Rockwell Automation AutoMax™ Distributed Power System

AutoMax ™ Distributed Power Systems: Redefining Industrial Drive Control Architecture

In the field of modern industrial automation, the requirements for the performance, flexibility, and reliability of drive systems are becoming increasingly stringent. The traditional centralized control architecture often faces bottlenecks when dealing with complex, multi axis, and high dynamic response applications. Rockwell Automation launches AutoMax ™  Distributed Power System (DPS) represents an innovative solution that significantly improves overall system efficiency by deploying control tasks and power conversion processing in a distributed manner. This article aims to provide a comprehensive technical perspective for engineers and application experts by delving into the core architecture, key components, software ecosystem, and technological advantages of DPS.

Overview and Core Concepts of Distributed Power Systems (DPS)

AutoMax ™  DPS is not a single product, but a complete system architecture designed specifically for AC/DC motor drive control. Its core concept lies in "decoupling control hierarchy" and "distributed intelligence". The system assigns high-level control algorithms, drive outer loop control, and real-time control of power modules to different dedicated processors, thereby achieving more optimized task division and faster response speed.

This distributed architecture brings significant advantages in multiple aspects:

Improved performance: By using modular components and high-performance RISC microprocessors, processing power can be dispersed and enhanced.

Enhance flexibility: AC and DC drivers can be mixed and controlled within the same system, allowing customization of the most suitable power technology according to the requirements of each stage of the process.

Simplified engineering and debugging: The universal software interface makes different power technologies transparent to users, and graphical configuration tools simplify the installation and debugging process.

Reduce overall cost: Modular design facilitates maintenance and upgrades, and power hardware can be installed away from the control cabinet and closer to the motor, significantly reducing on-site wiring costs and space requirements.

The hardware foundation of DPS is built on the powerful AutoMax platform, which consists of an AutoMax processor located inside the control cabinet (responsible for high-level coordination and logic), a universal drive controller module (responsible for drive level closed-loop control), and power module interfaces and modules installed near the motor (responsible for actual power conversion). The components are connected through noise resistant fiber optic links, with a communication distance of up to 750 meters, ensuring signal integrity and precise synchronization during long-distance transmission.

DPS Core Hardware Architecture Analysis

The hardware architecture of DPS is the foundation for implementing distributed control, mainly composed of general components and specialized components for different driver types.

1. General hardware components

Universal Drive Controller Module: The UDC module is one of the brains of DPS, installed as a high-speed slave processor module in the AutoMax rack. It is based on RISC technology and has built-in non-volatile flash memory for storing its own and PMI operating system, driver configuration parameters, and UDC tasks (one for each driver). The front panel provides two fiber optic communication channels for transmitting and receiving ports and four programmable D/A output ports for connecting recorders or instruments. The LED indicator lights on the panel visually display the communication link and drive status.

Fiber optic link: This is the neural network that connects the UDC module with the remote PMI. Manchester code is adopted to carry out point-to-point serial communication at the rate of 10Mbps. Fiber optic cables are completely unaffected by electromagnetic interference and can effectively prevent ground loop problems, ensuring reliable data transmission in harsh industrial environments.

2. DC drive hardware components

For the SD3000/SF3000 series DC drive, its PMI is a four slot rack that includes:

Power module: Provides power to all modules inside the PMI rack.

PMI processor module: Based on RISC, it executes inner loop control algorithms, manages communication within the rack, and provides feedback and diagnostic information to the UDC module.

Rotary Transformer and Drive I/O Module: Processing external rotary signals (with a resolution of 12/14 bits) and providing analog input and drive I/O interfaces. Its rotary to digital converter can automatically match the characteristics of cables up to 150 meters in length.

DC power supply technology module: Digitally processes all armature and excitation signals from the DC power module for current and magnetic field regulation algorithms.

The DC power module provides a complete range from 1 to 1000 horsepower (higher power can be achieved through parallel connection), including irreversible and reversible versions, providing continuous and adjustable voltage and current for DC motors.