Coordinated Circuit Protection Scheme Safeguards Relays

摘要

Relays are frequently used in con-sumer electronics and industrial equipment to control high currents and voltages with lower signal levels, or to switch currents that must be isolated from the control circuit. A relay consists of a pair of one or more contacts and a coil which, when energized, causes the contacts to Relay damage can result from excessive voltage or current. A common problem is inductive voltage spikes. When a relay interrupts current to an inductive load, the voltage spike may be severe enough that it can exceed the relay's contact voltage rating, thereby damaging the contacts.