MULTIPLE DRIVE FOR A HEAVY-LOAD APPLICATION AND METHOD FOR OPERATING SUCH A MULTIPLE DRIVE

Abstract

A multiple drive for a heavy load application includes a plurality of drive trains which are activated such that individual ones of the plurality of drive trains are successively activated automatically during startup of the heavy load application as part of a predefined activation strategy according to a predefined activation scheme and an activation sequence defined therein. In the event of a repeated start of the heavy-load application, a different activation scheme can be used for the activation.

Claims

1.-10. (canceled)

11. A multiple drive for a heavy load application, comprising a plurality of drive trains which are activated such that individual ones of the plurality of drive trains are successively activated automatically during startup of the heavy load application as part of a predefined activation strategy according to a predefined activation scheme and an activation sequence defined therein, wherein a different activation scheme is used when the startup of the heavy load application is repeated.

12. The multiple drive of claim 11, wherein the drive trains include a motor in the absence of an upstream main converter.

13. The multiple drive of claim 11, wherein the drive trains include a motor and a coupling operably connected to the motor and configured as a fluid coupling.

14. A method for operating a multiple drive for a heavy load application, comprising: automatically activating individual drive trains successively from a plurality of drive trains of the multiple drive during a startup of the heavy load application as part of a predefined activation strategy according to a predefined activation scheme and an activation sequence defined therein; and using a different activation scheme when the startup of the heavy load application is repeated.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein during the startup of the heavy load application, as part of the successive activation of the individual drive trains, initially activating only one of the drive trains, bringing the heavy load application to an initial speed by the one of the activated drive trains, and activating all the drive trains or further drive trains when the initial speed is attained.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the initial speed is an idling speed.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising: measuring at least one temperature-proportional value for the drive trains of the multiple drive; and selecting the drive trains activated successively during the startup of the heavy load application on the basis of the measured temperature-proportional value.

18. The method of claim 14, further comprising: measuring at least one temperature-proportional value for the drive trains of the multiple drive; and deactivating previously activated individual drive trains during a run-up of the heavy load application depending on the at least one measured temperature-proportional value.

19. A computer program comprising program code which, when executed by a control device for controlling a multiple drive for a heavy load application, causes the control device to perform the steps of: automatically activating individual drive trains successively from a plurality of drive trains of the multiple drive during a startup of the heavy load application as part of a predefined activation strategy according to a predefined activation scheme and an activation sequence defined therein; and using a different activation scheme when the startup of the heavy load application is repeated.

20. The computer program of claim 19, wherein the control device is caused during the startup of the heavy load application, as part of the successive activation of the individual drive trains, to perform the steps of initially activating only one of the drive trains, bringing the heavy load application to an initial speed by the one of the activated drive trains, and activating all the drive trains or further drive trains when the initial speed is attained.

21. The computer program of claim 20, wherein the initial speed is an idling speed.

22. A control device for controlling a multiple drive for a heavy load application, comprising: a processing unit; a memory; and a computer program embodied as a control program which, when loaded into the memory and executed by the processing unit during operation of the control device causes the processing unit to perform the steps of: automatically activating individual drive trains successively from a plurality of drive trains of the multiple drive during a startup of the heavy load application as part of a predefined activation strategy according to a predefined activation scheme and an activation sequence defined therein; and using a different activation scheme when the startup of the heavy load application is repeated.

23. The control device of claim 22, wherein the computer program causes the processing unit to perform during the startup of the heavy load application, as part of the successive activation of the individual drive trains, the steps of initially activating only one of the drive trains, bringing the heavy load application to an initial speed by the one of the activated drive trains, and activating all the drive trains or further drive trains when the initial speed is attained.

24. A vertical mill, comprising: a multiple drive for a heavy load application, said multiple drive comprising a plurality of drive trains which are activated such that individual ones of the plurality of drive trains are successively activated automatically during startup of the heavy load application as part of a predefined activation strategy according to a predefined activation scheme and an activation sequence defined therein, wherein a different activation scheme is used when the startup of the heavy load application is repeated; and a control device for controlling the multiple drive, said control device comprising a processing unit, a memory, and a computer program embodied as a control program in a non-transitory computer readable medium, wherein the computer program, when loaded into the memory and executed by the processing unit during operation of the control device causes the processing unit to perform the steps of automatically activating individual drive trains successively from a plurality of drive trains of the multiple drive during a startup of the heavy load application as part of a predefined activation strategy according to a predefined activation scheme and an activation sequence defined therein, and using a different activation scheme when the startup of the heavy load application is repeated.

25. The vertical mill of claim 24, wherein the drive trains include a motor in the absence of an upstream main converter.

26. The vertical mill of claim 24, wherein the drive trains include a motor and a coupling operably connected to the motor and configured as a fluid coupling.

