VFD START-UP VIDEO
VFD Start-Up and Parameter Setup: A First Commissioning Walkthrough (Video)
A first VFD start-up, step by step: nameplate data, command wiring, ramps and speed limits, autotune and the faults you will meet first, around Schneider Electric's ATV320 getting-started video.
VFD parameter setup on first start-up comes down to five jobs: tell the drive whether the motor is a 50 Hz or 60 Hz design, copy the motor nameplate into it, choose how it is started (2-wire or 3-wire), set the ramps and speed limits, and run it slowly to check direction. Everything else can wait until the motor turns the right way.
Checked 1 October 2026 against Schneider Electric's ATV320 manuals.
In this lesson, Schneider Electric takes an Altivar Machine ATV320 from the box to a running motor: unpacking and product information, mounting, wiring, commissioning, configuring an application and troubleshooting. It is one of the lessons in our free Variable Frequency Drives course, in the module on the keypad and basic parameters. Watch it once through, then use the walkthrough below while you set up a drive of your own, real or offline in Schneider's free SoMove software.
The ATV320 is the example, but the job is the same on a PowerFlex, a SINAMICS G120 or an ABB drive. Only the parameter names and menus change.
What you will do
Before power: wiring checks that prevent most first-day problems
Most failed start-ups are wiring problems that show up as parameter problems. Before you apply power:
- Supply to the right terminals. Mains goes to the input terminals (R/L1, S/L2, T/L3), the motor to the output terminals (U/T1, V/T2, W/T3). Mains on the output terminals can destroy the drive.
- Motor connection matches the voltage. A dual-voltage motor must be connected in star or delta to suit the voltage the drive puts out. Check the terminal box against the nameplate.
- Earth and screen. Earth the drive and the motor, and use a screened motor cable with the screen terminated as the installation manual shows. The getting-started guide is written for a single drive and motor with a motor cable under 50 m (164 ft).
- No run command present. Schneider's guide says to make sure the digital inputs you use are not active before you apply power. A maintained run switch left on is how motors start unexpectedly.
If you ever have to go back inside, remember the DC bus. The guide's safety instructions say to disconnect all power, lock it off, wait 15 minutes for the DC bus capacitors to discharge, and verify the absence of voltage before touching anything.
Step 1: choose 50 Hz or 60 Hz before anything else
At first power-up the ATV320 shows bFr, the motor standard, inside the Simply Start menu (ConF, then FULL, then SIM-). The factory setting is 50 Hz, the IEC standard. If you are in North America, or the motor is a 60 Hz design, set it to 60 first.
Do this first because bFr changes the presets of other parameters: nominal voltage, high speed, nominal frequency and maximum frequency. It also changes the unit of nominal power, which is kW at 50 and HP at 60. Change it later and you will be re-entering values you already set.
Step 2: copy the nameplate into the drive
These values are how the drive knows what it is protecting. A few points that catch people out:
- Use the line that matches your supply. A nameplate often lists two voltages with two currents (for example 230 V delta and 400 V star). Enter the voltage the drive supplies and the current that goes with it.
- ItH is the overload setting. The motor thermal current is what the drive's electronic overload uses. It defaults to a value based on the drive rating, not your motor, so set it, normally to the nameplate current. A 1.1 kW motor on a 2.2 kW drive left at the default is not protected.
- nSP is rated speed, not synchronous speed. A four-pole 50 Hz motor is 1,500 rpm synchronous but around 1,420 to 1,460 rpm at rated load. Use the number on the plate. Our free Motor and VFD Calculator works out synchronous speed and slip if you want to check it.
Schneider's manual is blunt about the order of work: changing any motor parameter after autotuning resets the tune selection to default, and the autotune has to be done again. So finish the nameplate first.
Step 3: autotune
On the ATV320, autotuning (tUn) measures the motor; the status parameter tUS reports when it is done, and the measured stator resistance is then used to control the motor. The motor must be connected for the measurement. On a simple fan, the drive will usually run on default values, but a tuned drive holds speed better at low frequency and starts heavy loads more smoothly.
Step 4: 2-wire or 3-wire start
The tCC parameter decides how the terminals start and stop the drive. It is in the Simply Start menu and the factory setting is 2-wire.
| 2-wire (2C) | 3-wire (3C) | |
|---|---|---|
| Command type | Maintained level | Momentary pulses |
| Forward | DI1 on = run forward | Pulse on DI2 |
| Reverse | DI2 on = run reverse | Pulse on an assigned input |
| Stop | Remove the run input | Open DI1 (wired NC) |
| Typical use | PLC output, selector switch | Start and stop push buttons |
In 3-wire control, DI1 is the stop and must be made before the drive will run. Schneider's FAQ notes that if DI1 is not active the display shows nSt (freewheel stop) until the stop input is made. This is the same idea as the seal-in rung in our start/stop ladder logic walkthrough: a normally closed stop, so a broken wire stops the motor.
Two cautions from the manual. tCC has to be confirmed with a long press of the dial (the manual marks it as a 2-second hold), and changing it partially resets the input assignments, so check your other input functions after switching. And whichever mode you choose, a drive stop input is an operational stop. An emergency stop is a separate safety function, built with the drive's Safe Torque Off input and a safety relay or safety PLC.
Step 5: ramps and speed limits
The ATV320's factory values are ACC 3.0 s, dEC 3.0 s, LSP 0 Hz and HSP 50 Hz. Two points that matter in practice:
- Ramp time is for the full range. ACC is the time to go from 0 to the nominal frequency, not to the speed you ask for. The free course's practice task makes this concrete: with ACC set to 10 s on a 50 Hz motor, a run to 25 Hz takes 5 s.
