34 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ENERGY CONVERSION, VOL. 19, NO.

1, MARCH 2004

Determination of the Absolute Rotor Temperature

of Squirrel Cage Induction Machines
Using Measurable Variables
Martin Maximini and Hans-Jürgen Koglin

Abstract—This paper presents a new method for observing the

rotor temperature of high-power squirrel cage induction machines
using measurable variables. The method is based on the fact that
the rotor resistance depends on the actual rotor temperature. The
main problem is to separate the changes in the rotor resistance due
to temperature and skin effect. By comparing the input impedance
with a known circle diagram measured during commissioning, it
is possible to calculate changes in the rotor temperature. Further
analyses also make it possible to obtain the absolute rotor temper-
ature at any time. Results of procedure testing are demonstrated
through computer simulations and evaluations of data recorded on
a 75-kW test machine.
Fig. 1. Equivalent circuit diagram of an induction machine.
Index Terms—Differential measurement, induction machine,
rotor temperature, thermal protection.

I. INTRODUCTION corresponding algorithm was developed on the basis of a very

simple first-order thermal model. This kind of modeling is quite

D UE to their high reliability and their robust construction,

induction machines with squirrel cage rotors are installed
in many areas of industrial practice. In the past decade, research
in protection techniques and instrumentation technology have
brought some new methods for the measurement of protection-
relevant variables, their link to instrumentation and control tech-
nology and, finally, their analysis. Effective supervisory systems
have two positive effects: the lifetime of the machine can be
prolonged and the operating range of the machine and of the
following process can be expanded. Still, a critical variable for
induction machines, in particular for those of high power, is the
rotor temperature. Direct measurement of the rotor temperature
requires considerable effort and it is not very reliable. During
the last few years, a number of methods for calculating the
rotor temperature have been published. Prediction procedures
calculate the actual rotor temperature by using thermal models
[1]–[5] or neural networks [6], [7], whereas other procedures
use the effects of the rotor temperature on directly measurable
variables [8]–[12]. Although some of these ideas are very inno-
vative, they still do not satisfy the practical requirements. The
reason for this is on one hand the lack of general applicability
of some methods or the complexity of measurement, and, on the
other hand, the sensitivity to disturbances or the non-observance
of nonlinear effects. The main problem in observing the rotor
temperature in measurable variables is to separate the effects
due to skin effect and temperature. Thus, even today, a primitive
interlocking rule is implemented in most protection devices. The
Manuscript received January 13, 2003.
The authors are with the Saarland University, Saarbrücken 66123, Germany.
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/TEC.2003.821833
0885-8969/04$20.00 © 2004 IEEE
conservative, so that the machine and the process are not used
optimally.
At the Institute of Power Engineering at the Saarland
University, a new method for observing changes in the rotor
temperature using measured variables has been developed.
This new method, called compensation method, was published
first in [13]. In Section II, the principle of this method and
some new results are presented using a simulation model and
data recorded on a 75-kW test machine. Subsequently, a new
algorithm using the results of the compensation method for
calculating the absolute rotor temperature is explained and the
results obtained are presented.
II. COMPENSATION METHOD
A. Principle
The idea is based on the fact that during the starting operation
each induction machine has its own typical impedance circle
diagram. This diagram is the fingerprint of the machine. The
target of this method is to determine the actual heating status of
the rotor by evaluating changes in this circle diagram.
Fig. 1 shows the well-known equivalent circuit diagram of the
induction machine.
It is obvious that the input impedance depends on the
values of the model parameters, on the temperature of stator
and rotor , and on the slip . An increase in the rotor
temperature has the equivalent effect on the input impedance
as a reduction of the slip . This fact gives the presented method
the name compensation method and it is used in the following
MAXIMINI AND KOGLIN: DETERMINATION OF THE ABSOLUTE ROTOR TEMPERATURE
Fig. 2. Schematic structure of the test machine.
TABLE I
INDUCTION MACHINE NAMEPLATE DATA
Fig. 3. Principle of the compensation method.
manner: by having two impedance circle diagrams with addi-
