The carousel is a popular facility in amusement parks. Traditional carousels have a fixed speed, leading to insufficient entertainment value. With the popularization of frequency conversion technology, carousels can adjust their speed on demand, which not only improves entertainment but also saves electricity. It has high safety requirements, demanding stable acceleration and deceleration of the motor, steady rotational speed, and balanced torque. The FRECON FR500 inverter has been applied to the carousel of a certain amusement factory, which is suitable for such needs.
The equipment composition of the carousel needs to take into account mechanical operation, structural support, and riding experience, and its core can be divided into the following categories.
Basic Support System：
It includes the base, brackets, and central column. The base and brackets are mostly made of steel structures or cast concrete, bearing the overall weight and ensuring the stability of the equipment. The central column connects the base and the rotating platform, and its interior usually houses transmission components.
Transmission and Drive System：
It consists of the motor, transmission device, and rotating platform. The motor provides power, and the speed is adjusted through a reducer (usually 3-5 revolutions per minute). The transmission device includes chains, gears, or belts, which transmit the motor power to the rotating platform. The rotating platform is a circular table that carries the passenger cabins, with rollers at the bottom to assist in smooth rotation.
Passenger Cabin and Decoration Components：
It includes passenger cabins and decorative parts. The passenger cabins are often in the shape of wooden horses, animals, or cartoon seats, equipped with safety fences and seat belts. Decorative parts include the top canopy, colored lights, and music players; some also have decorative elements based on background stories.
Safety and Control System：
It includes braking devices, a console, and safety barriers. The braking device refers to an electromagnetic or mechanical brake that can quickly stop rotation in case of an emergency. The console is responsible for operating start/stop and speed adjustment, and some have a fault alarm function. The safety barriers mainly surround the rotating area to prevent tourists from approaching dangerous parts.
The working principle of the carousel is mainly based on the combination of mechanical transmission and centrifugal force. The core is to drive the entire structure to rotate through the power device while maintaining the stability of the cabin. It is usually powered by an electric motor, which is adjusted to a certain speed by a reducer, and then connected to the central main shaft through chain or gear transmission to drive the top rotating disc to rotate. The cabin on the rotating disc is connected to the disc through a bracket, and during rotation, due to centrifugal force, there is an outward pulling force. However, the fixed structure of the bracket will balance the pulling force, allowing the cabin to maintain a stable circular motion, thereby achieving the effect of rotating play.
The transmission system of the on-site carousel takes the FRECON FR500 series inverter as the core control component. It drives the main disk to operate stably by accurately adjusting the output power and rotational speed of the three-phase asynchronous motor.
This series of inverters has excellent vector control performance. It can adjust the speed in real time according to operation requirements, and accurately control the processes of start-up acceleration, stable operation speed, and stop deceleration, avoiding mechanical impact that may affect the equipment structure and tourists' experience. At the same time, its strong overload capacity and anti-interference performance can adapt to the characteristics of frequent start-ups and stops, ensuring the long-term stable operation of the transmission system and providing strong support for the safe and reliable operation of the equipment.
FR500 Series Inverters by FRECON.The FR500 Series Inverters from FRECON feature a compact design that significantly saves installation space. With intuitive and easy operation, they allow flexible adjustment of carousel rotation speed as needed, effectively reducing system design and maintenance costs while delivering excellent energy efficiency.
Equipped with advanced control algorithms, the series supports low-frequency and high-torque output, along with outstanding speed control precision. This ensures smooth start-up, shutdown, acceleration, and deceleration of the carousel even when fully loaded, as well as balanced motor torque.
Meanwhile, FR500 Series Inverters boast strong overload capacity and come with comprehensive protection functions such as overcurrent and overvoltage protection. These features lay a solid foundation for the safe and reliable operation of carousels, earning them wide recognition from users.
