Suppressors mount DIN rail to protect supplies

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Sep 2, 2002

Advance Galatrek has a new DIN-rail-mount range of transient voltage surge suppressors (TVSS).

Advance Galatrek has a new DIN-rail-mount range of transient voltage surge suppressors (TVSS).

StrikeSafe TDA is ideal for the protection of PCs, servers, phones systems, fax machines, digital TVs, videos and satellite hardware, and can be installed anywhere that there is an available DIN-rail standard consumer unit, or Advance Galatrek can supply the unit encased for wall or cabinet mounting.

With a peak pulse current handling capacity of up to 13kA in a unit weighing no more than 49g, StrikeSafe TDA is one of the smallest, yet most effective, DIN-rail TVSS units available.

Each unit within the range is designed to offer transient surge protection for installations within Zone A, as defined in BS EN6651:1999 Annex C.

Zone A relates individual hardware applications up to 500A/6kV.

Zone A hardware damage is usually associated with mains pollution generated locally by office and industrial equipment, including photocopiers, fluorescent lighting, lift motors and welding plant.

To combat the damage that can be caused by these internal transients, together with external surges caused by lightning and other off-site sources, devices in the StrikeSafe TDA range incorporate a unique patent pending Matrix technology.

This innovation provides far better levels of transient protection than conventional devices, and allows the TVSS to continue functioning in accordance with its specification even if a voltage surge causes damage to an individual component.

For the ultimate in TVSS protection, StrikeSafe TDA can be specified as a silicon avalanche diode (SAD) matrix, which can be partnered with a separate metal oxide varistor matrix (MOV).

The SAD matrix reacts virtually instantaneously - up to five times faster than comparable MOV-based technology.

As such, it provides an unbeatable first line of defence, offering superlative performance against the sharp rising edge of a transient infected voltage waveform.

Thanks to this unsurpassed reaction time, the SAD matrix also begins to reduce the excess transient energy at a threshold typically 15 to 20% lower voltage than traditional MOV only devices.

StrikeSafe TDA's modular DIN-rail design enables the SAD unit to be augmented by a secondary protection MOV matrix, which activates as the transient energy approaches a level at which the SADs cannot safely operate.

This increases the TVSS surge rating, as well as protecting the SADs from overcurrent.

This level of dual protection is ideal for sensitive and mission critical devices, such as file and web servers and essential computer equipment - potentially saving thousands in costly equipment failure and downtime.

For less critical applications, customers can choose to install the MOV units on their own, giving users the option of specifying their ideal price and performance ratio for each individual application.

Furthermore, although most uninterruptible power systems and DC standby power systems incorporate some form of transient protection, this is generally designed only to protect the front-end filters and rectifiers from small transients.

In order to provide satisfactory protection, Advance Galatrek therefore recommends the installation of a StrikeSafe TDA before the UPS or DC power supply.

Partnered with a UPS installation, this approach prevents the load being connected to a direct transient energy path when powered directly from the mains.

Advance Galatrek has also produced a new TVSS catalogue, containing full details of each model in the StrikeSafe range.

The catalogue features comprehensive information on transient protection issues, with easy product selection and specification guides.