27. The vertical mill of claim 24, wherein the computer program causes the processing unit to perform during the startup of the heavy load application, as part of the successive activation of the individual drive trains, the steps of initially activating only one of the drive trains, bringing the heavy load application to an initial speed by the one of the activated drive trains, and activating all the drive trains or further drive trains when the initial speed is attained.

28. The vertical mill of claim 24, further comprising a sensor system configured to measure at least one temperature-proportional value for the drive trains of the multiple drive, said computer program causing the control device to select the drive trains activated successively during the startup of the heavy load application on the basis of the measured temperature-proportional value.

29. The vertical mill of claim 24, further comprising a sensor system configured to measure at least one temperature-proportional value for the drive trains of the multiple drive, said computer program causing the control device to deactivate previously activated individual drive trains during a run-up of the heavy load application depending on the at least one measured temperature-proportional value.

Description

[0023] In the drawings:

[0024] FIG. 1 shows a multiple drive for a heavy load application, having individual drive trains comprised by the multiple drive,

[0025] FIG. 2 shows a drive train,

[0026] FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 show other configurations of a multiple drive according to FIG. 1, and

[0027] FIG. 5 shows a control device for controlling the multiple drive and the drive trains comprised thereby.

[0028] FIG. 1 schematically illustrates, in greatly simplified form, a multiple drive 10 for a heavy load application, and the multiple drive 10 comprises a plurality of drive trains 12. The heavy load application is, by way of example, a vertical mill of which, in the case of the viewing direction (plan) selected for the illustration, the grinding table 14 caused to rotate by means of the multiple drive 10 is shown.

[0029] FIG. 2 schematically illustrates—likewise in greatly simplified form—that each drive train 12 of a multiple drive 10 comprises a motor 16, namely an electric motor, and a gearbox 18 or a motor 16, a coupling 20 and a gearbox 18. A basically per se known, continuously active converter 22 (main converter) by means of which the motor 16 can be pre-assigned a startup profile, for example, is optionally connected upstream of the motor 16, e.g. for one of the drive trains 12 of the multiple drive 10, individual drive trains 12 or all the drive trains 12. The drive train 12 is optionally assigned at least one sensor system 24 in the form of a sensor or a plurality of sensors.

[0030] FIG. 1 shows an asymmetrical arrangement of the drive trains 12. FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 likewise show a multiple drive 10 for a heavy load application, namely for a heavy load application in the form of a vertical mill by way of example. The arrangement of the drive trains 12 shown in FIG. 3 is termed a symmetrical arrangement. The arrangement shown in FIG. 4 is termed a parallel arrangement of the drive trains 12.

[0031] Each drive train 12 is self-evidently coupled in a suitable manner to the heavy load application, here the grinding table 14, in that, for example, an output-side toothed wheel of the gearbox 18 (FIG. 2) of the drive train 12 engages in a toothed ring (not shown) running around the outer perimeter of the table 14.

[0032] Heavy load applications such as a vertical mill, for example, can basically be driven by means of an individual electric motor with or without an upstream frequency converter. In a per se known manner, the use of a frequency converter allows a frequency ramp to be used for starting without producing strong overcurrent peaks and without generating undesirably high or low torques. On the other hand, using an electric motor without upstream frequency converter is known to place a considerable load on the electrical supply system because of the starting currents then required, or it is even possible that the energy supplier will be unable to provide the required starting current at all. The use of a frequency converter or other current limiting functional units (e.g. soft starters, starting resistors and the like) reduces the starting current, avoids the otherwise resulting load on the supply system and ensures that the starting current required can also normally be provided. However, a frequency converter, specifically a frequency converter for power ranges of the kind required in heavy load applications, is very expensive. In order to obviate the need for a frequency converter, in the case of drives for heavy load applications without frequency converter, a special starter (e.g. soft starter or liquid resistance starter) is therefore used for the startup process. However, such a starter for its part involves new limitations, e.g. in that is heats up or can only produce a small torque. In the case of heating, startup cannot take place several times in succession. Therefore, if a plurality of startup processes are required to start up the heavy load application, it will in each case be necessary to wait until the starter can be used again. This results in undesirable and costly waiting times. In the case of a small torque, the startup process may not be possible at all.

[0033] It is therefore proposed here to use a multiple drive 10, e.g. in a configuration as shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4, as the drive of the heavy load application. To avoid high starting currents when starting the respective heavy load application by means of a multiple drive 10, it is provided that, for starting up the heavy load application, individual drive trains 12 can be successively activated and that, for starting up the heavy load application, individual drive trains 12 are successively activated.

