HD Hyundai, Korea’s largest shipbuilding group, has succeeded in developing a high capacity LV VFD (Low Voltage Variable Frequency Drive) for marine use, which is the first of its kind in the Korean shipbuilding industry. This means that the group is able to provide all components of the shaft generator system, the core equipment for ship electrification, with its own technology, thus securing a key step forward in the environmental market.
A marine VFD is a device that regulates the speed of a motor to maximize power generation efficiency, and it plays a key role in the “shaft generator system” that ships are equipped with, and is considered to be an environmentally friendly technology.
Generally, the motor speed is always kept constant for the generator to reliably generate electricity.
However, since the motor in a shaft generator system is associated with the power of the large engine that propels the ship, its speed is bound to vary with the speed at which the ship is traveling. In this case, the VFD can regulate the frequency to provide a stable power supply to the ship.
Compared with existing VFDs, the marine VFD developed by HD Hyundai offers significantly improved performance, improved power usage efficiency through the application of “grid-forming” technology, and precise control of motors without the need for separate position and speed sensors.
HD Hyundai personnel said, “This achievement is significant and signifies that the company has mastered its own core technology to proactively respond to decarbonization regulations and will continue to lead the global ship electrification market by integrating all of the group’s capabilities.”