- Deceleration is where trips happen. A fan or flywheel with inertia keeps turning, drives the motor as a generator and pushes energy back into the DC bus. Too short a dEC and the drive trips on overvoltage. Start with a generous dEC, such as twice the ACC, and shorten it while watching for trips.
Set HSP to the highest speed the machine is allowed to run and LSP to the lowest the process needs. A pump may need a minimum speed to make pressure; a self-cooled motor may need one to stay cool. The manual also recommends keeping the maximum frequency tFr at 110% of HSP or higher, to avoid a motor overspeed fault.
Step 6: first run
With a potentiometer on AI1 (the factory reference), turn it to minimum, switch on forward, and bring the speed up slowly. Check three things before you leave it:
- Direction. If the motor turns the wrong way, isolate, wait for the DC bus to discharge, and swap any two motor phases at the drive output. Do not fix it by swapping forward and reverse in software, because the next person will not expect it.
- Current. At steady speed the motor current shown in the monitoring menu should be below the nameplate current for the load.
- Stop. Remove the run command and check it ramps down without tripping.
Then save the configuration. In SoMove, keep a copy of the file with the panel drawings.
The faults you are likely to meet first
The ATV320's factory stop mode on a detected fault is freewheel, so the motor coasts. Two points about clearing faults. Some faults, such as overvoltage and motor overload, can be reset from a reset input or automatically once the cause has gone, if auto reset is enabled (it is off from the factory). Overcurrent normally needs a power cycle. And a fault that comes back after a reset is information: change something before you reset it a third time.
Common mistakes
- Leaving ItH at the factory value, so the drive cannot protect a smaller motor.
- Changing bFr after entering the nameplate, which presets other values and resets the tune.
- A maintained run switch on at power-up, in 2-wire mode, so the motor starts the moment the drive is ready.
- Fixing overvoltage trips by shortening the ramp further instead of lengthening dEC or adding a braking resistor.
- Treating the stop input as an emergency stop. It is not one.
What to do after watching
The course module that contains this video sets a practice task: enter the nameplate of a real motor into a drive, or into SoMove offline, set ACC to 10 s and dEC to 20 s, and run from the keypad at 25 Hz. You are done when you have a saved configuration file and have timed or calculated the ramp to 25 Hz as 5 s.
After that, the course moves on to terminal control with push buttons and reverse, speed references from a potentiometer or a 4-20 mA signal, relay outputs, PLC and Modbus control and fault finding. If you are scaling a 4-20 mA speed reference, the 4-20 mA Scaling Calculator does the arithmetic. For a broader view of drives, read our VFD training guide.
Learn it free
The full Variable Frequency Drives course is free, with video lessons from Schneider Electric, ATO Automation and others, credited on every lesson, plus written notes, a practice task per module and a final assessment. If your plant runs Rockwell or Siemens drives, the free Allen-Bradley PowerFlex and SINAMICS G120 and S120 courses cover the same jobs in those tools, and Industrial Motor Control covers the contactor and starter circuits that drives replace. All of them sit in the drives and motion catalogue.
The certificate is optional. If you pass the final assessment and want one, it costs from US$2.99 for a beginner course; it is an EDWartens Certificate of Completion with a verification code, not a Schneider Electric qualification.
Take the free course
Questions
What parameters do you set first on a new VFD?
The motor standard (50 or 60 Hz) and the motor nameplate values: power, voltage, current, frequency and speed. Then the command type (2-wire or 3-wire), the acceleration and deceleration ramps, the low and high speed limits and the motor thermal current. On the ATV320 these all sit in the Simply Start (SIM-) menu.
What is the difference between 2-wire and 3-wire control on a VFD?
In 2-wire control the run input is maintained: the drive runs while the input is on and stops when it goes off. In 3-wire control the inputs are pulses: a normally closed stop input must be made, a momentary forward or reverse pulse starts the drive and opening the stop input stops it, much like a seal-in starter.
Why does my VFD trip on overvoltage when it slows down?
A load with inertia drives the motor as a generator during deceleration and pumps energy back into the DC bus. Schneider's remedy for the ATV320 OBF fault is to lengthen the deceleration time, fit a braking resistor if needed, use the deceleration ramp adaptation function where the application allows, and check the supply voltage.
Do I need to autotune a VFD?
For a simple V/f fan or pump it often runs acceptably without, but autotuning measures the motor (on the ATV320, the stator resistance) and improves control, especially at low speed. Run it after the nameplate values are in, because changing any motor parameter afterwards resets the tune and you have to repeat it.
Is it safe to work on a VFD once the supply is off?
Not straight away. The DC bus capacitors stay charged after the supply is removed. Schneider's ATV320 getting-started guide says to wait 15 minutes and then verify the absence of voltage as described in the installation manual before working on the drive.
Sources
- Schneider Electric: ATV320 Programming Manual (NVE41295)
- Schneider Electric: Getting Started with Altivar Machine ATV320 (NVE21763)
- Schneider Electric FAQ FA309003: programming the ATV320 for 3-wire control
- Schneider Electric: ATV320 programming manual download page
- Schneider Electric: Getting Started with Altivar Machine ATV320 (video)
Written by the EDWartens engineering team for general education. Product names are trademarks of their owners; mentioning them does not imply endorsement. Prices and terms of other providers were checked on the date shown and can change.
