Your questions answered: Learn how to leverage intelligent circuit protection

Several additional questions have been answered from the Aug. 18, 2020, webcast “Learn how to leverage intelligent circuit protection”

By Manny Alexander August 27, 2020

Here is additional information about the Aug. 18, 2020, webcast “Learn how to leverage intelligent circuit protection.” Questions were answered by presenter Manny Alexander, Product Manager, Pow R Line Xpert series of panelboards and switchboards, Eaton.

Question: Are the power problems you are speaking due to Utility power or internal problems?

It could be either! The breaker health algorithm is built to compute a percentage health rating based on what that overcurrent protection device experiences.

Question: Are the equipment USB ports password protected or prevent unauthorized changes?

Yes, they are password protected. The customer can choose what they want the password to be when commissioning the equipment.

Question: Is this technology back-fitable? If so, starting with what generation of equipment? Can it be used in conjunction with other vendors’ equipment that has already been installed?

You can work with your Eaton Representative to install Power Defense circuit breakers with PXR trip units in Eaton’s legacy Pow-R-Line equipment. They cannot be installed in other manufacturer’s equipment.

Question: Modbus – RTU is great, but what about BACnet IP?

Within the assembly the electronic trip units with built-in communications could be daisy-chained by the factory to an Eaton Power Xpert Gateway 900 to communication BACnet IP.

Question: Is this product ready for production now?

Yes. This product can be built by any of our 16 satellite manufacturing locations or main plants.

Question: Can you collect cumulative kWh from the meter function of the trip units?

Yes, the simplest way to do this would be by ordering your assembly with Eaton’s Dashboard Lite Processor, which could group metering loads from both the PXR trip units and Eaton’s Power Expert Meters.

Question: Do your software and devices meet the Department of Defense cybersecurity standards?

Specific standards would need to be provided to determine compliance. However, Eaton is leading the charge with cybersecurity for power management. Eaton is the only company in the industry to have two labs approved to participate in the UL‑ Data Acceptance Program for cybersecurity. These lab environments can test global products to aspects of the UL 2900-01 and 2900-2-2 standards.

Question: Is there a specification template available in MS Word format for the PLX breakers including all options?

Yes! Please visit www.eaton.com/consultants for all of our guide specifications. We also encourage you to visit www.eaton.com/designguides for help specifying your future projects.

Question: These power defense breakers and trip units can be used as replacement for the Magnum DS circuit breaker fitted with Digitrip?

PXR trip units are not available in Magnum breakers at this point in time.

Question: Will this work on older 240-volt systems?

Yes.

Question: Is there an underlying time protocol used for the monitoring system?

The Power Xpert Release (PXR) trip units have imbedded Modbus RTU communications.

Question: Can the metering function be used for data collection for a U.S. Green Building Council LEED project?

Absolutely.

Question: Is the breaker communication wiring brought to an isolated boundary terminal location as standard, as an option, or does it have to be field added?

Breaker communication wiring will be done at the Eaton factory, and will be daisy-chained to either a device (PXG900 Gateway, Dashboard Lite Processor) or simply a single RS-485 termination point, depending on customer specifications.

Question: Can we retrofit the existing panelboard and switchboard with PXR breakers?

You can upgrade your Legacy Pow-R-Line assembly with Power Defense breakers and PXR trip units.

Question: Is the dashboard a separate product? How many devices can it poll and how much data storage is needed for reports? How often are the devices polled for data collection?

Eaton’s Dashboard Lite is an individual component that can be integrated into the Pow-R-Line Xpert panelboard or switchboard assembly. The Dashboard Lite can accommodate up to 32 devices per processor on the RS-485 network. Data logging can be stored for roughly three years and data can be easily downloaded to a CSV file.

Question: Does ZSI require special wiring between units or do they communicate via the RS485 link? Is the RS485 link fast enough for proper coordination?

ZSI functionality requires dedicated wiring.

Question: What are the ZSI limits on number of breakers linked and number of levels linked?

Generally, we recommend no more than 20 breakers to be linked with ZSI.

Question: I saw where you can change settings on the trip units via laptop and USB connectivity. Are these trip units the same type that have LSIG dials on the outside? If so, is it possible that the dials indicate a specific setting but the trip unit is programmed differently?

Power Xpert Release (PXR) trip units that have dials on the trip unit interface (PXR10, PXR20) do not allow trip settings to be changed via software to avoid this discrepancy.

Question: What is the highest available fault on which these units can be applied. Was there any study done on available fault on systems in North America? Is this 65 kA, 100 kA or higher?

Pow-R-Line Xpert assemblies are available up to 200 kAIC at 240 V, and 100 kAIC at 480 V.

Question: Is Pow-R-Line Xpert available in switchgear and low-voltage power circuit breakers?

The Power Defense breaker offering is available for Eaton’s Low-Voltage Assemblies, but Pow-R-Line Xpert family is strictly panelboard and switchboard assemblies.

Question: I would like to know those standards apply for cybersecurity.

Here are some supporting links with regards to UL cybersecurity assurance and Eaton’s cybersecurity program.


Author Bio: Manny Alexander, Product Manager, Pow R Line Xpert series of panelboards and switchboards, Eaton.