A typical low-voltage variable-frequency drive. Industrial facilities commonly use variable-frequency drives (VFDs) to control the speed at which alternating current motors operate. Let’s examine a ...

Traditional synchronous boost converters offer little to no protection against short-circuit events at the output. Due to the boost converter’s topology, when the output is shorted to ground, a direct ...

If a motor isn't adequately protected, a short circuit will likely result in premature replacement. Then there's the problem of nuisance tripping upon initial start-up because the magnetic setting of ...

Now that autos are moving toward high-powered battery voltage, the industry is turning new attention toward making sure the flow can stop on a dime when needed. Power management company Eaton Corp.

This article is part of the Ideas for Design Series: Vol. 3, No. 8. This circuit builds on a previous idea in which the addition of an optocoupler to a microcontroller output converted a “dumb” ...

I continue to be surprised by how many equipment designers are confused by UL circuit protection standards. In trying to meet conflicting standards, engineers may actually decrease the level of ...

A German research team has developed a semiconductor-based protection concept tailored to renewable energy systems that forces a permanent short circuit in less than 1 millisecond in the event of a ...

Residual current circuit breakers (RCCB) play a narrow but important role in electrical protection. They are frequently specified, often misunderstood, and regularly credited with capabilities they ...

Circuit breaker keeps tripping is a warning, not a nuisance. Repeated trips can signal overloads, wiring faults, ground faults, or coordination problems, and misreading the cause risks overheating, ...