PlusSmart · Authorised ElectroSine distributor
ElectroSine ESine3 / ESine4 – diagnose motors and pumps from their electrical signature, right at the MCC
Every mechanical and electrical problem in a motor and the machine it drives leaves a trace in current and voltage. ESine measures those signals at high resolution in the motor control centre and applies machine learning to recognise developing faults in the rotor, stator, bearings, couplings, gearboxes and pump load – without mounting any sensor on the machine.
- Electrical signature analysis (ESA)
- Measured at the MCC
- Rotor · Stator · Bearings
- Power quality
What is electrical signature analysis (ESA, MCSA)?
An induction motor is both a machine and a sensor: when the load or the air gap between rotor and stator varies periodically (due to mechanical or electrical faults), the magnetic field changes and the stator current is modulated. In the current spectrum these modulations appear as sidebands around the 50/60 Hz supply frequency at frequencies characteristic of each fault. Motor current signature analysis (MCSA) – extended to electrical signature analysis (ESA) when voltage is included – reads these peaks for diagnosis.
A classic example: cracked or broken rotor bars create sidebands at f × (1 ± 2s), where f is supply frequency and s is slip. A 4-pole 50 Hz motor running at 1,470 rpm has slip s = (1,500 − 1,470)/1,500 = 0.02, so the sidebands appear at 48 Hz and 52 Hz. Their amplitude relative to the 50 Hz peak (in dB) indicates severity – a fault that conventional vibration analysis finds very hard to see.
Fault groups ESine detects
| Group | Specific faults |
|---|---|
| Rotor | Cracked/broken rotor bars, end-ring faults, static/dynamic/mixed eccentricity |
| Stator | Turn-to-turn shorts, insulation degradation, coil-to-coil shorts |
| Bearings | Outer race (DE/NDE), inner race, rolling elements; poor lubrication |
| Mechanical | Misalignment/coupling, unbalance, looseness, gear mesh faults, broken teeth, coupling wear, belt tension |
| Load | Pump cavitation, impeller/fan anomalies, torque oscillation, overload, no-load running |
| Supply | Voltage harmonics, frequency deviation, VFD harmonics, power factor, sags/swells, poor connections |
Voltage unbalance – the silent motor killer
Just a few percent of voltage unbalance creates negative-sequence components, a much larger current unbalance and extra winding heating. NEMA MG-1 recommends derating the motor approximately as follows:
| Voltage unbalance | 1% | 2% | 3% | 4% | 5% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Derating factor | ≈ 0.98 | ≈ 0.95 | ≈ 0.88 | ≈ 0.82 | ≈ 0.75 |
Operation above 5% unbalance is generally not recommended. ESine4 performs full three-phase analysis – voltage and current unbalance, negative sequence, phase loss, true active/reactive power and NEMA/IEC derating – protecting motors and revealing wasted energy.
ESA vs vibration analysis
| Criterion | Vibration | Electrical signature (ESine) |
|---|---|---|
| Where installed | On the machine’s bearing housing | In the MCC via current and voltage measurement |
| Remote, submersible, Ex-area machines | Difficult or impossible | Measured from the panel |
| Rotor, stator, power-quality faults | Limited | Excellent |
| Mechanical faults (bearings, alignment, balance) | Excellent, precise location | Good, via current modulation |
| Energy information | No | Yes: power, power factor, efficiency |
ESine3 and ESine4
ESine3 – monitoring at scale
- Continuous electrical analysis for motors and driven equipment
- Uses current and voltage to identify developing mechanical and electrical faults
- No additional sensors on the machine
- Lower installation complexity and cost
ESine4 – for complex systems
- High-resolution, real-time current/voltage data
- Full three-phase analysis: unbalance, negative sequence, phase loss, phase-to-phase fault location
- True active/reactive power, NEMA/IEC derating
- Phase sequence, zero-sequence ground faults
Interpreted by PlusSmart engineers
- Baseline measured for each motor
- Results turned into actions
- Combined with vibration, oil and drive data
Frequently asked questions
Can VFD-driven motors be measured?
Yes. ESine analyses drive-induced harmonics and separates them from mechanical fault signatures.
How is it different from vibration analysis?
Vibration requires sensors on the machine and mainly sees mechanical faults. ESA measures at the panel, sees electrical faults (windings, rotor, supply) as well as mechanical ones, and works for inaccessible machines.
Does the machine have to stop for installation?
Installation is in the MCC following the plant’s electrical safety procedures; often it is done during routine panel maintenance.
Can submersible and deep-well pumps be monitored?
This is an ideal ESA application: the motor is under water where no vibration sensor can go, but its current passes through the panel above ground.
Works with
- i-ALERT® – wireless vibration and temperature
- ReliaPump™ – smart VFD pump control
- PlusSmart Analytics – engineer-led data analysis
Motor assessment at the MCC – baseline measurement
Nominate critical or hard-to-reach motors. PlusSmart assesses them at the MCC and records a baseline – once you have a baseline, every later change is visible.
Hoan Tran – Sales Director, PlusSmart Vietnam
Phone/Zalo: +84 879 848 668 · Email: sales@hoantrantdh.com