International Rectifier is offering a new family of highly integrated, ultra-compact, patent pending µIPM™ power modules for high efficiency appliance and light industrial applications including compressor drives for refrigeration, pumps for heating and water circulation, air-conditioning fans, dishwashers, and automation systems. By utilizing an innovative packaging solution, the µIPM family delivers a new benchmark in device size, offering up to a 60% smaller footprint than existing 3-phase motor control power ICs.

Ultra-compact at 12x12x0.9mm in a PQFN package, the µIPM family comprises a series of fully integrated 3-phase surface-mount motor control circuit solutions. IR's innovation is utilizing PCB copper traces to dissipate heat from the module, providing cost savings through a smaller package design and even eliminating the need for an external heat sink. By using standard packaging QFN technology, assembly is simplified by eliminating through-hole second pass assembly and improving thermal performance compared to traditional dual-in-line module solutions.

IR’s µIPM product family features a common pin-out and package size and is available in from 2A to 4A and voltages of 250V and 500V.

The European integrated motors and drives (IMD) market has recently recorded consistently high growth rates, except in 2009 when it was affected by the economic recession. During that year, the European IMD market witnessed greater decline in demand (about 14%), compared to the global IMD market (about 13%).

However, with numerous drivers and fewer addressable challenges, the European IMD market is ready to bounce back. Frost & Sullivan anticipates a cumulative annual growth rate of 12.1% from 2010 to 2017.

“The demand for high efficiency, along with the need to reduce energy consumption, is set to attract investments in IMD solutions,” notes Frost & Sullivan Research Analyst Ramasubramanian Natarajan. “Heightened knowledge about their potential benefits will extend the implementation of IMDs across an extensive range of industrial applications.”

IMDs are expected to gain preference over stand-alone motors and drives over the long-term. This, however, will depend on anticipated technological advancements in functionality and the availability of the technology at an affordable cost.

“The optimal compatibility of the variable frequency drive (VFD) with the motor in an IMD ensures efficient performance, with efficiency levels exceeding 90%,” remarks Ramasubramanian. “This also makes IMD units easier to deploy than procuring motor and drive as two separate components and then combining them to achieve desired performance. It also reduces lag time and increases productivity.”

While these are positive signs, the immediate challenge for IMD manufacturers will be to scale down high initial costs and project product benefits more clearly to end-users. Another issue has been the technical inability, so far, to develop IMDs for higher power ratings.

“Due to technological limitations, above a certain point, the physical size of the product makes the integration of motor and drives lose its meaning,” explains Ramasubramanian. “While VFD solutions are in position to meet customer demands for higher power rating applications, IMD solutions are not perceived to be cost-effective at high power levels, thereby limiting the overall growth potential of the market.”

Technological advances and their availability across a range of power ratings will lead to the deeper penetration of IMDs into a wider range of applications. This, in turn, will boost customer acceptance of the technology. Competitive price levels will also contribute to encouraging demand for integrated motors and drives across key end-user industry segments.

According to Frost & Sullivan, the European Market for Integrated Motors and Drives market earned revenues of $285.3 million in 2010 and estimates this to reach $632.8 million in 2017. The research covers AC, DC, servo and stepper integrated motors and drives.

If you are interested in more information on this study, please send an email with your contact details to Anna Zanchi, Corporate Communications, at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Lenze explains how to choose, install and commission a drive.

The difference between soft-starters and VFDs

Control a drive with a 4-20ma signal

The market for industrial networking is still strong according to a new report from IMS Research, an independent provider of market research and consultancy. An estimated 31 million new fieldbus and Ethernet nodes were installed worldwide in 2011; this number is forecast to grow by an average of 10% a year, to just over 45 million new connected nodes in 2015.

The report, “The World Market for Industrial Networking – 2011 Edition”, forecasts that, in EMEA and the Americas, new connected nodes will grow fastest in servo and inverter drives. Their grow rate will be 11.8% a year, resulting in 3.5 million inverter drives and 0.8 million servo drives being connected to a network in 2015.

