Wednesday, July 11, 2012

The Wide Range Of Electrical Contacts Applications

By Elinor Tran


Electrical contacts are some forms of connectors employed in electrical installations for purposes of controlling the making and breaking of power flow. They can be regarded as connection points for wires that convey energy to various points of usage. Their design involves selection of the most appropriate material and mechanisms that will achieve the intended purpose very quickly.

In the recent past, plant automation has featured highly in the plans of most production facilities. It is usually achieved through the use of self controlling machines guaranteed to introduce uniformity in their outputs. The setting up of such equipment attracts high initial cost, but these are usually recoverable after some time since their presence will reduce the need for many personnel.

Sensors and actuators are arguably the most important elements of an automated device. The former are some form of transducers that monitor analog quantities associated with the output to generate signals that govern actuators. Whenever the output tends to deviate from the desired levels, they send signals to actuators so that system input parameters are adjusted to alter the output.

They can be classified as normally open or normally closed depending on the manner in which they are employed in the setup. Motors are a very common part of any industrial plant, where they are used to convert electricity into mechanical energy to run machinery. Some of them are capable of attaining very high speeds that would put workers or even the whole enterprise at risk if appropriate measures are not taken.

As such, most of them will be fitted with overload contacts as part of their starting circuits. Automatic speed control devices are usually incorporated beneath the control panels of these machines to minimize hazards at the workplace. The means of transmitting energy to the rotating armatures is usually through carbon electrical contacts. Carbon is preferred due to its resistance to friction and shearing forces which would damage metallic contacts.

Early models of automobiles also employed carbon contacts in their ignition systems. These were used as breaker points to cut the primary coil circuit and thus induce high voltage in the secondary to fire the appropriate cylinders at the set time depending on the timing. While they may still be present in some vehicles, they have almost entirely been replaced by magnetic triggering systems founded on the Hall Effect principle.

electrical contacts will usually be made of materials arrived upon after understanding the environment they are to be used in. Those intended for high current systems must be capable of withstanding arcing associated with them. Outdoor installations must stand the wrath of weather elements and time. It is quite disturbing to learn that counterfeits have also made their presence among these fixtures, so caution must be exercised.

All electrical installations should if possible be carried out by trained professionals. Some of them may also double up as suppliers of electrical contacts but if this is not the case, you must order from recommended suppliers. Players who have had a long presence in this sector are better placed to do a quality job to the extent of guaranteeing durability on their work. It is also necessary to ensure that all installations conform to the laid out standards by the responsible authorities.




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