DAMAGES CAUSED BY LIGHTNING STRIKES TO COMPUTER-CONTROLLED MACHINES (CNCS):

 

 

When there is a thunderstorm or a lightning strike, whether directly on a machine, near or far from it, CNC machine and computer can be damaged to varying degrees. One of the primary causes is a very high-power Surge, resulting in the immediate burning out of the Integrated Circuits (ICs) in Power Supply, damage to control Programmable Logic Controller Drive (PLC Drive), disruption of factory communication system, or system resets, eventually causing production stoppages. Damage can also spread to critical components such as motors, sensors, or cables, especially due to indirect lightning strike entering through power and signal cables through induction.

 

Problems Affecting CNC Machines Include:

• Damage to Integrated Circuits: IC chips in Power Supply, and PLC/VFD control boards may be burned out or damaged by sudden high voltage.

 

 

• Malfunctions: The system may stop working, reset itself, or operate incorrectly (e.g., abnormal axis movement) due to data corruption.

 

 

• Motor and Drive: Spindle, Servo and Drive may be damaged, rendering the machine immobile or unable to function.

 

• Communication System: LAN or Ethernet cables connecting the PLC to the computer may be disrupted, causing communication problems or network equipment failure.

 

• Protection System Activation: Circuit breakers trip or fuses blow, causing a power outage throughout the production line.

 

 

 

• Mechanical Damage: Malfunctions may cause tool collisions, damaging internal components.

 

 

Problems with Computers:

• Data Damage/Loss: Power surges can damage RAM or hard drives, corrupting processed data or the operating system.

 

 

• Hardware Damage: Main board, control cards, or other peripherals may be damaged by power surges.

 

• Viruses/Malware: Although not directly caused by a lightning strike, electrical interference can weaken the systems and make them more susceptible to viruses..

 

 

Main Causes:

• Direct Lightning Strike: Rare but very severe.

 

• Induced Lightning Surge: A lightning strike in a proximity can induce high currents and voltages into power lines, signal lines, or ground wires. This is a more common cause.

 

 

 

Prevention Guidelines (Initial):

• Install appropriate Surge Protection Device (SPD).

 

 

• Use a high-quality Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) to filter and provide temporary backup power.

 

 

 

 

• Check that the earthing/grounding system meets standards.

 

 

• Separate the power cables for CNC machine from general power cables.
• Unplug machines and computers during severe thunderstorms.

 

Electrical abnormalities may affect circuit boards operating in different processes at the time of the incident, resulting in different types of failures, or some machines may fail while others remain unaffected.

 

Therefore, damage to machinery from the same electrical abnormality caused by a lightning strike may occur in different ways and with different outcomes at different times after the machine encounters electrical abnormality due to the lightning strike. It may occur immediately after the lightning strike, or some equipment may be damaged immediately but the failure may not yet be apparent if that part of the machine has not yet activated. This is true even if the machine is of the same type, model, and brand.

 

Some machines may be affected immediately after the electrical abnormality has occurred. However, the symptoms vary from machine to machine.

 

Some machines may develop damage that takes a long time to show severe enough to reveal significant damage.

 

This is because electrical malfunctions can affect circuit boards operating in different processes at the time of the incident. In such short periods of time—milliseconds or microseconds of working, the chance that the multiple identical machines operating in the same process simultaneously, 100% experiencing the same electrical malfunction, will probably be very low.

 

Therefore, people often ask why the same machine, of the same brand and type, performing the same task, doesn’t get damaged next to it.

 

I believe very few people understand and accept this. Even I, who consider myself to understand this well, am not entirely satisfied when my own equipment is damaged.

 

#SiamElmatech #SiamElmatech, The Bright Enterprise.