Quality trip amplifiers and signal converters

Edited by the Manufacturingtalk editorial team Jan 22, 2007

Lee-Dickens has announced that its range of high quality trip amplifiers and signal converters have in most cases been assessed and awarded SIL2 rating.

Lee-Dickens has announced that its range of high quality trip amplifiers and signal converters have in most cases been assessed and awarded SIL2 rating (with a proof test interval of one year) by the independent safety integrity consultant - RM Consultants.

The continuing drive to improve the performance, reliability and standardisation of safety systems led to the IEC61508 standard `Functional Safety of electrical/ electronic/programmable electronic safety related systems', which defines safety integrity levels (SIL) as measures of the safety of a given process.

The Lee-Dickens range including BD100, BD120, BM100, BM120, BD300, BM303, BM916, BD320 and BM320 products feature `excellent circuit design' that enables them to achieve the SIL2 classification where some comparable products on the market only manage SIL1.

In addition the Lee-Dickens products are all non processor based, which is especially important to industries such as oil and gas, nuclear power generation and steel.

These same industries are also now demanding that instrumentation being implemented into new installations achieve a rating of at least SIL2 or preferably higher.

Signal converters currently on the market largely fail to meet these demands, so the Lee-Dickens range become increasingly desirable especially as they remain price competitive.

The BD100/BM100 are single level trip amplifiers and the BD120/BM120 are dual level trip amplifiers, each from a single process signal input.

The BD300/BM303 are isolating signal converters, which will convert a range of process signals into standard transmission voltage or current signals.

The BD320/BM320 are also isolating signal converters, which convert process signals into two independently isolated current or voltage outputs.

Finally the BM916 is a low input impedance isolating signal converter suitable for conversion of a mA signal into an isolated current or voltage output where minimal input loop resistance is important.