Error Frequency on Sonobond Ultrasonic Welder

1. Did you contact Sonobond Tech Support?
2. You say that you needed a voltage converter for US. Is the machine configured for European line frequency (50 Hz)? Can you change this configuration for US 60Hz?

That's probably the issue.

It's highly likely that the machine uses the AC frequency to establish it's ultrasonic frequency.

The machine says "Connected loads: 230 V 50-60Hz." I thought this meant that the machine could run on either frequency..So I though I only needed to change the voltage.

I thought you need to ring the manufacturer.

Your use of 'voltage converter' suggests something other than a simple transformer. Exactly how are you converting the voltage?

I'm using one of those black, boxy transformers. Looks kind of like this:

I studied a bit more, and I think the box I use is just a transformer..

Can you power it somewhere temporarily on 230V without the transformer - just to go/no-go the power supply?

Thanks bigg. Yeah I need to go/no-go the power supply, the generator, and the vibration system. I tested the transformer, at least voltage is right.

Can you let me know other ways to power it on 230V?

Let's step back. The machine needs 230V, 50-60 Hz. You have 120V, 60 Hz available, so you are using a step-up transformer to get 230V, right?

My suggestion was simply to take the machine to a location (if you are in the US, surely there's a 230V supply available nearby) where 230V, 60 Hz is available and hook it up/plug it in and see if the machine works. If it does, there is a problem in your transformer. If it still doesn't work, the problem lies elsewhere.

An elimination process...

How different could one transformer derived 230V source be from another?

Stranger things have happened though....

These systems have a fairly high Q which means that you may have to tune your power supply to match the frequency of your transducer, or suffer a major drop in power output.

You'd think that would have been sorted by the manufacturer if they were supplied as a system.

You should also check to make sure that your 3000 watt step-up/down transformer can supply the required peak current for your welder.

Transformer would have smoked or that breaker would trip (you would hope) if it wasn't upto the job.

Your suggestions of "thinking and hoping" are not materially contributing to this thread.

When sorting a problem you have to make some assumptions if there isn't any evidence to the contrary.

This is part of the problem elimination process.

An under rated transformer gets hot and if there are any protective devices that are over rated for that which they are protecting then smoke is inevitable in an overload situation.

Not sure why you took umbrage to my thoughts and hopes.

I am assuming that the transformer pictured was part of the kit supplied by the manufacturer and is properly rated for purpose. I also hope that the breaker shown on it was correctly sized.

OP's the only one here who could tell us for sure, short of folk here googling the plasticwelder mentioned and checking its rated power. OP has a manual.

The fact that this is a welding machine implies that the peak current can be substantially higher than the RMS current. This can explain why an after-market voltage transformer and/or its protection device might not function the way you think it does. If the transducer frequency does not correspond to the oscillator frequency, the observed ultrasonic vibration amplitude will be out of specification. I know these things because I have built and diagnosed many ultrasonic welders. If you haven't, then the evidence you refer to, doesn't exist.

Thanks Wal and welderman! Actually right after I turned on the power, the generator said error frequency.... I did nothing except turning on power... So do you guys think the machine has kinds of sensor that can detect the defects of parts? Then I press clear error message button, and press start. The error frequency appeared again 2~3 sec later after the horn coming down.

I am thinking maybe instead of frequency unmatching, some parts breaks and the machine can tell that? Because at the very first moment, there is no power supplied.

Can anyone help analysis this situation? Thanks!

Hello,

That unit is manufactured by Rinco Ultrasonics, you can call Rinco USA and they will be much more help to you than SONOBOND ever will. http://www.rinco-usa.com/en/contact.htm

The unit does a self test on start up and if the frequency varies too much, you'll get an error.It will error again if you press clear as it checks the frequency on every cycle.From what you're describing, It sounds like either the transducer / booster or output board is no good, but no real way to tell without more testing.

If you are in the LA area, we would be happy to take a look at it in our facility in Van Nuys www.nawonusa.net . We sell and service all kinds of ultrasonic welders, including those.

I'm not sure why comments 6,8,9, and 11 were considered "off topic" They seem to me to be very pertinent to Calpark's problem. He has indeed been in contact with Sonobond, but the information he received was vague at best.

My initial thought that the problem might be due to the input power frequency seems to have lead this discussion off in the wrong direction.

First of all, thread starter is a girl. Lol..

Thanks for everyone's discussion. I need to check every part in order to know where is the problem. If the power generator can provide 35KHz output, then I would say power is fine and proceed to converter.

But I have 2 questions,

1, How to check the generator output? With the error existing, will the generator have output or not?

2, If the generator is fine, how to check converter? Any way to measure the mechanical frequency?

Thanks all for help!

I would ask Sonobond to repair the unit. If you can't do that, I would determine whether the transducer is piezoelectric or magnetostrictive. You also need to determine whether the power supply is fixed frequency or auto-tune. The simplest systems are fixed frequency. To tune these you need to measure the impedance of the transducer, and tune for the lowest impedance (highest current). This should all be explained in your manual. Where are you located?

I'm reading between the lines here but I'm assuming this unit originally came from europe and is being used in the US (or vice versa) and the ac frequency is different than originally installed. if indeed the Generator is using the mains frequency as the fundamental reference for the output frequency then I would bet there is a jumper or switch somewhere on the generator to identify which mains frequency it is being fed. further I would suggest you might look into using a resonant filter on the mains to cleanup much of the hash on the line that might be throwing the generator a curveball. beyond that I'd contact Sonobond and pay one of their techs to come fix it.

Another possibility is that if this is an old unit, it may be that the electrolytic capacitors in the system may have aged and are no longer working properly. if so, replacing all of the electrolytic cans with new units of the same rating may be in order.