enx magazine

“No problem found” can be the most expensive and frustrating service call that any service manager must handle. Many service departments receive random ‘C’ code calls late in the afternoon, when electrical power is at its lowest level of the day. By the time the tech arrives the following morning, no problem is found.

So what is a profit minded service manager to do? Acknowledging, identifying and alleviating subtle power issues can be the answer to many “No problem found” service calls. SmartPower Systems’ goal is to allow you to protect all your electronic systems all day, every day. When you protect your products, you protect your profits.

Embedded microprocessors and other electronic components in digital copiers, computers and numerous other devices are common today. All these systems are composed of tiny microcircuits that operate on very low voltages. These circuits do their computing wizardry by comparing very small changes in these operating voltages. Power problems interfere with these voltage comparisons.

National Sales Manager Dana Davis explains, “Today’s copiers and MFPs have more microprocessors than computers. Dealers need to do everything in their power to help eliminate external causes of equipment failure.”

SmartPower will take the power issues out of the servicing equation. The worldwide electrical power situation is being over taxed by the increase of consumer demand. Power quality in America is not improving. Your responsibility is to pro-actively manage how your company deals with the power that affects the reliability of the equipment you sell and service.

Dana Davis explains, “SmartPower’s goal is to help the technical professional understand the nuances of power variations that can cause erratic and undetectable servicing issues. By eliminating power concerns from your trouble-shooting regimen, service department profitability will improve. Customer satisfaction will increase.”

SmartPower Systems manufactures and develops products for the office automation, point of sale and telecommunications industries, in their Houston, Texas based corporate headquarters. This facility includes a 100,000+ square foot manufacturing and research and development facility. They also have a manufacturing facility in Taipei, Taiwan.

Founder, President and CEO Bahram Mechanic has remained at the helm of Smart Power Systems since its inception in 1984. An electrical engineer by training who specializes in power quality, Mr. Mechanic has been the guiding force and innovator of the SmartPower product line. He is always focused on a better functioning product that will make a difference in the performance of the equipment to which it is attached.

The superior clamping ability to the semi-conductor side of the SmartPower products allows for enhanced performance in any microprocessor-based equipment. This includes, copiers, MFPs, bar coders, document storage software, UPS, computers, micrographic equipment and filter devises. The transformer based filter, using a differential transformer, is SmartPower Systems’ unique technology.

Mr. Mechanic developed SmartPower Systems’ patented Transformer-Based Filter (TBF™) technology, as well as dozens of improvements in the field of power protection and conditioning. He holds several patents in the field of power filtration and transformer design. SmartPower Systems’ Transformer Based Filter has been referred to as a break-through product in the power protection industry.

SmartPower Systems’ corporate commitment to their users is to develop, manufacture and market power protection and conditioning products. These will provide the highest level of advanced power filtration technologies, reliability, safety and cost effectiveness for the markets they serve, while providing superior customer service.

Their products are specifically designed to:

• Increase up-time for the end user, thereby creating better customer service.

• Help the dealer supporting the end user minimize the failure of electronic components, which will contribute to cost management and profitability.

From a technical point of view, the TBF™ series is a new technology in Power Conditioning, and the most effective solution to power quality problems. The TBF™ is a device used between the electrical outlet and any electronic equipment, such as a computer, telecommunications or medical, copier, fax, cash register and laser printer. The TBF™ series conditions the power and protects connected electronic equipment against lightning, EMI and RFI noise, low voltage and high voltage spikes and transients. The device brings any spike from 1 to 6000 volts to below 10 volts between hot and neutral, and to less than 0.5 volt between neutral ground.

The semiconductor industry established that power disturbances must be limited to less than 10 volts in the normal mode (hot to neutral), and less than 0.5 volts (1/2 of one volt) in the common mode (neutral to ground). In addition, the industry established that these criteria must be met even though a power disturbance might be as large as 6000 volts as defined by the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers) in their testing guideline labeled IEEE C62.41.

This block diagram illustrates the different circuits, which have been used in the TBF™. This TBF™, by using a differential transformer and capacitors, acts as a “Line Conditioning” filter (low pass filter). This unit filters both normal mode and common mode noise.

For common mode noise filtration it uses a differential transformer, which performs as a series inductor along with the capacitor between neutral and ground. Normally, the larger the capacitor used between neutral and ground, the greater the filtration of the output voltage of a spike or noise will become.

Safety guidelines set by Underwriters Laboratories Inc. dictates in code UL 1449, the amount of current that can pass from line to ground through the capacitor or MOV’s. This spike or noise should be limited to 0.5 milli amperes.

The UL standard states that if by wrong wiring, line and neutral polarity is reversed or if the ground wire is disconnected, the amount of current which passes from line or neutral to ground, should be less than 0.5 milli amperes. This is called “leakage current” in UL 1449. UL is reducing the size of capacitors that can be used to reduce neutral to ground noise. (Many filters use capacitors as large as 10 microfarad, which will not pass UL. The Smart Filter’s capacitor need is 20 times smaller due to its clamping design.)

Note that one event turned into several of extended duration. If the occurrence stopped at the first spike it may have snuck through however, the design extends the event.

In a surge suppressor or power filter this leakage current is a result of two things.

1. The MOV’ s that are used between line to ground and neutral to ground are such that the amount of the MOV leakage current is very small (0.05 0.15mA).

2. The other cause of leakage current is due to a capacitor being used between neutral and ground for neutral and ground filtration. As the value of the capacitor is increased, the leakage current becomes higher. At the same time, the more filtration that is required, the higher value capacitor we use. Since the leakage current should be less than 0.5 milli amperes, the value of the capacitor should be limited.

This in turn limits performance and does not allow the device to achieve the needed filtration. In order to solve this problem, SmartPower has designed a circuit identified as the process control board. This device, with the processor circuit, is patented by SmartPower Systems.

In addition to being technically advanced, SmartPower Systems is very user friendly. Their long term history of proven solution based technology is ready to help you with any power problems your customers may be experiencing. SmartPower Systems is your one stop provider for all your power protection needs. Technical support is available by phone or email.

The launch of the new power analyzer will complement Smart Power’s full line of filters, voltage regulators, UPS and line conditioners. These will all enable dealers to better identify a wide variety of power quality issues.

National Sales Manager, Dana Davis, has put together a team of power professionals that are ready and able to help your company identify and eliminate power related servicing issues. “The office equipment industry always encourages their customers to buy service agreements. ‘An ounce of protection is worth a pound of cure.’

This concept of pre-purchased protection is extended to the dealer itself. Automatically adding SmartPower protection to every machine that leaves your office is your first line of defense for eliminating random power related service calls.”

Dana continues, “One out of every three or four service calls could be power related. 33% of all micro processor controller products have the potential of power irregularities causing functional problems. Before you replace an expensive PC board, or dispatch a tech to a phantom down code, they should be trained to consider power irregularities. Using SmartPower Protection on your entire service agreement installed base protects your profitability.” u by Ronelle Ingram

Contact Info:

SmartPower Systems

1760 Stebbins Drive

Houston TX 77043

(tel) 800.882.8285 • 713.464.8000

www.smartpowersystems.com

info@smartpowersystems.com

support@smartpowersystems.com

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