tional information about the slip, the rotor temperature differ-
ence between points of identical slip can be determined. The
first impedance circle diagram is called the reference diagram
(ref) and the other the measurement diagram (meas). Fig. 2
shows the schematic structure of the test machine. Machine
nameplate data are summarized in Table I.
The principle of the compensation method is given in Fig. 3:
There are the measured impedance circle diagrams of two starts
of the test machine presented. The impedance phasor moves
clockwise during the starting operation. The points of the mea-
surement diagram and of the reference diagram have iden-
tical slip but not identical phasors. Because
the rotor temperature during the measurement start was about
hotter than during the reference start, the point
corresponds to point of the reference. How to use this quali-
tative effect to quantify the temperature difference is shown
in Section III.
B. Derivation
The rotor temperature difference between the points with
identical slip (points and ) can be evaluated as follows: the
input impedance and the rotor resistance are equal at the points
and
(1)
35
Fig. 4. Block diagram of the compensation method.
In more detailed form, (1) can be rewritten as follows:
(2)
In (2), is a reference temperature (generally ).
The absolute difference in the electrical rotor frequency between
the points and can be neglected, so the following holds:
(3)
Thus, the parameter is omitted from (2). This implies
that the skin effect has no influence on the method. Using the
rotor differential temperature as defined in (4), (2) can be
converted into (5)
(4)
(5)
It is obvious that the calculated rotor differential temperature
depends on the measured slip , the temperature coeffi-
cient of the rotor material , and the reference rotor temperature
. The reference rotor temperature has no essential influ-
ence on the differential temperature. This will be shown in the
next paper section. Another disturbance, the stator temperature
, can be eliminated by using an impedance on which the stator
has no influence [see (6) and Fig. 1]. The stator resistance
and the stator temperature can easily be measured
(6)
In Fig. 4, the realization of the compensation method is sum-
marized. During commissioning—for a reference start—the
significant variables (slip, input impedance, and stator temper-
ature) are recorded. These data can be called the fingerprint of
the machine. Later, during operation, the correspondent mea-
surement data are obtained. With the compensation method,
these measurement data are compared with the fingerprint
as already explained. The output result of the compensation
method is the rotor differential temperature.
C. Identification of a Simulation Model
To compare practical and theoretical effects of the compensa-
tion method, it is necessary to have a simulation model of the test
machine. For estimating the parameters of the equivalent circuit
36
Fig. 5. Measured and simulated impedance circle diagram.
TABLE II
RESULTS OF THE PARAMETER ESTIMATION
Fig. 6. Used reference rotor temperatures.
diagram of the test machine, a least square algorithm is used.
The objective function is the minimum square deviation be-
tween the adjusted input impedance during a start measured and
the model impedance [14]. The resistance of the stator can be
measured directly. The results of the estimation with their 95%-
confidence-intervals are shown in Table II. Fig. 5 shows the
measured impedance circle diagram and the impedance circle
diagram of the identified model. The impedance circle diagrams
are corresponding very well.
This simulation model is used in Section II-D to compare
theoretical and practical effects of the compensation method.
D. Examinations of Different Influences
First, the influence of the reference rotor temperature
on the result of the compensation method is examined. Thus,
the compensation method is tested with different reference rotor
temperatures shown in Fig. 6.
is the effectively measured reference rotor tempera-
ture, and are the reference rotor temperatures
simulated for this examination. In Fig. 7, the results obtained by
the compensation method are presented.
Fig. 7(a) and (c) are the theoretical results obtained with the
identified model, and Fig. 7(b) and (d) show the corresponding
results using the measured input impedances. Temperatures and
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ENERGY CONVERSION, VOL. 19, NO. 1, MARCH 2004
Fig. 7. Influence of different reference rotor temperatures (left: theory, right:
practice).
Fig. 8. Influence of the stator temperature (left: theory, right: practice).
Fig. 9. Influence of errors in the slip (left: theory, right: practice).
slip data are the same for the theoretical and the practical exami-
nations; in both cases, the measured data were used. The indexes
specify the used reference rotor temperature.
