EXPERIMENT NO :7

Study of DC and AC machine starters

Aim of the Experiment:

To study D.C. and AC machine starters.

Apparatus Required:

Sl. No. Name Specification Quantity

1 3- point starter 1 no.
2 4- point starter 1 no.

Circuit Diagram:

Three-Point Starter
 Theory:

A three-point starter in simple words is a device that helps in the starting and running
of a shunt wound DC motor. Now the question is why these type of DC motors
require the assistance of the starter in the first case. The only explanation to that is
given by the presence of back emf Eb, which plays a critical role in governing the
operation of the motor. the back emf, develops as the motor armature starts to rotate
in presence of the magnetic field, by generating action and counters the supply
voltage. This also essentially means, that the back emf at the starting is zero and
develops gradually as the motor gathers speed.

the general motor emf equation E = Eb + IaRa,

at starting is modified to E = IaRa as the starting Eb= 0.

 Ia= E/Ra

Thus we can well understand from the above equation that the current will be
dangerously high at starting (as armature resistance R a is small) and hence its
important that we make use of a device like the three-point starter to limit the starting
current to an allowable lower value.

Let us now look into the construction and working of three point starter to understand
how the starting current is restricted to the desired value. For that let’s consider the
diagram showing all the essential parts of the three-point starter.
 Construction of three-point starter:

Construction wise a starter is a variable resistance, integrated into number of section

as shown in the figure beside. The contact point of these sections are called studs
and are shown in fig. namely OFF, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, RUN. Other than that there are 3
main points, refer to as

1. “L” Line terminal. (Connected to positive of supply)

2. “A” Armature terminal. (Connected to the armature winding)
3. “F” Field terminal. (Connected to the field winding)

and from there is gets the name 3 point starter.

Now studying 3 point starter in further details reveals that, the point “L” is connected
to an electromagnet called overload release (OLR) as shown in figure. The other end
of OLR is connected to the lower end of conducting lever of starter handle where a
spring is also attached with it and the starter handle contains also a soft iron piece
housed on it. This handle is free to move to the other side RUN against the force of
the spring. This spring brings back the handle to its original OFF position under the
influence of its own force. Another parallel path is derived from the stud “1” give to
the another electromagnet called No Volt Coil (NVC) which is further connected to
terminal “F”. The starting resistance at starting is entirely in series with the armature.
The OLR and NVC acts as the two protecting devices of the starter.

Working of the Three-Point Starter:

At starting the handle is in the OFF position when the supply to the DC motor is
switched on. Then handle is slowly moved against the spring force to make a contact
with stud no. ‘1’. At this point, field winding of the shunt or the compound motor gets
supply through the parallel path provided to starting resistance, through No Volt Coil.
While entire starting resistance comes in series with the armature. The high starting
armature current thus gets limited as the current equation at this stage becomes Ia=
E/(Ra+Rst). As the handle is moved further, it goes on making contact with studs
2,3,4, etc. , thus gradually cutting off the series resistance from the armature circuit
as the mother gathers speed. Finally when the starter handle is in RUN position, the
entire starting resistance is eliminated and the motor runs with normal speed.

This is because back emf is developed consequently with speed to counter the
supply voltage and reduce the armature current. So the external electrical resistance
is not required anymore, and is removed for optimum operation. The handle is
moved manually from OFF to the RUN position with development of speed.

Working of No Voltage Coil of three-point starter:

 The supply to the field winding is derived through no voltage coil. So when field
current flows, the NVC is magnetized. Now when the handle is in the RUN position,
soft iron piece connected to the handle and gets attracted by the magnetic force
produced by NVC, because of it holds the handle in RUN position against the force
of the spring as long as supply is given to the motor. Thus NVC holds the handle in
the RUN position and hence also called hold on coil.

Now when there is any kind of supply failure, the current through NVC is affected
and it immediately losses its magnetic property and is unable to keep the soft iron
piece on the handle, attracted. At this point under the action of the spring force, the
handle comes back to OFF position, opening the circuit and thus switching off the
motor. So due to the combination of NVC and the spring, the starter handle always
comes back to OFF position whenever there is any supply problems. Thus it also
acts as a protective device safeguarding the motor from any kind of abnormality.

Four-Point Starter:

The four point starter like in the case of a 3 point starter also acts as a protective
device that helps in safeguarding the armature of the shunt or compound excited dc
motor against the high starting current produced in the absence of back emf at
starting.

The 4 point starter has a lot of constructional and functional similarity to a three point
starter, but this special device has an additional point and a coil in its construction,
which naturally brings about remains same.

