Powerbox claims OF1600A12 is industry-first for immerged computing
Designed for immerged applications such as hyper-loaded computing machines, the OFI600A12 is the first commercial power supply designed to meet immerged applications specifications, says Powerbox. According to the company, the power supply guarantees the highest level of safety for system and operators. It has built-in digital supervising functions, so that in just a few minutes the OFI600A12 can be factory-reconfigured to meet specific tasks and demands.
The PRBX OFI600A12 is based on an interleaved transition mode power factor correction (PFC) design with an LLC converter as second stage. It is designed to have the lowest possible inrush current, less than 10A at 264V AC. The product has an input voltage of 187 to 265V AC, dual outputs comprising a master 12V/600W and an independent auxiliary of 5V/10W. Efficiency is up to 93 per cent.
The OFI600A12 includes remote on/off, remote reset, over-current and over-voltage protection and complies with safety and EMC regulations. Depending on the application, output protection may be required to be one of a number of configurations (switch off, hiccup mode or constant current), and the OFI600A12 is able to be reconfigured as appropriate. Based on firmware-defined profiles and the output protection configuration, the mode of operation can be factory-selected in a few minutes to meet the requirements of specific applications. The unit is protected by a conformal coating and complies with the RoHS and REACH directives.
Immersed data centres require special caution when selecting switching power components, advises Powerbox, adding that manufacturing practices are very similar to those required by the marine industry in terms of robustness and the ability to endure operation in high levels of humidity or salty environments.
Powerbox designers have transposed best practice for ruggedised design from expertise in marine environments to immerged electronics. Besides requiring a new mechanical approach to facilitate fluid circulation through and around the power supply, designers had to investigate every single component for compatibility with cooling fluids to guarantee they will maintain their mechanical and electrical performances when immerged (e.g. risk of corrosion). The development process also included a thorough risk analysis to verify that, when immerged, the final product operates with the highest level of safety for users and equipment.