[0034] To successively activate individual or a plurality of drive trains 12, different but basically also combinable activation strategies are basically possible. For this, a control device 30 shown in schematically simplified form in FIG. 5 is provided which is designed and set up to indirectly or directly control the multiple drive 10 and to activate the drive trains 12 comprised thereby.

[0035] The control device 30 comprises in a per se known manner, for example, a processing unit 32 in the form of or in the manner of a microprocessor, and a memory 34 into which a control program 36 can be loaded and is loaded during operation of the control device 30. The control device 30 and the control program 36 are means of executing/applying the activation strategies described in the following. Each method step is carried out automatically by the control device 30 and under control of the control program 36 even if this is not alluded to in the following.

[0036] A first activation strategy for successively activating individual drive trains 12 consists in that, under control of the control program 36, initially only one of the drive trains 12 is activated during startup of the heavy load application. The drive train 12 to be activated is predefined or predefinable by the activation strategy. By means of the one activated drive train 12, the heavy load application is brought up to a predefined or predefinable speed, e.g. an idling speed, and when the respective speed is attained—termed the initial speed for short in the following—all the drive trains 12 or further drive trains 12 are activated according to the first activation strategy. Alternatively or additionally, the current flow to the respectively activated drive train 12 can be taken into consideration. As is well known, especially in the case of motors 16 designed as squirrel cages, the starting current already decreases markedly just before a respective nominal speed is attained. According to an activation strategy based on monitoring of the starting current, a predefined or predefinable drive train 12 is first activated by the activation strategy and its starting current monitored. If the monitored starting current falls below a predefined or predefinable threshold value, all the drive trains 12 or further drive trains 12 are activated according to the activation strategy.

[0037] A second activation strategy consists in that individual or a plurality of drive trains 12 are successively activated according to a predefined or predefinable activation scheme 38. For example, for this purpose each drive train 12 is assigned a number or other ordering criterion (represented symbolically as “A”, “B” and “C” in FIG. 1). The activation scheme 38 (represented symbolically as “A, B, C” in FIG. 5) is stored in the memory 34 of the control device 30 or in some other manner suitable and achievable for the control device 30. The use of the activation scheme 38 by the control device 30 and under control of the control program 36 initially causes the drive train 12 to which the ordering criterion specified first in the activation scheme 38 is assigned to be activated, i.e. the drive train 12 having the ordering criterion “A” in the example shown. Then the drive train 12 to which the ordering criterion specified second in the activation scheme 38 is assigned is activated (instead of the previously activated drive train 12 or in addition to the previously activated drive train 12), and so on until eventually all the drive trains 12 of the multiple drive 10 are activated.

[0038] The activation scheme 38 can, for example—in the case of a multiple drive 10 having three drive trains—also be defined in the following form: [“A--”, “-B-”, “A-C”, “ABC”]. This is intended to represent an activation scheme 38 in which initially one of the drive trains 12 (“A”) is activated, in which then another drive train 12 (“B”) is activated instead of the first activated drive train 12 (“A”), in which then the first activated drive train 12 (“A”) is re-activated together with a hitherto not yet activated drive train 12 (“C”), and in which finally all the drive trains 12 (“A”, “B”, “C”) are activated.

[0039] The process advances from one stage of the activation scheme 38 to the next stage of the activation scheme 38, for example, on the basis of a speed measurement. When a predefined or predefinabie percentage of the initial speed is attained, the process switches over to the next stage of the activation scheme 38. Accordingly, in the case of two-stage activation scheme 38, the first stage of the activation scheme 38 is active until 50% of the initial speed is reached and the second stage of the activation scheme 38 correspondingly until 100% of the initial speed is reached. The same applies to an activation scheme 38 having more than two stages. The distribution of the initial speed percentages can also increase in a nonlinear manner, because the initial acceleration of the heavy load application requires the largest energy input, so that in the case of a two-stage activation scheme 38, for example, the first stage of the activation scheme 38 is active until 30% of the initial speed is reached and the second stage of the activation scheme 38 is correspondingly active until 100% of the initial speed is reached. Additionally or alternatively, time-, temperature- and/or current-intensity-dependent switchover from one stage of the activation scheme 38 to the next stage is also possible.

[0040] Optionally in the case of repeated startup of the heavy load application, different activation schemes 38 can also be used in each case. For this purpose, at each startup of the heavy load application, the control device 30 stores information as to which activation scheme 38 was used in each case so that, for the next startup of the heavy load application, another activation scheme 38 is used, e.g. the next activation scheme 38 in the sequence of activation schemes 38, until, after the last activation scheme 38 in the sequence of activation schemes 38 is used, the first activation scheme 38 is used again. This prevents the same drive train 12 from always having to provide the initial acceleration of the heavy load application at startup of the heavy load application. The load is therefore spread by using different activation schemes 38. By way of example and on the basis of the example already used above, such activation schemes 38 applied to some extent in a rotating manner can be formulated as follows: [[“A--”, “-B-”, “A-C”, “ABC”]; [“-B-”, “--C”, “AB-”, “ABC”]; [“--C”, “A--” “-BC”, “ABC”]].

