Texas Instruments Inc. (TI) has developed what the company says is the industry's first fully programmable DC arc detection reference solution. The RD-195 makes it faster and easier for designers to address a growing need to safeguard high-power DC systems, such as photovoltaic units, against the catastrophic damage that can result from arc faults.
Designers can program the RD-195 to optimize the balance between arc-detection accuracy and false detection prevention to meet their system needs, TI explains. The RD-195 is accompanied by a software application tool that enables alteration of threshold detection parameters.
The arc-detection threshold parameters can be configured using the accompanying software tool so that the system always detects valid arcs, while minimizing nuisance tripping. The RD-195 detects different types of arcs, including series, parallel and ground arcs.
According to the company, the typical response time of the solution is less than 100 ms, which allows the system controller to take quick action, mitigating the consequences of fires caused by arcing.
