Source: POWER ELECTRONIC NEWS
Contactors are a key component for connecting, disconnecting and isolating high-power devices. Widely used in railway and industrial applications, contactors are gaining momentum thanks to the electrification process of the entire transport sector and the now underway transition to electric mobility. Other fields of application relevant to contactors are renewable energies, where inverters, photovoltaics and wind turbines need DC and AC contactors to provide safe connection and disconnection of high-voltage loads and source of power.
Electric vehicles, whose battery voltage has increased up to the threshold of 1 kVDC, require BDU (Battery Disconnect Unit) devices capable of providing, in all operating conditions, a safe electrical connection and insulation between the high-voltage battery and other circuits connected to the electrical bus.
When facing high voltages, disconnection of DC-currents under load tends to create an arc that needs to be extinguished. Therefore, DC contactors, using specific designs, are mandatory. Connecting them to the positive and negative cables of the battery provides protection from thermal overload and short circuits by galvanically isolating the electrical drive train from the battery.
Schaltbau High-Voltage Contactors
With headquarters in Munich, Germany, the Schaltbau GmbH Group is a leading provider of connectors, snap-action switches, contactors, railway components and complete cab equipment which satisfy the most severe safety requirements. Schaltbau’s devices are used all over the world in critical applications that require reliable connection, switching and control under harsh conditions, including e-mobility and automation, renewable energy, and railways.
“Founded over ninety years ago, Schaltbau has its origins in the railway industry, and can be considered as a component manufacturer more on the electromechanical side than on the electronics side”, said Martin Zierer, Field Application and Sales Engineer at Schaltbau. “Our key product, the contactor, is a kind of electromechanical switch which is used everywhere there is a need to separate, with galvanic isolation, devices or circuits operating under high DC or AC voltage and current”. Read more