
1260-112 User Manual
EADS North America Defense Specifications 1-3
Test and Services, Inc. © 2002
Power
Dissipation While the cooling of the Adapt-a-Switch carrier is dependent upon
the chassis into which it is installed, the carrier can normally
dissipate approximately 100 W. Care must be taken, then, in the
selection and loading of the plug-in modules used in the carrier. It
is not possible to fully load the carrier, energize every relay, and
run full power through every set of contacts, all at the same time.
In practice this situation would never occur.
To properly evaluate the power dissipation of the plug-in modules,
examine the path resistance, the current passing through the relay
contacts, the ambient temperature, and the number of relays
closed at any one time.
For example, if a 1260-112 module (containing 20 relays) has 20
relays closed, passing a current of 2 A, then:
Total power dissipation =
[(current)2* (path resistance) * 25 ] + (quiescent power)
By substituting the actual values:
Total power dissipation =
[(2 A)2* (0.5 Ω) * 20] + ( 0.75 W) = 41 W at 55°C
This is acceptable power dissipation for an individual plug-in
module. If five additional modules are likewise loaded, then the
overall carrier dissipation is approximately 200 W, which is outside
the cooling range available in most commercial VXIbus chassis. In
practice however, rarely are more than 25% of the module’s relays
energized simultaneously, and rarely is full rated current run
through every path. In addition, the actual contact resistance is
typically one-half to one-fourth the specified maximum, and
temperatures are normally not at the rated maximum. The power
dissipated by each plug-in should be no more than 50 W if all six
slots are used simultaneously and the 25% rule is used. This
yields the following guideline:
Most users of a signal-type switch, such as the 1260-112, switch
no more than a few hundred milliamperes and are able to energize
all relays simultaneously, should they so desire. The numbers in
the above table represent worst-case, elevated-temperature, end-
of-life conditions at maximum current.
Additionally, if fewer plug-in modules are used, more power may
be dissipated by the remaining cards. By using a chassis with high
cooling capacity, such as the Racal Instruments 1261B, almost any
configuration may be realized.