[0041] As an alternative to such an e.g. rotating application of a plurality of activation schemes 38, “random” activation of the drive trains 12 is also possible. The random selection of the particular drive train 12 to be activated is performed automatically by the control device 30, e.g. using a so-called random generator. If in the case of random selection a drive train 12 is selected whose temperature (or whose temperature-proportional measured value; see below) is already above a predefined or predefinable limit value, the drive train 12 selected is not activated and a new drive train 12 is selected instead on a random basis.

[0042] Additionally or alternatively to using one or more activation schemes 38, individual drive trains 12 can also be activated on the basis of at least one measured value acquired in respect of at least one drive train 12. In the explanation of the diagram in FIG. 2, a sensor system 24 shown there was mentioned. The sensor system 24 comprises, for example, a temperature sensor and the sensor system 24 accordingly provides a temperature measurement, e.g. a temperature measurement taken on the motor 16. A respective temperature of the drive train 12 or of the motor 16 comprised thereby is a suitable criterion for switching from one drive train 12 to another drive train 12 likewise comprised by the multiple drive 10. This prevents one of the drive trains 12 from overheating during startup of the heavy load application. Aside from using a temperature measurement or in addition to using a temperature measurement, it is also possible to use a measured value that is indicative of the temperature of the drive train 12. Thus it is also conceivable, for example, to measure a respective slippage of the drive train 12 by means of the sensor system 24 and to determine an associated temperature on this basis (the temperature of a fluid coupling is known to be slip-dependent). In the following, such or similar measured values will be collectively termed a measure for a temperature of the respective drive trains 12 or a temperature-proportional measured value.

[0043] An activation strategy based thereon provides that, for the drive trains 12 comprised by the multiple drive 10, at least one temperature-proportional measured value is acquired in each case and that the drive trains 12 successively activated during startup of the heavy load application are selected on the basis of the temperature-proportional measured value, e.g. by first activating the drive train 12 having the lowest temperature-proportional measured value. This ensures that only a drive train 12 not loaded or lightly loaded previously is activated in each case. As a result, the loads placed on the drive trains 12 in the multiple drive are evenly distributed.

[0044] An activation strategy based on a temperature-proportional measured value can also be used to select one of a plurality of activation schemes 38, e.g. such that an activation scheme 38 is selected according to a temperature-proportional measured value of a drive train 12 activated in the first stage of the respective activation scheme 38.

[0045] As a further or augmented activation strategy, automatic deactivation of a drive train 12 or of individual drive trains 12 and/or automatic activation of a drive train 12 or of individual drive trains 12 can take place by means of the control device 30 and under control of the control program 36 on the basis of temperature-proportional measured values. The result of such an activation strategy is, for example, that during startup of the heavy load application the drive train 12 having the lowest temperature-proportional measured value is activated first, that during startup a temperature-proportional measured value of the or each already activated drive train 12 is monitored, that an already activated drive train 12 is deactivated if the temperature-proportional measured value thereof exceeds a predefined or predefinable limit value, and that instead of the thus deactivated drive train 12 the drive train 12 of the multiple drive 10 having the lowest temperature-proportional measured value is activated.

[0046] The on/off switching of a drive train 12 on the basis of a temperature-proportional measured value can also still be used after startup of the heavy load application, i.e. during ongoing operation. In a similar manner, during ongoing operation a drive train 12 can be deactivated cyclically according to a predefined or predefinable scheme and an inactive drive train 12 can be activated in its place.

[0047] Although the invention has been described and illustrated in detail by the exemplary embodiment, the invention is not limited by the example(s) disclosed and other variations may be inferred therefrom by persons skilled in the art without departing from the scope of protection sought for the invention.

[0048] Individual salient aspects of the description presented here may be summarized as follows: specified is a multiple drive 10 for a heavy load application and a method for operating such a multiple drive 10, wherein the multiple drive 10 comprises a plurality of drive trains 12 and wherein, during startup of the heavy load application, individual drive trains 12 are successively activatable or activated as the case may be. During startup of the heavy load application, as part of the successive activation/activatability, initially only one of the drive trains 12 or a group of drive trains 12 is activated, so that a defined starting sequence results and the initial starting current is limited. In the case of any required repeated startup of the heavy load application, a drive train 12 or at least one drive train 12 other than the drive train(s) activated during the previous startup is initially activated, so that a defined starting sequence likewise results and a new startup process can be initiated immediately or without any appreciable waiting time.