Mitsubishi FR Inverters NZ | FR-E700 FR-D700 FR-A800 FR-F800

Mitsubishi FREQROL FR Inverters

Mitsubishi / FREQROL FR inverters

The digit straight after the series is the voltage class. FR-E720 is 200 V and FR-E740 is 400 V, one character apart, and connecting the wrong one to the supply destroys it.

FREQROL is on a great deal of imported machinery in New Zealand. FR-D700, FR-E700, FR-A800 and FR-F800 are the common families.

Reading an FR model code

Take FR-E740-1.5K.

Part	Meaning
FR	FREQROL inverter
E7	E700 series
4	Voltage class. 400 V
0	Input phase configuration
1.5K	Capacity, 1.5 kW

The voltage class digit

Digit	Supply	Examples
1	100 V	FR-E710W, FR-D710W
2	200 V	FR-E720, FR-D720, FR-A820, FR-F820
4	400 V	FR-E740, FR-D740, FR-A840, FR-F840

This is the character to get right. FR-E720 and FR-E740 are otherwise identically named, and a 200 V drive on a 400 V supply is destroyed immediately.

The S and W suffixes

Suffix	Input
None	Three phase
S	Single phase input. FR-E720S, FR-D720S
W	Single phase, 100 V class

A single-phase drive still gives a three-phase output to the motor. That is the point of it, and it is why they turn up on light machinery in workshops with no three-phase supply.

You cannot run a three-phase-input drive from single phase. If the existing unit has an S, the replacement needs one.

Two capacity conventions

Worth knowing because the same drive can be written two ways.

Convention	Example	Meaning
Older, kW	FR-E740-1.5K	1.5 kW. K stands for kilowatt
Newer, current code	FR-A840-00083(2.2K)	Current rating, with kW in brackets

Mitsubishi writes A800 units as FR-A820-01250(22K) and FR-A840-01800(55K), carrying both figures.

So if a parts list shows a long number where you expected a kW figure, that is the current code. Send whichever is on the label and we will match it.

The SC suffix is the safety stop model

An ordering trap on the E700 range.

Certain parameters can be set only on the safety stop function model, and Mitsubishi publishes separate documentation for the SC variants, such as FR-E720-0.1KSC to 15KSC.

So an SC drive carries a safety stop capability that a plain one does not. If the machine's safety circuit uses that function, a standard drive of the same rating will not do.

Check for the SC on the label. As with every safety part on this site, whether a substitution is valid belongs with whoever holds the machine's assessment.

Regional suffixes

Suffix	Market
-NA	North America
-EC	Europe
-CHT	China and Taiwan
-NE	Regional variant

Regional variants differ in documentation, default parameters and sometimes certification. On imported machinery you will see all of these in New Zealand.

Tell us what is on the label and we will tell you what we can get against it.

The families

Series	Positioning
FR-A800	Advanced functionality, high performance. The capable one
FR-F800	Energy saving. Fans and pumps
FR-E700	Simple, powerful and compact
FR-D700	Simple and compact. The entry range
FR-F700PJ	Air conditioning
FR-B, FR-B3	For pressure-resistant explosion-proof motors
FR-V500	Vector inverter, superseded

A and F are not interchangeable in practice

FR-A800 is the machine drive: high torque, precise control, positioning.

FR-F800 is the fan and pump drive: energy saving over a variable torque load.

An F on a constant-torque machine axis is undersized for the duty. An A on a fan is more drive than the job needs and costs accordingly.

The explosion-proof range

FR-B and FR-B3 are specifically for pressure-resistant explosion-proof motors.

Series	Range
FR-B	750 W to 75 kW at 200 V, 750 W to 110 kW at 400 V
FR-B3	400 W to 37 kW at 200 V and 400 V

These are not a standard drive with a label change. If a machine has an FR-B, the hazardous area classification is why, and a standard FR-A is not a substitute.

Two jumpers that must come out

The installation trap on the A800, and it is easy to miss.

Fitting	Remove the jumper across
DC reactor	P/+ and P1, on FR-A840-01800(55K) or lower
Brake resistor	PR and PX

The drive ships with both jumpers fitted. Connect the accessory without removing the relevant one and it does nothing, or worse.

Worth checking on a drive that has had a reactor or resistor added and does not seem to benefit from it.

Long cables on 400 V drives cause nuisance trips

A specific and genuinely useful diagnostic point.

