What Is an Autotune and How Do I Run One?

The specific autotune procedure of a drive depends on the drive type and is simply guided in the drive's respective manual or quickstart guide. Both documents can be found underneath the "Product Support" tab on the respective product page: Parker AC/DC Drives

What does it generally do, why do I need to do it?

The autotune is designed to "pair" a given drive and motor together. The autotune calculates some motor parameters and sets various gains in order to run the motor properly. The help files within the drive software (the provided Autotune function block, within each drive's specific template), software reference, and manual will all outline what parameters are calculated in an autotune. It does depend upon the drive type.

Importantly:

AC VFD's
- Required for Sensorless Vector and Closed Loop Vector modes. Not required in V/Hz mode.
  - It is a rotating autotune for best performance, but a stationary autotune can be conducted if you have a documented value for the motor's magnetizing current.
DC Drives
- Required to run a motor properly for all modes of operation (armature voltage feedback, encoder, tachometer, etc).
  - It is a stationary autotune. The shaft must be locked into place and not rotate.

Troubleshooting Faults after Auto-Tune

1. If the motor is re-wound, the motor specs may not match what is printed on the motor. This could cause an auto-tune to fail.

2. A rotating auto-tune will run the motor to base speed. If the voltage is low incoming to the drive, or the configured max speed is less than the base speed, the auto-tune will fail.

Run the drive in V/Hz mode and confirm the motor can run to base speed. If not, the auto-tune will not work.

3. After Auto-Tune, users need to Save to Flash. If not, the drive will revert to previous values after cycling power and the auto-tune will need to be redone.

20DEC19 JD

17MAY22 JH Added Troubleshooting