Some Cold Performance from CPI Switches
All reports have us in for a cold winter this year, with temperatures here in NJ hoovering around freezing pretty consistently during the day and well below freezing at night.
While we’re bundling up to stay warm, it turns out that there are no little wool sweaters for critical electronic equipment, and temperatures inside a cold metal enclosure, or on the exterior of a vehicle can get far worse that.
We talk a lot about the true waterproof nature of our pendant switches and their ability to operate in hot, vibrational environments but a long time ago CPI limit switches had to solve the opposite problem: how to keep our contacts from freezing up in cold damp weather well beyond the comfort zone of most switches and humans. Consider a generator deployed on an oil rig in the north Atlantic, or a bulkhead door on the deck of a container ship bound for the South Pole. It took a lot of trial and error, and investigation to develop a switch which we know can reliably operate down to -65F suitable for most artic deployments among others.
Overheat Operation I get, but What Apps Require Such Cold Operation?
Operator Presence Detection – These switches like our E1115 present a low profile switch bracket with a “simulated” roller, ideal for under the seat applications. As such it is unobtrusive making for good ergonomics and solid performance in the freezing cold.
Navy Guns and Equipment – While much of this information is proprietary, lets just say that the US Navy deploys in some very cold area’s of the globe. Our switches have been used by operators on shipboard equipment for critical start and stop systems, and manual triggers, and hatch detection, owing to their high reliability at the top and bottom of the temperature range. Being manufactured in the USA helps too.
One application we can talk about is their deployment on the P– 9 Gun Pod. This .50 caliber gun pod brings heavy firepower to helicopters. Our D1040 waterproof plunger switch was selected as the last round detection switch, critical for facilitating a fast re-load. This switch is essentially our stainless steel plunger mounting assembly used over our B9111 waterproof momentary switch.
Snow Removal Systems – From commercial snow blowers to DPW salt trucks, to highway plows, our switches can be used in all kinds of winter work trucks for things like deck down detection, outrigger deployed limit switch, generator start/stop, motor actuation, you name it. If it requires a reliable switch that operates outdoors in subzero temperatures, our switch is usually on the short list.
How Do CPI Limit Switches Achieve Cold Operation?
CPI Limit switches can be sealed by two different rubberlike materials. Our Santoprene sealed switch has an operating temperature range from -40F to 221F making it more than capable for most applications.
However an issue many manufacturers don’t deal with is that switches, like people and molasses, will tend to move slower in cold weather. If contacts are activated for a long period, say hours, the santoprene boot on our normal switches can set and the return force of the switches spring would not immediately be enough to push back the frozen rubber.
The solution to this problem however is already found in our Military grade line of waterproof switches. Our Neoprene sealed switches have a temperature range down to -65 F and operate up to 165F. These switches can be further customized with special actuators that are more impervious to cold. While the injection molding process for Neoprene is a bit more complicated, the resulting boot is harder and perfect for the extended low range. These switches also comply with MS 39058, MIL-STD-202, MIL-F-13927, MIL-S-13484 for all those spec junkies out there.
CPI Has This Stuff Down Cold
For military or harsh duty commercial applications don’t be left out in the cold. CPI switches have got your back.
Call our engineering team today to discuss your application.
Originally published at: https://www.cpi-nj.com/some-cold-performance-from-cpi-switches/
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