Pump condition monitoring and recovery

Abstract

A fluid pumping system includes a fluid pump, an actuator coupled to said fluid pump, and a controller operatively coupled to the actuator. The controller is configured to detect an irregular condition of at least one of the fluid pump, the actuator or the controller, and upon detecting the irregular condition, modify at least one operating parameter of the actuator to prevent the irregular condition from transitioning to a fault condition.

1 . A fluid pumping system, comprising:
 a fluid pump;   an actuator coupled to said fluid pump; and   a controller operatively coupled to said actuator, the controller configured to
 detect an irregular condition of at least one of the fluid pump, the actuator or the controller, and 
 upon detecting the irregular condition, modify at least one operating parameter of the actuator to prevent the irregular condition from transitioning to a fault condition. 
   
     
     
         2 . The fluid pumping system according to  claim 1 , wherein the fluid pump comprises at least one of a fuel pump, oil pump or a water pump. 
     
     
         3 . The fluid pumping system according to  claim 1 , wherein the actuator comprises an electric motor. 
     
     
         4 . The fluid pumping system according to  claim 1 , wherein the irregular condition comprises at least one of a low voltage condition, a fluid pressure condition, a no-load condition, or a high-temperature condition. 
     
     
         5 . The fluid pumping system according to  claim 1 , wherein when fluid pressure at the fluid pump is less than a predetermined pressure, the controller is configured to conclude the system is in a no-load start up condition. 
     
     
         6 . The fluid pumping system according to  claim 6 , wherein during the no-load startup condition the controller is configured to command the actuator to increase a speed of the fluid pump. 
     
     
         7 . The fluid flow system according to  claim 5 , wherein the controller is configured to stop the actuator when the pressure at the fluid pump does not exceed the predetermined pressure and a predetermined time period has elapsed. 
     
     
         8 . The fluid pumping system according to  claim 1 , further comprising a variable flow device in fluid communication with the fluid pump, wherein when fluid pressure at the fluid pump is greater than a predetermined pressure, the controller is configured to command the actuator to decrease a speed of the fluid pump. 
     
     
         9 . The fluid pumping system according to  claim 6 , wherein when the fluid pressure at the fluid pump is greater than the predetermined pressure, the controller is configured to provide an alert indicating the variable flow device requires maintenance. 
     
     
         10 . The fluid pumping system according to  claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to monitor an actual temperature of at least one of the fluid pump, a fluid within the system, the actuator, or the controller, and upon the actual temperature exceeding a corresponding predetermined temperature, the controller is configured to command the actuator to reduce a speed of the fluid pump. 
     
     
         11 . The fluid pumping system according to  claim 10 , wherein the controller is configured to provide an alert indicating the actual temperature has exceeded the predetermined threshold temperature. 
     
     
         12 . A controller for controlling a fluid pump via an actuator coupled to the fluid pump, the controller comprising:
 a processor and memory;   and logic stored in the memory and executable by the processor, the logic including”
 logic configured to detect an irregular condition of at least one of the fluid pump, the actuator or the controller, and 
 logic, upon detecting the irregular condition, configured to modify at least one operating parameter of the actuator to prevent the irregular condition from transitioning to a fault condition. 
   
     
     
         13 . The controller according to  claim 12 , wherein the irregular condition comprises at least one of a low voltage condition, an irregular fluid pressure condition, a no-load condition, or a high-temperature condition. 
     
     
         14 . The controller according to  claim 12 , wherein the controller is configured to store irregular conditions in non-volatile memory. 
     
     
         15 . The controller according to  claim 12 , wherein when fluid pressure at the fluid pump is less than a predetermined pressure, the controller is configured to conclude the pump is in a no-load start up condition. 
     
     
         16 . The controller according to  claim 15 , wherein during the no-load startup condition the controller is configured to command the actuator to increase a speed of the fluid pump. 
     
     
         17 . The controller according to  claim 15 , wherein the controller is configured to stop the actuator when the pressure at the fluid pump does not exceed the predetermined pressure and a predetermined time period has elapsed. 
     
     
         18 . The controller according to  claim 12 , wherein the fluid pump is in fluid communication with a variable flow device, wherein when fluid pressure at the fluid pump is greater than a predetermined pressure the controller is configured to command the actuator to decrease a speed of the fluid pump. 
     
     
         19 . The controller according to  claim 18 , wherein when the fluid pressure at the fluid pump is greater than the predetermined pressure, the controller is configured to provide an alert indicating the variable flow device requires maintenance. 
     
     
         20 . The controller according to  claim 12 , wherein the controller is configured to monitor an actual temperature of at least one of the fluid pump, a fluid in the system, the actuator, or the controller, and upon the actual temperature exceeding a corresponding predetermined threshold, the controller is configured to command the actuator to reduce a speed of the fluid pump. 
     
     
         21 . The controller according to  claim 20 , wherein the controller is configured to provide an alert indicating the actual temperature has exceeded the predetermined threshold temperature. 
     
     
         22 . A method for controlling a fluid pump via an actuator coupled to the fluid pump, the method comprising:
 detecting an irregular condition of at least one of the fluid pump or the actuator, and   upon detecting the irregular condition, modifying at least one operating parameter of the actuator to prevent the irregular condition from transitioning to a fault condition.