“These new network nodes will grow so fast because of the high growth in shipments of servo and inverter drives” explains Graham Brown, a market analyst. “Drive shipments are growing quickly in all regions, although the industry sectors creating this growth differ by drive type and region. The adoption of medium-voltage drives, for example, is growing in the oil and gas industry; growth in shipments of servo drives is in the machine-tool industry.”

While shipment growth is a key factor, IMS Research is also seeing a steady increase in the percentage of drives that are network-enabled and connected. The current focus on improving energy efficiency in factories is largely due to the potential reduction in running costs it offers; this may also be legislated in the coming years. Networked drives offer an effective means of improving overall factory efficiency;  the number of new networked drives will likely increase by a substantial amount if such legislation is introduced. However, this is not likely to happen before 2015.

Many more networked drives are forecast to be shipped in Asia Pacific, partly because of many new greenfield projects. IMS Research projects that there will be about 4.3 million new servo and inverter drives networked in this region; equating to a growth rate of well over 15% a year, significantly above the world average rate.

“This is not surprising.” commented Brown. “Since 2009, several countries in Asia, especially China, have enjoyed strong economic growth. Heavy spending on industrial and infrastructure projects means that markets for several industrial products, particularly operator terminals and industrial PCs, are also growing quickly at over 14% a year. This suggests that the strong growth already seen in automation and in turn industrial networking in Asia Pacific is likely to continue.”

What are Net Zero Energy Buildings (NZEBs) and why do they matter? NZEB guru Tim Wentz shares his ideas at a meeting of building technology experts. Meeting sponsored by ITT (Now Xylem) RCW.

Tim Wentz is a registered professional engineer, a LEED Accredited Professional and a member of the faculty of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Construction Management program. He received MCAA’s 2009 Distinguished Service Award and is an ASHRAE fellow.

This from a new release from Pike Research:

"Because commercial buildings consume roughly 23% of all electricity globally, the automation systems that ensure efficient performance are a critical part of energy management.  Until the mid-1990s, modern building automation consisted of little more than individual systems with simple control panels for switches, timers, and alarms.  Today, the market for commercial building automation systems is in the midst of revolutionary change in terms of technology and utility.  In the last several years, the focus has shifted from an individual system view to a more holistic view so that the “building system” can be defined to include virtually any device or data source within the building.  The amount of data created by automation systems can be overwhelming, but real competitive and economic value exists in using the data to monitor performance and uncover trends.  According to a new report from Pike Research, the market for commercial building automation systems will double over the next decade, increasing from $72.5 billion in 2011 to $146.4 billion by 2021."

The complete release is here: http://www.pikeresearch.com/newsroom/global-revenues-for-commercial-building-automation-systems-will-reach-146-billion-by-2021

Timing the announcement with the AHR show this week in Chicago, Danfoss has introduced the VLT® HVAC Basic Drive - a small, full-featured variable speed drive that promises reliable, low-cost HVAC performance for basic fan and pump operations.

“In some fan and pump operations advanced drive features are unnecessary and, because they are superfluous, simply add to overall costs.  The VLT HVAC Basic Drive is an ideal solution that strikes the optimum balance between price and variable speed drive performance in these straightforward HVAC installations,” says Ed Smith, a company representative.

VLT HVAC Basic Drives minimize wear on HVAC equipment and maximize system up-time, while reducing HVAC system operating costs up to 15%. 

The company says that the VLT HVAC Basic Drive is the most compact drive in its class and with its specifications to reduce panel space requirements. Numerous built-in features reduce, and in some applications may even eliminate, the need for additional external equipment such as gateways, PI controllers and PLCs.  An Automatic Energy Optimizer function reduces energy consumption by up to 15%, while “sleep mode” functionality can help further reduce operating costs and extend drive life.  Bypass frequencies minimize operating noise, vibration and resonance issues.

VLT HVAC Basic Drives also feature a “start up wizard” that makes drive set-up fast and simple, and easy tool access further aids fast and effective commissioning and operation.  A robust single-piece enclosure provides reliable, maintenance-free operation in ambient temperatures up to 50 degrees C, with no external cooling required.  A unique cooling concept provides problem-free performance, even in harsh environments, without forced air flowing over the electronics.

What is SmartGrid?