Abstract :
The variable speed drives market remains a key component and beneficiary of the boom in all aspects of automation and energy saving which are becoming of ever greater importance throughout the world. They have, like so many enabling technologies, developed rapidly fuelled by their success, stretched by demands never dreamt possible a generation earlier. The development cycle of drives product is now such that product ranges have expected lifetimes of only 3-5 years-a problem in itself to many OEM customers whose own products have a much longer design life. This review paper sets out to put down a marker as to where the drives industry is today, where it came from and where it´s going.
