Motor starter:

It is the device connected in series with the motor to decrease its starting current and
then increase it as the motor starts rotating gradually. It consists of a connector which
acts as a switch to control flow of current to the motor and a overload unit which
measures the flow of current through the motor and controls the halting of motor in case
of large current being drawn.

Functions of Motor starter:

1. Starting or stopping the motor
2. Forward or reverse the rotation
3. Regulating the speed
4. Limiting the torque
5. Protecting overload &faults
Types of Motor starter:

 Direct On line:
 It consists of simple push button as the controller. When the start button is pressed, the
switch connecting the motor and the main supply is closed and the motor gets the
supply current. In case of over current, the stop button is pressed and the bypass
auxiliary contact is opened.
  Star Delta starter:
The 3 windings are first connected in star connection and then after some time
(decided by the timer or other controller circuit) the windings are connected in delta
connection. In star connection, the current drawn is 0.58% of the normal current and
also the phase voltage is reduced to 0.58%. Thus the torque is reduced.

 Auto Transformer starter:

It consists of an auto transformer (A Transformer with a single winding tapped at
different points to supply percentage of it primary voltage across secondary) in star
connection, which reduces the voltage applied to the motor terminals. It consists of 3
tapped secondary coils connected to the three phases. In the starting period the
transformer allows application of lower voltages to the three windings.
  Starter Resistance Starter:

It consists of three resistors in series with each phase of the stator windings, which
causes a voltage drop across each resistor and as a result a low voltage is applied to
each phase.

 Soft starter:

A soft starter is a solid-state device that protects AC electric motors from damage
caused by sudden influxes of power by limiting the large initial inrush of current
associated with motor startup.