It can be concluded that theory and practice correspond very
well. The influence of the used reference rotor temperature on
the result is not essential. The influence depends on the me-
chanical speed (i.e., slip) of the machine and on the size of the
rotor differential temperature for theory and practice in the same
manner.
In Fig. 8, the influence of the stator temperature on the result
of the compensation method is presented, in Fig. 8(a) the the-
oretical effect is seen, in Fig. 8(b) the practical effect, respec-
tively. With being designated, the differential temperature
calculated with the adjusted impedances (6), is calculated
with the original impedances, including the stator influences.
Theory and practice show the same effect: the influence of
the stator temperature diminishes with the mechanical speed.
The last effect examined is the influence of errors in the slip
on the compensation method. These results are shown in Fig. 9.
The slip of the measurement is changed for one evaluation: the
electrical frequency is changed from 50.018 to 50 Hz. It is
MAXIMINI AND KOGLIN: DETERMINATION OF THE ABSOLUTE ROTOR TEMPERATURE
Fig. 10. Measured and calculated rotor differential temperature for different
operating conditions.
visible that theory and practice correspond once again, errors
in the electrical frequency (i.e., in the slip) show the same in-
fluence on the calculated differential temperature : an effect
can only be observed in the range of higher mechanical speed.
It can be summarized that all of the presented studies have
shown that theory and practice correspond excellently and that
the examined disturbances have no essential influence on the
result of the compensation method.
Finally, the compensation method is tested for different op-
erating conditions of the machine. The machine must run under
load, because running at no load, the rotor temperature is not
observable in the input impedance. The results of the analyses
are presented in Fig. 10. The evaluated start was a start with the
motor initially at ambient temperature. Therefore, the rotor dif-
ferential temperature during this time is about 0 . After start,
a load application of 21 kW was made. Due to the machine run-
ning with rated speed, the rotor is cooling off by 50 during
16 min. After that, a load change to 69 kW was made and the
rotor is warming up by 20 . Subsequently, a load change to
29 kW was made.
It can be concluded that the presented method gives excel-
lent results under all tested operating conditions of the machine.
Only for a short period after load changes, differential temper-
ature cannot be observed. This is due to the electromechan-
ical transient reactions which are caused by these load changes.
Under these conditions, the equivalent circuit diagram does not
describe the machine. The method is applicable during steady
states or quasi-steady states.
If the absolute reference temperature is known in advance, it
would be also possible to calculate the actual absolute rotor tem-
perature by summation of the actual differential temperature and
reference temperature at points of identical slip. In Section III,
an algorithm for absolute reference temperature estimation is
presented. The data measured during two similar starts repre-
sent the data basis of this algorithm.
III. DETERMINATION OF THE ABSOLUTE ROTOR TEMPERATURE
As shown in Fig. 11, the thermal transfer function in the
Laplace-domain is the starting point of the algorithm for refer-
ence rotor temperature reconstruction. Here, the input variable
is a current dependent power loss which is proportional to
37
Fig. 11. Thermal transfer function.
Fig. 12. Algorithm for reference temperature reconstruction (a) Model
parameter for the heating of the machine during the starting operation. (Stator
temperature directly measurable) (b) Model parameter for the cooling of the
machine during the steady-state operation, identified with the differential
temperatures. (Rotor differential temperature from the compensation method).
the square of the stator current . The output variables are the
stator and the rotor temperatures ( , ).
The key idea of the algorithm is to estimate the parameters of
the rotor model by using the result of the compensation
method and the stator model . The stator model can be
easily identified by means of the measured stator temperature.
The principle of the algorithm for the reference rotor tem-
perature reconstruction is shown in Fig. 12. It is assumed that
the proportions of the model parameters for the heating of the
machine during the starting operation and for the cooling of
the machine during the steady-state operation are identical. For
identifying the thermal models, a least square algorithm is used.
In the next step, the dependency of the differential rotor tem-
perature on the reference rotor temperature, given by (5) and in
