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15
Variable-Frequency
Drives
The power electronics motor drive comes in two major types: (1) the servo motor
drive to control the precise speed and position of the rotor and (2) the motor drive for
varying motor speed in response to a desired change in the load output, such as the
air ventilation and uid pumping rate. The response time and precision in position
are important in the servo drive but not in the variable-speed motor drive. Our inter-
est in this chapter is primarily focused on the variable-speed motor drives.
The variable-frequency drives (VFDs) for ac motors were initially developed in
the 1970s for oil reneries, where numerous ...