What does the integrated C2 EMC line filter provide, and when do you need it?

The AB0 suffix adds an integrated Category C2 line filter per EN 61800-3, which limits conducted electromagnetic emissions to levels acceptable on industrial low-voltage public networks. Without this filter, a G115D drive meets C3 limits and requires an external filter for C2 compliance. In practice, the integrated filter eliminates the need to specify, purchase, wire, and accommodate a separate external filter module — a meaningful simplification when deploying a line of ten or twenty distributed drives along a conveyor system. The filter is factory-installed and tested, so the drive arrives ready to connect to a C2-compliant supply network without additional EMC engineering.

Which conveyor applications benefit most from built-in EMC filtering?

Multi-drive installations — such as airport baggage handling lines, distribution center sorters, and parcel handling conveyors — are the strongest case for the AB0 variant. In these environments, dozens of drives share a common supply infrastructure, and conducted emissions from any single unfiltered drive can couple onto the supply network and affect adjacent equipment. Integrating the C2 filter at the drive level decentralizes EMC compliance: each drive is independently compliant, and the system-level EMC engineering reduces to verifying the supply network impedance. The 4 kW rating suits the higher-power segments of these conveyor networks — merge sections, incline conveyors, and pallet handling stations where smaller FSA-class drives would be undersized.

How does the cooling design support sustained 4 kW operation?

The 4 kW FSB frame employs an integrated temperature-controlled fan that activates based on heatsink temperature. At partial load — common in conveyor applications where drives are sized for peak demand but operate below rated power most of the time — the fan may remain off or run at reduced speed, extending its service life. At full load, the fan provides forced-air cooling that dissipates approximately 173 W of power loss through the finned aluminum heatsink. The fan assembly is part of the plug-in electronics module and can be replaced without disconnecting the drive from the motor or supply cabling, consistent with the G115D service-friendly design philosophy.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the C2 filter introduce additional power loss compared to the AA0 variant?

The filter components add a negligible amount of passive loss (a few watts). The overall drive efficiency remains 95-98% at rated load. The dominant power loss is switching and conduction loss in the inverter stage, which is identical across AA0, AB0, and AF0 variants at the same power rating.

Can this drive be used on an IT (ungrounded) supply network?

Yes. The functional grounding connection of the integrated C2 filter is removable, allowing the drive to operate on IT supply systems where ground-referenced filter capacitors would otherwise cause nuisance tripping. Remove the grounding screw as described in the operating instructions before connecting to an IT network.

What is the motor cable length limit with the integrated C2 filter?

Up to 15 meters of shielded motor cable maintains C2 compliance. For longer cable runs, use the wall-mounted variant with an external output filter or consider the motor-mounted G115D configuration where the converter mounts directly on the geared motor, eliminating the motor cable entirely.