Determine the best component locations for your installation by applying the following strategies.
The Brush Condition Monitoring System has an operating temperature range of -20°C (-4°F) to 70°C (158°F). Avoid mounting the enclosure in areas that approach the limits of or depart from this temperature range on a regular basis. If possible, avoid mounting the monitoring system in a location that experiences direct sunlight for extended periods of time throughout the day. If sunshine exposure is unavoidable, inquire with Cutsforth about installation of a sun-shield.
The monitoring system should be installed in such a way that does not complicate generator disassembly during outages.
The monitoring system should be mounted in a location that does not experience excessive vibrations. Mounting directly to rotating equipment, such as a generator, or other structures with known vibrations, is not recommended. All cabling should be strain-relieved near input connectors. Take care to not directionally bias cable connectors when applying strain relief.
The Cutsforth Brush Health Sensors will be installed on Cutsforth EASYchange® brush holder equipment. This is a pre-requisite for the Brush Condition Monitoring installation. The primary controller and its optional Auxiliary Display are the HMI (Human-Machine Interface) components for the system. It will be important to select a Primary Controller mounting location that is in close proximity to the collector area. A worker performing brush changes will interact with the controller and the brushes on a brush-by-brush basis. Therefore, a mounting location within a few steps of the brush gear makes sense whereas a distant location would not. See below image for example. The Brush Condition Monitoring System enclosures are typically mounted using a Unistrut® frame as shown in the example below.
The Auxiliary Display is a fully-functioning duplication of the primary display that can be placed at a secondary location near the brush rigging if desired. A common installation would be on the other side of the shaft from the Primary Controller to provide an HMI at both working locations. The Auxiliary Display should be mounted within a 25ft cable run of the Primary Controller.
Physical barriers may be present between the Brush Health Sensors and Primary Controller. The ideal antenna placement would be one which does not have any physical barriers between the Brush Health Sensors and the antenna. Penetrations may be required in the brush compartment in order to mount the antenna in the optimal position. Cutsforth recommends the antenna be place inside the exciter enclosure.
|
Power Requirement |
Value |
|---|---|
|
Voltage |
85-264 VAC |
|
Recommended breaker size |
20 A |
|
Recommended power cabling wire gauge |
12 AWG |
|
Actual operational current draw |
~ .5 A at 120 VAC |
|
Component |
Standard Recommendation |
Recommendation for High-Corrosion Environments |
|---|---|---|
|
Conduit type |
Galvanized rigid metal conduit (RMC) |
Rigid Aluminum Conduit (RAC) |
|
Conduit fittings type |
Malleable |
Aluminum |
|
Strut channel type |
Hot dipped galvanized, back-to-back |
316 Stainless steel |
|
Mounting hardware |
316 Stainless steel |
316 Stainless steel |
|
Liquid flexible metallic conduit |
Type HCX |
Type HCX |
Cutsforth recommends that a duct seal be used to seal the inside of any conduit entering the Cutsforth monitoring system enclosure(s). The duct seal should be non-permanent in nature to accommodate future equipment or cable maintenance.