What is a Transient Response Test and what is required to run one?

A Transient Response Test (AKA: Dynamic Load Test) determines how quickly a voltage regulator can respond to a sudden change in Current.  The electronic loads must be programmable to handle the following settings.

Current setting 1 (L1) and Current setting 2 (L2), dwell time (t1 and t2) at each current or duty cycle (DC%), Slew rate for Rising (SR1) and falling edges (SR2).

The below example is for a DC-DC converter rated for 3.3V and 12Amps the Dynamic load is set for 10% to 90% of the maximum rated current for the voltage regulator.

Graph displaying transient time test

The Chroma 63600 DC Electronic Loads have the Dynamic Load programmability up to frequencies of 20KHz and have the added feature to do Sweep Dynamic Loading which adds the ability to sweep the frequency while running the Transient Load Test.

 

Power-One, Inc. Contracts Chroma to Build Multiple Solar Inverter Test Systems

Lake Forest, CA: Chroma System Solutions, Inc. is pleased to announce its recent contract to provide Power-One, the second largest provider of solar inverters, twenty-six C8000 test systems, PowerPro test software and fixtures related to automate the final testing of their isolated and no-isolated inverters.

Chroma’s ATS to automate testing of PowerOne’s inverters.

Chroma’s ATS to automate testing of Power-One’s inverters.


 pvi-3

Chroma’s C8000 test systems, software and fixtures will provide Power-One calibration and final testing for all production units potentially to UL1741 standards. Tests provided by these systems include EEPROM Read / Write, Calibration, Input Voltage Start (CH1), Input Voltage Start (CH2), Input Current (CH1), Input Current (CH2), Temperature Check, Connection Time, Re-Connection Time, Non-grid protection, Under-Voltage Protection, Fan Test, Clock Check, Ground Fault Check, Grid Connection, Energy Verification, Input Over-Range, and Efficiency. Power levels for the inverters will range from 3KW to 12KW with single phase, three phase, and split phase connections.

With its focus on Renewable Energy and “Green” power solutions, Power-One has recently established itself as the world’s second largest provider of solar inverters. Further, as one of the world’s ten largest providers of power conversion and power management solutions, Power-One is one of the few companies with the product breadth to support every step in the refinement of utility-grade AC into the various DC voltages required to power high-availability infrastructure systems at the site, system, and semiconductor levels.

Acquisition of the C8000 Systems will dramatically reduce future ATE downtime and production shortfalls for Power One. It will also greatly improve the future readiness, sustainability, and operational capabilities by providing an economical and expedient solution for obtaining test results in the final stage of production. Special software has been developed to integrate with Power-One’s shop floor quality system.

The C8000 is commercial-off-the-shelf equipment which has been in production for over 10 years at Chroma. Designed to be a complete solution to all types of power electronics testing, the C8000 system is integrated with a wide range of hardware such as AC/DC Sources, Electronic Loads, Multimeters, Oscilloscopes, Noise Analyzers, and Isolation/Dielectric testers. Its range of use, combined with an open architecture software platform, PowerPro III, provides users a flexible, powerful and cost-effective test system. You can find out more about Chroma’s automated testing instruments and systems at www.chromausa.com.

Discontinuation Notice

Chroma wishes to advise you that we intend to discontinue the product(s) listed below. Due to discontinuation of certain key components, Chroma will be phasing out production of the 6300 series DC Electronic Load and option kit on June 29, 2012. Chroma will not accept orders for the listed products after May 18, 2012.

 

Discontinued Products Include:

6301 – Mainframe for single load module

6304 – Mainframe for 4 load modules

63006 – Load module 60V/6A/60W

63010 – Load module 60V/20A/100W

63025 – Load module 250V/10A/250W

63030 – Load module 60V/60A/300W

A630001 – Noise measurement (20MHz) kit for each load module

A630002 – GPIB interface for model 6304 mainframe

A630003 – RC-63 remote controller

A630006 – 19” rack mounting kit for model 6304 mainframe

 

Replacement Products

63600 series DC Electronic Load

6310A series DC Electronic Load

 

Warranty

Discontinued products will continue to be supported during the warranty period.

 

Thank you,

Chroma Systems Solutions, Inc.

Marketing Dept.

Question: Why is Accuracy and Multiple Ranges important?

Answer:  Most accuracy specifications for Test Equipment are listed as % rdg + % fs.

Example: 0.1% rdg + 0.1% fs

This is a percentage of the reading or measurement + the percentage of the Full Scale for the range you are in.

If a DC Electronic Load has only one range, say 80 amps and the Current Measurement Accuracy rating in the Spec is 0.1% rdg + 0.1% fs.   Let’s say you are only reading 8 amps.  The accuracy would be as follows:

(8 amps reading x 0.1%) + (80 amps range x 0.1%) = a tolerance of +/- 0.088 Amps.

If the same tolerance is applied to a Load with Multiple Ranges (like the Chroma 63640-80-80, which has 3 ranges, 0.8 amps, 8 amps and 80 amps), and you set the current to 8 amps, you are in the 8 amp range.  The accuracy of the current measurement would be, (8 amps reading x 0.1%) + (8 amps range x 0.1%) = a tolerance of +/- 0.016 amps.

You can clearly see that  having multiple ranges greatly improves the total accuracy of the measurement.  0.088 amps for the single range load versus 0.016 amps for the multi range load.

The Chroma Load Accuracy is 5.5 times greater than the load with a single range.

Question: How do you determine what wire gauge to use if you will carry 100 amps over 6 Feet and require a voltage drop of less than 0.1Volts?

Answer: There are tables and calculators, available on the internet that will determine the appropriate wire gauge for your application. To search for wire gauge ampere rating tables usekeywords such as AWG, Wire Ampacity, and Wire Manufacturers, these keywords will help you find Tables and Free Calculators that will make it easy to determine the appropriate wire gauge and wire type for your application. Also using an American Wire Gauge (AWG) Table and a simple formula below will also help you select the correct wire gauge.

Voltage Drop / Maximum Current = Wire Ohms per total length of cable(example: 0.1Vdc/100A = 0.001 Ohm)

Since the length of wire in the example is 6 feet you must convert the resistance of the wire in
Ohms per 1000 feet.

(0.001, / 6 feet) * 1000 feet = 0.1666 Ohm, per 1000 feet

Looking in the table below the appropriate wire gauge would be a 2 gauge wire.

There are other factors such as Insulation type and Temperature rating and Single wires versusbundled wires that can effect your selection. These are covered in each manufacturers’ websites and catalogs.

 

example table

Example Table