Are there any solid-state battery or starter contactor?
 

I was talking with Dayton yesterday regarding my FWF work and he asked me if I checked for solid-state battery or starter contactor. I told him no. It did not even cross my mind. So, do you guys know of anything out there?

I could see it for the starter................. but the master is really basic and proven........:)

Zlabs (advertiser here) has a solid state master and there is another company out there, but forget their name.

Not to mention inexpensive. Solid state relays have very low current draw on the switched side, a good thing. But then you need a switch with gold contacts, or run a resistor in parallel to generate enough sparking current to keep your existing switch reliable. Which sorta defeats one of the benefits.

Lamar do a solid state contactor for battery and/or starting but they're not particularly cheap.

I have read that Lamar are a very reputable manufacturer of aircraft electrical gadgets.

There are no practical industrial SSRs sized large enough to withstand the 350A+ inrush current of the starter. That and there is a significant voltage drop. I have a couple here that I've used for various projects in the shop but they aren't practical for use in an aircraft.

BandC has an alternative contactor, it is not solid state but perhaps longer lasting than the conventional metal unit.

http://www.bandc.biz/intermittentdut...contactor.aspx

Lamar
 

I installed the Lamar SS master relay. Until I get some flying hrs I can't chime in on the performance. The only negative point I found was the case/enclosure. I was not comfortable with the lack of weather seals. From the back the PCB is completely exposed! Made my own mounts and seal

Hi All,

Are we seeing common use yet of solid state battery contactors/relays? The reason I ask is that the 0.8 to 1A current draw of a typical battery contactor is not insignificant in the case of an alternator failure (for a single alternator VFR setup) and you are running on battery reserve. Since the semiconductor space seems to be moving quickly, I thought it may be worth asking before I go barreling down the path of a regular contactor. Perhaps JD has an update on his Lamar unit performance?

Tom.

I think I may have answered my own question. Perhaps these large current devices are not ready for prime time quite yet.
http://www.vansairforce.com/communit...d.php?t=136192
Tom.