Motor Overload alert

The large motors in the icehouse, rake, bin floor, incline are all powered by contactors which have overload protection.

These are thermal overloads which protect against excessive current draw or running too long.

When any one of the 3 overloads trip they will activate Input 7 on the PLC.

This will put the PLC out of service as the vending machinery will not operate unless all 3 motors are operational.

You cannot reset an Overload Fault remotely as the state will persist until you reset the overload manually at the machine by pressing the red reset button. It is advisable to watch X7 to understand which overload was tripped, you will see X7 turn OFF once you reset the correct overload.

Knowing which motor caused the problem will help you narrow down what to look for.

The Incline auger may have run too long or may have a block of ice jamming it.

The Rake and horizontal auger are driven by the same motor, which could be binding on a mound of ice or the bin floor may have moved to far forward causing it to push too far into the rake preventing it from moving.

The bin floor may overload due a chain that may jumped, or bind on ice overflows.

Check, determine the problem, fix it before leaving the machine as it is likely to recur.