What is BS EN 61800-7-1 – Electrical power drive systems about ?
BS EN 61800-7-1 is a part of the BS EN 61800 series that discusses the interface and use of profiles for power drive systems. A Power Drive Unit is used to convert electrical or hydraulic power into mechanical motion (often rotary) and drive a mechanical actuation system.
BS EN 61800-7-1 specifies a generic interface between power drive system(s) (PDS) and the application control program in a controller. The generic PDS interface is not specific to any particular communication network technology.
Note: The functions specified in the part of IEC 61800 are not intended to ensure functional safety. This requires additional measures according to the relevant standards, agreements and laws.
Who is BS EN 61800-7-1 – Electrical power drive systems for ?
BS EN 61800-7-1 on power drive systems is applicable to:
- Manufacturer of frequency drive
- Manufacturer of the control device
- Electrical engineer
- Quality testing personnel
Why should you use BS EN 61800-7-1 – Electrical power drive systems ?
The use of adjustable speed drives on motor-driven systems - “Power Drive Systems” (PDS) - offers significant energy savings potential in commercial and industrial applications. BS EN 61800-7-1 specifies profiles for power drive systems (PDS) and their mapping to existing communication systems by use of a generic interface model.
BS EN 61800-7-1 describes a generic interface between control systems and power drive systems. This interface is embedded in the control system. The control system itself is located in the drive (sometimes known as "smart drive" or "intelligent drive").
BS EN 61800-7-1 provides a way to access functions and data of a drive that is independent of the used drive profile and communication interface. The objective is a common drive model with generic functions and objects suitable to be mapped on different communication interfaces. This makes it possible to provide common implementations of motion control (or velocity control or drive control applications) in controllers without any specific knowledge of the drive implementation.
BS EN 61800-7-1 defines several generic interfaces such as:
For a drive device manufacturer:
- Less effort to support system integrators
- Less effort to describe drive functions because of common terminology
- The selection of drives does not depend on the availability of specific support
For a control device manufacturer:
- No influence of bus technology
- Easy device integration
- Independent of a drive supplier
For a system integrator:
- Less integration effort for devices
- Only one understandable way of modelling
- Independent of bus technology
BS EN 61800-7-1 exemplifies the required interfaces and profiles that help you achieve precision in terms of power drive systems.
What’s changed since the last update ?
BS EN 61800-7-1:2016 supersedes BS EN 61800-7-1:2008, which is withdrawn on 10 October 2018. It includes:
- Mapping of drive profile type 1 onto additional network technologies
- Minor updates in the subclauses for profile types 1, 2 and 4, in relation with corresponding changes in the dedicated IEC 61800-7-20x parts