Construction and operation of four-point starter:

The 4 main operational points are,

1. “L” Line terminal. (Connected to the positive of supply)

2. “A” Armature terminal. (Connected to the armature winding)
3. “F” Field terminal. ( Connected to the field winding)
4. “N” Connected to the No Voltage Coil.

The remarkable difference in case of a 4 point starter is that the No Voltage Coil is
connected independently across the supply through the fourth terminal called”N” in
addition to the ‘L’, ‘F’, and ‘A’. As a direct consequence of that, any change in the
field supply current does not brings about any difference in the performance of the
NVC. Thus it must be ensured that no voltage coil always produce a force which is
strong enough to hold the handle in its RUN position, against force of the spring,
under all the operational conditions. Such a current is adjusted through No Voltage
Coil with the help of fixed resistance R connected in series with the NVC using fourth
point ‘N’ as shown in figure.
Apart from this above mentioned fact, the 4 point and 3 point starters are similar in
all other ways like possessing is a variable resistance, integrated into number of
sections as shown in the figure above. The contact points of these sections are
called studs and are shown separately as OFF, 1,2,3,4,5,RUN over which the handle
is free to be moved manually to regulate the starting current with gathering speed.

Operation of Four-point starter:

Look into the above diagram of four-point starter, considering that supply is given
and the handle is taken stud no. 1, then the circuit is complete and line current will
be divided into 3 parts, flowing through 3 different points.

i). 1 part flows through the starting resistance (R 1+R2+R3+…..) and then to the
armature.

ii). a 2nd part flowing through the field winding F.

iii). A 3rd part flowing through the no voltage coil in series with the protective
resistance R.

So the point to be noted here is that with this particular arrangement any change in
the shunt field circuit not bring about any change in the no voltage coil as the two
circuits are independent of each other. This essentially means that the
electromagnet pull subjected upon the soft iron bar of the handle by the no voltage
coil at all points of time should be high enough restoring the handle at its original
OFF position, irrespective of how the field rheostat is adjusted.

This marks the operational difference between a 4 point starter and a 3 point starter.
As otherwise both are almost similar and are used for limiting the starting current to a
shunt wound DC motor or Compound wound DC motor, and thus acts as a
protective device.

Stator Resistance Starter:

In order to apply the reduced voltage to the stator of the induction motor, three
resistances are added in series with each phase of the stator winding. Initially the
resistances are kept maximum in the circuit. Due to this large voltage gets dropped
across the resistances. Hence a reduced voltage gets applied to the stator, which
reduces the high starting current. The schematic diagram showing stator resistances
is shown in the Fig.3.1. When the motor starts running, the resistances are gradually
cut off from the stator circuit. When the resistances are entirely removed from the
stator circuit i.e. rheostats in RUN position then rated voltage gets applied to the
stator. Motor runs with normal speed. The starter is simple in construction and
cheap. It can be used for both star and delta connected stator. But there are large
power losses due to resistances. Also the starting torque of the motor reduces due to
reduced voltage applied to the stator.

Autotransformer Starter:

A three phase star connected autotransformer can be used to reduce the voltage
applied to the stator. Such a starter is called an autotransformer starter. The
schematic diagram of autotransformer starter is shown in the Fig. It consists of a
suitable change over switch. When the switch is in the start position, the stator
winding is supplied with reduced voltage. This can be controlled by tapping provide
with autotransformer. When motor gathers 80% of the normal speed, the change
over switch is thrown into run position. Due to this, rated voltage gets applied to
stator winding. The motor starts rotating with normal speed. Changing of switch is
done automatically by using relays. The power loss is much less in this type of
starting. It can be used for both star and delta connected motors. But it is expensive
than stator resistance starter.

Star – Delta Starter:

This is the cheapest starter of all and hence used very commonly for the induction
motors. It uses triple pole double throw (TPDT) switch. The switch connects the
stator winding in star at start. Hence per phase voltage gets reduced by the factor 1 /
3. Due to this reduced voltage, the starting current is limited. When the switch is
thrown on other side, the winding gets connected in delta, across the supply. So it
gets normal rated voltage. The windings are connected in delta when motor gathers
sufficient speed. The agreement of star – delta starter is shown in the Fig. The
operation of the switch can be automatic by using relays which ensures that motor
will not start with the switch in Run position. The cheapest of all and maintenance
free operation are the two important advantages of this starter. While is limitations
are, it is suitable for normal delta connected motors and the factor by while voltage
change is 1 3 which cannot be changed.