# Free Simulator for Motor Control ??



## cade1181 (Nov 19, 2012)

LicensedElectrician.com online supply


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## bill39 (Sep 4, 2009)

Try the PLC Talk website at plctalk/quanda.net.

It is actually a PLC ladder logic simulator but should allow you to do most things.


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## mburtis (Sep 1, 2018)

If your looking for plc type stuff. The automation direct do more software has a simulator built into it and it's a free download.


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## paulengr (Oct 8, 2017)

Motor controls is a big topic. It’s one of the biggest sections of NEC. And since I work at a motor shop I probably get all the crazy oddballs, it’s not easy. But you can take it in pieces.

As far as understanding good old “controls” it’s pretty simple. You have 2 wire and 3 wire circuits. Everything is a variation on those two. You can do a google search for motor control wiring diagrams and look at the Schneider and Allen Bradley books. You should be able to buy a small contactor and a couple push buttons for under $100 from say Automation direct and use the AB or Schneider diagram books as guides. PLC is just an extension of this where part of the controls are done in software. As an example reversing starters are just two regular circuits interlocked to each other and HOA switches are two 2 wire controls or a 2 wire and a 3 wire control switched with the HOA. 2 speed and wye delta just adds timers and interlocks to the basic 2/3 wire control.

Stepping up to the power side we get into single phase which involves a bunch of different schemes involving capacitors, centrifugal switches, potential relays, or just timers to make the starting coils work. Best way to learn is with a motor and a starter that is broken. In contrast 3 phase is far simpler. You have some kind of short circuit protection (fuse/breaker), an overload relay, and a contactor Again if you have to spend over $100 you aren’t shopping in the right places. The big trouble here is access to three phase power which isn’t typical in residential. And this assumes you either don’t have/use a motor or you acquire a donor somewhere.

The final jump is drives; soft starts, DC drives, VFDs. Those are the most popular now. Cycloconverters, eddy current drives, PM servos/steppers, LCIs, synchronous motor controls, and of course Ward Leonard loops snd MG sets are out there but far more rare. The more exotic ones are just variations on the big three. All of these are going to involve analog controls and again a simulator is not a substitute for the real thing. A cheap small VFD or soft starter isn’t a lot of money these days.

Even when you scale it up, it doesn’t change. You will see things like the contactor coil goes electronic or uses 2 coils in older schemes, the overload is connected to CTs, and the control circuit is fed cua transformer. Again it’s all the exact same thing but just scaled up.

I find most electricians get thrown off on motor controls just because of the shear complexity. You have typically at least two separate systems and voltages.


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## gpop (May 14, 2018)

To understand controls you need to understand what parts are used and the theory behind the parts. A simulator is not going to help unless someone supplies you with a print or a problem to solve.

Do you have access to prints for a mcc bucket or some controls you have come across in the field?


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## wiz1997 (Mar 30, 2021)

9 year old post.
He probably found what he was looking for.

But additional info may help someone with the same question.


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