PowerMan UPSs have been manufactured in South Africa since 1984 and the company has always strived to produce quality, affordable products. "We have always seen ourselves as pioneers in this industry," says Jonathan Palmer, managing director of PowerMan. "In 1984 we introduced the first locally manufactured, on-line, stepped-sine wave machine specifically for use in the PC market which effectively halved the cost of UPSs to the end user. In 1987 we introduced the on-line ferroresonant range, a sine wave UPS that offered full isolation. This range has been copied by a number of other local manufacturers, and at least one overseas UPS manufacturer. Although the unit has changed from its original form to now incorporate microprocessor technology, the basic concept behind the machine has remained the same."
The ferroresonant UPS uses the properties of the constant voltage transformer (CVT) to create an AC producing storage facility, and to isolate the output from the mains input. The storage facility enables the units to supply clean power at all times. There is never a break on the output even when the mains supply fails completely. The use of a ferroresonant transformer reduces the component count of the machine thereby increasing reliability. Should the mains fail for a prolonged period and the UPS switches off due to low battery power, the units will automatically restart when the mains returns. The ferroresonant UPS is well suited to conditions in the African market because of its durability and ease of maintenance.
"It must be taken into consideration, however, that a UPS is a useless piece of equipment if it does not work at the precise time that the mains fails," said Palmer. "Most of the UPS 'failures' occur due to the units not being monitored or tested on a regular basis. This happens either due to users just not taking the time to do a simple test, or possibly the UPS is in a remote site and is not easily accessible. The question of responsibility is usually raised."
Most of the modern UPSs come with a standard software package that will relay critical UPS information to the user, such as input, output, and battery voltages as well as load level. The units have a test facility where you can simulate a mains failure and run the unit from the inverter only. These tests are generally very short (1 to 5 s) and do not test the batteries.
UPS vital health statistics on-line
In its drive to provide innovative and affordable products PowerMan recently launched its Atrax product. PowerMan Atrax is an internal intelligent card and a software package that can be added to all ferroresonant UPSs. This will give the user full reporting, and control, over the UPS via RS232 communication, or via an Ethernet connection. The software package can be installed on any computer that can be connected to the UPS, either directly at the comm. port, or via a network point. Data that is sent to the connected computer includes: input voltage, output voltage, frequency, battery voltage, load level and temperature. The unit will also be able to monitor and report on fault conditions: mains failure, battery low and overload.
The software is designed to monitor a number of UPSs on a network. Each UPS is allocated an IP address and the software can then be set to automatically scroll through the log checking each machine. Should any UPS signal a fault the program will register the fault in the exception report file. The most important feature of the PowerMan Atrax package is its ability to test, and report back, on the UPS's battery condition.
The user can switch off the input mains to the UPS for any specified period of time. The program will automatically record all voltage levels during the test, and will plot graphs for voltage and load levels. The user can create reports to determine battery performance and load level changes at regular intervals ensuring that they are always aware of the condition, and performance of the UPS.
The software package also has a Windows shutdown facility built into it. Bearing in mind that a single computer could be checking many UPSs or that a single UPS could be monitored by more than one computer, safety features have been built into the package. Firstly, in order to activate the shutdown feature the user must specify the actual UPS that will be responsible for affecting a shutdown procedure. Secondly, if a UPS is running a battery test, it will only communicate with one computer for the duration of that test. No other system on the network will be able to get information from that UPS.
The development was taken one step further with the introduction of the PowerMan EMS (external management system). This is built into a cabinet that can mount on a wall behind any UPS system. The UPS is connected to its supply, and load, via the PowerMan EMS, a connection is also made to the UPS batteries. Once installed the PowerMan EMS will allow any number, or make, of UPSs to be controlled by the same Atrax Management software. When setting up the software on the computer, the user is able to specify the type of the UPS and its location, as well as the minimum and maximum DC and AC voltages and the load capability.
The PowerMan Atrax unit is designed as a complete UPS testing and monitoring tool for all single phase UPSs up to 10 kVA. It is now possible for users to get all the communication advantages of the modern UPS incorporated into existing machines at a fraction of the cost of replacing the units.
For more information contact Jonathan Palmer, PowerMan, 086 144 4445, 011 444 4400.
| Tel: | +27 11 794 3886 |
| Fax: | +27 11 794 7435 |
| Email: | [email protected] |
| www: | www.powerman.co.za |
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