Mitsubishi warns that on 400 V class small-capacity models with a wiring length of 50 m or more, the thermal relay is likely to operate unnecessarily, because the ratio of leakage current to rated motor current increases.

Conditions
400 V class
Small capacity, 7.5 kW or less
Motor cable 50 m or longer

So a small 400 V drive on a long run that keeps tripping thermal is often not faulty. The leakage current on the cable is being read as motor current.

Mitsubishi's recommendation is a temperature-sensing approach to motor protection rather than a current-based thermal relay. Either way, check the cable length before ordering a replacement drive.

Operation panels and parameter units

Unit	Notes
FR-DU08	Operation panel, A800 generation
FR-PU07	Parameter unit
FR-PU04	Earlier parameter unit

The panel connector also carries RS-485 communication. So the same port serves the operator panel and a Modbus RTU link, which matters if you are planning to network a drive that currently has a panel in that socket.

Panels are separate parts. A damaged operation panel is a panel order, not a drive order.

Copying parameters

The thing that makes a drive replacement quick, and it is worth setting up before you need it.

On the A800, a USB memory device enables parameter copies and the trace function. A USB cable connects the drive to a PC for FR Configurator2.

Method	Use
USB memory	Copy parameters between drives
Operation panel	Read and write a parameter set
FR Configurator2	Full setup and diagnostics from a PC

A replacement drive arrives at factory defaults. Without the parameter set, someone has to work out the acceleration ramps, torque boost, current limits and terminal functions from scratch.

So copy the parameters off every drive on the site while they are running. It costs nothing and it turns a day of commissioning into ten minutes.

Other things on the drive worth knowing

Feature	Notes
EMC filter switch	The built-in filter can be switched on or off
Terminal 2 and 4 selector	Switches the analogue input between voltage and current
Plug-in option slot	Communication and function options
Cooling fan	Fitted from FR-A820-00105(1.5K) and FR-A840-00083(2.2K) upward

The analogue input selector

A hardware switch decides whether terminal 2 or 4 reads a voltage or a current signal.

So a replacement drive with a 4 to 20 mA speed reference will read nothing until that switch is set, regardless of the parameters.

It is a common commissioning hold-up and it takes five seconds to check.

The fan is a wear part

On drives large enough to have one, the cooling fan is the part that fails first. A drive tripping on overheat in a clean panel is usually a fan, not a drive.

Fans are separately available. Ask before ordering a replacement inverter.

IPM and induction motors

The A800, F800 and E700 families support both induction motors and IPM, interior permanent magnet motors.

An IPM motor needs a drive configured for it and cannot be run open loop like an induction motor. If a machine has an IPM motor, the drive selection is not free.

What to send us

The full model code off the label.

The voltage class digit. 2 or 4, and it is the critical one.

Single or three phase input. Look for an S or W.

Whether it carries an SC suffix, for the safety stop function.

Whether you have the parameter set.

Whether the fault is the drive, the fan or the panel. All three are separately available.

Before ordering a replacement drive

Check the fan if it is tripping on overheat.

Check the motor cable length if a small 400 V drive keeps tripping thermal.

Check the jumpers if a reactor or brake resistor was recently fitted.

Check the analogue input switch if the speed reference reads nothing.

Read the fault code. Overcurrent on acceleration is usually a ramp setting; overvoltage on deceleration usually needs a brake resistor.

What we can supply

Current production. FR-A800, FR-F800, FR-E700 and FR-D700 across voltage classes and capacities, plus operation panels, parameter units, cooling fans, DC reactors, brake resistors and plug-in options. Quoted with a delivered lead time.

Discontinued. FR-A500, FR-E500, FR-S500, FR-V500 and earlier. Surplus and tested used, which keeps an existing machine on its original parameter set.

Fans and panels separately. Usually the cheaper fix.

We buy Mitsubishi inverters

FR drives hold value, particularly the older A500 and E500 families that plants still run. If you are stripping a machine, keep the operation panel with the drive. See Sell To Us.

Send us your model codes

The voltage class digit is the one to get right. And copy your parameters off while the drives are still running. Quotes in NZD including GST.

Request a quote

Industech is an independent supplier of new, surplus and used industrial automation equipment. We are not an authorised distributor of, approved by, sanctioned by, or affiliated with Mitsubishi Electric. FREQROL and MELSEC are trademarks of Mitsubishi Electric Corporation. All trademarks, brand names and part numbers are the property of their respective owners and are used here for identification purposes only. Information on this page is for identification and does not constitute electrical design advice.