Charles Industrial Products, a division of Charles Industries, has unveiled two new multistage electronic battery chargers targeted to a range of engine generator set applications. The new Basic and Premium C-Chargers are field adjustable and can be used to charge lead acid, nicad or gel-type batteries, the company said.
"The requirements of the emergency power industry call for a high quality, field adjustable charger," said Roger Dee, national sales manager for the Rolling Meadows, Ill., company. "These units can be used in a very wide range of generator set applications and are designed to be very user friendly. And because it has next generation charger technology, it is very compact and lightweight."
Both the Basic and Premium series chargers utilize electronic switch mode technology, which has advantages over ferroresonant or silicon-controlled rectifier (SCR) systems, according to Jake Kaiser, chief engineer for battery chargers at Charles Industrial. "These are high frequency switchers, which allow us to condense the magnetics," said Kaiser. "Rather than the magnetics weighing 15 lb. like you have in ferroresonant chargers, now they're around 4 oz.
"What the Premium charger does is instead of just taking the a.c. in and making straight d.c. out of it, it takes the a.c., converts it to a high-voltage d.c., converts it back to a.c. and converts it back to d.c. - a double function. It does this at a very high frequency. It's a three-stage charger, with a bulk rate, an absorption rate and a float rateThe three-stage charging rates for the Basic and Premium chargers allow for more efficient charging, according to the company. "What it means is they deliver the greatest charge when the battery is most able to accept it," noted Dee. "This results in significantly decreased time to recharge and longer battery life."
Available in 6, 10 and 20 amp configurations - there are 12 models in all - the 12 and 24 V Premium series C-Chargers feature a front panel d.c. ammeter and voltmeter and a.c. and d.c. fuse protection. An optional accessory board is also available. The option board includes over and under voltage relays and LED outputs; a summary relay output activated by low voltage, high voltage, current failure or loss of power conditions; a loss of power output relay; and external temperature compensation. LEDs for power on, high and low current and high and low voltage are also included.
The unit is housed in an anodized aluminum housing that can withstand harsh industrial environments, the company said, and an integral heat sink design eliminates external cooling requirements, such as fans, etc. The Premium series chargers are UL listed and the circuit boards incorporate UL recommended coatings to provide enhanced environmental protection and hydrolyte stability, with no EMI interference, the company said.
The Basic series chargers are available in 3, 5, 10 and 20 amp configurations, 12 and 24 V. They share many of the same construction features as the Premium units, including the anodized aluminum housing, heat sink design, fuse protection, etc. Both chargers also feature exterior slots for simplified wall or panel mounting. Bottom panel knock-out grommets and a front access cover provide simple access to terminal connections and fuses, which allows full field adjustability by qualified personnel.
"It depends on how much capability you need," said Dee. "The Basic charger is an economical charger and the Premium charger allows you to have a little more monitoring capability."
Owing to their switch-mode design, both the Basic and Premium series chargers are extremely compact and lightweight. Dimensions for the Premium chargers are 11 in. high x 9.5 in. wide x 5 in deep. All configurations weigh 5.5 lb.
The Basic series chargers weigh 2.1 to 5.5 lb., and dimensions range from 7.5 in. high x 8.9 in. wide x 4 in. deep to 10.5 in. high x 9.6 in. wide x 5 in. deep, depending on the model.
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