servo Drive with one of the others that does not get "Over Temperature" fault. We have two identical lines (North and South) so the swapped Ultra3000 Drives have the same Device Net Node Address. The reasoning was will problem follow Ultra3000 Drive or will the same motor fault with different Drive.

I'll find out Monday morning. But will this create any new problems? Do you guys think this will work or will it cause new problems. You can see we know nothing about these drives. We will learn - hopefully it will not be too painful an experience.
 
This is not a diagnosis but just my 2 cents:
We've used the Ultra 3000 drives extensively over the past 10 years or so. We've dealt with a handful of E05 errors during that time and I don't believe that any of them were actually due to the motor overheating. In all cases it was either a motor failure (bad overtemperature switch?) or a failed cable.
 
This is not a diagnosis but just my 2 cents:
We've used the Ultra 3000 drives extensively over the past 10 years or so. We've dealt with a handful of E05 errors during that time and I don't believe that any of them were actually due to the motor overheating. In all cases it was either a motor failure (bad overtemperature switch?) or a failed cable.

Thanks John I will keep this in mind. I value this info and all the other information everyone has contributed. I am learning quite a bit.(y)
 

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