Air-tight seal construction
DC power relays enclose pressurized gas which enables them to hinder arc formation (*4) by cooling. Typically, a ceramic housing is used to keep the pressurized gas sealed in, but Omron has achieved down-sizing and weight reduction of the relay body by changing the ceramic sealing construction from a conventional box-shaped ceramic case to a combination of ceramic plating and metal casing.
This makes it possible to maintain or increase the interior volume of the air-tight space of the main contact circuit (main terminal) structure compared with existing comparable products.
(*4) An arc is a type of discharge which occurs in a gas between electric poles with low voltage and high current. Arcing damages contacts and worsens the interruption characteristics by creating a temporary current flow between contacts resulting in considerable localized heating.
New magnetic control and arc extinguishing methods
Omron has designed the layout, spacing, and shape of the switching circuit and the permanent magnet circuit specifically to extinguish the arcing which occurs during DC load interruption across narrow contact gaps.
This enables high-speed arc interruption regardless of current direction, and has resulted in a non-polarized main contact circuit (main terminal) which up till now has been difficult to achieve with direct-current type relays using arc interruption via magnetic blow-out.
This non-polarization means the device is suitable for use in applications requiring two-way current flow. It also means it is not necessary to consider the mounting direction or the orientation of the device, making wiring and mounting much easier, and reducing the risk of incorrect wiring.