Fig. 7, can be used to estimate the reference rotor temperature.
By combining the algorithm shown in Fig. 12 with the compen-
sation method described in Section II, it is possible to obtain
an algorithm for adaptive calculation of the reference rotor tem-
perature. As already mentioned, the measured data of two sim-
ilar starts represent the data basis of the algorithm. In Fig. 13,
the principle of this adaptive reference rotor temperature recon-
struction is shown.
The compensation method is initialized with a random ref-
erence rotor temperature . The result of the compensation
method, the differential rotor temperature , is used as an input
38
Fig. 13. Principle for adaptive reference temperature reconstruction.
Fig. 14. Result of the adaptive reference temperature reconstruction k :
iteration counter.
variable for the algorithm described in Fig. 12. The result of
this procedure is again the absolute rotor temperature . This
loop is repeated until the calculated rotor temperature does not
change anymore.
For testing the algorithm reliability, it is necessary to check
whether the finally calculated rotor temperature is independent
of the algorithm initialization.
In Fig. 14, the results of two runs with different initializa-
tions of the reference temperature are presented. The first cal-
culation (A) started with a reference temperature ramp from
20 to 30 , the second calculation (B) started with a ramp
temperature from 20 to 200 .
The simulations showed that the calculated rotor reference
temperatures converge to the same result after three iterations,
independent of the selected initial values (see Fig. 14).
Thus, the fingerprint of the machine is complete and it is pos-
sible to calculate the absolute rotor temperature by adding the
rotor reference temperature and the result of the compensation
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ENERGY CONVERSION, VOL. 19, NO. 1, MARCH 2004
Fig. 15. Measured and calculated absolute rotor temperature.
method. As an example, the result of such a calculation—using
the differential temperature from Fig. 10—is given in Fig. 15.
It can be concluded that it is possible to calculate the rotor
temperature very exactly, the difference between the calculated
and the measured rotor temperature averages less than 10 .
IV. CONCLUSION
In this paper, a new method for observing the rotor tempera-
ture using the input impedance, the slip, and the stator temper-
ature of an induction machine is presented. In the first step, the
temperature difference between the actual rotor temperature and
a reference temperature is detected by using the rotor tempera-
ture dependency of the input impedance. This method is called
compensation method. Because this method has the character-
istic of a differential measurement, the main problem, separating
the changes in the rotor resistance due to skin effect and temper-
ature, can be solved.
In the second step, the dependency of the result of the com-
pensation method on the reference rotor temperature and the
measured stator temperature are used in an algorithm for ref-
erence rotor temperature reconstruction. Here, the assumption
was established that the proportions of the thermal stator and
rotor model parameters for the heating of the machine during
the starting operation and for the cooling of the machine during
the steady-state operation are equal. By combining these two
procedures, it is possible to adaptively reconstruct the reference
rotor temperature. Thus, the absolute rotor temperature can be
obtained by addition at any time.
The methods are tested by simulations and evaluations of data
recorded on a 75-kW test machine. In both cases, the efficiency
of the methods is shown.
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39
[14] S. Spannhake, “Eine Methode Zur Identifikation Der Parameter Der
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Martin Maximini received the Dipl.-Ing. and Dr.-Ing. degrees from the Saar-
land University, Saarbruecken, Germany, in 1995 and 2001, respectively.
Currently, he is Senior Consulting Engineer in the Electrical System Con-
sulting Group of ABB Utilities GmbH, Mannheim, Germany. He is responsible
for the planning of power systems. His main research interests include reliability
of power systems, protection, and electrical machines.
Hans-Jürgen Koglin was born in 1937. He received the Dipl.-Ing. and Dr.-Ing.
degrees from the Technical University Darmstadt, Darmstadt, Germany, in 1964
and 1972, respectively.
Currently, he is a Full Professor at Saarland University, Saarbruecken, Ger-
many, where he has been since 1983. From 1973 to 1983, he was a Professor at
Saarland University. His main research interests include the planing and oper-
ation of power systems and specially optimal MV and LV networks, visibility
of overhead lines, state estimation, reliability, corrective switching, protection,
and fuel cells.