Lockheed Idaho Technologies Company, P.O. Box 1625, Idaho Falls, ID 83415-3521

A -- HALL-EFFECT-ARC PROTECTOR SOL Cbd1199 DUE 041199 POC Paul Grahovac WEB: Idaho National Engineering & Environmental Laboratory, http://www.inel.gov/procurement/litco/index.htm. E-MAIL: Paul Grahovac, pg2@inel.gov. A -- Hall-Effect-Arc Protector. U. S. Patent Number 5,629,824. This is a potential technology development and licensing opportunity with Lockheed Martin Idaho Technologies Company (LMITCO), the prime operating contractor for the Department of Energy at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL). All electrical conductors have capacitive and inductive properties and as a result, are capable of storing energy. If the insulating barrier between two conductors breaks down, a discharge path for the stored energy is formed, and a stored energy discharge along this path creates an "arc." If the energy discharge or "arc" exceeds the wattage rating of the passive components or of the solid state circuitry of the electrical equipment, the arc can damage the equipment. Arcs are inherent in the design and operation of much electrical equipment and thus, cannot be totally eliminated. The presence of a high voltage in the equipment further complicates attempts at arc suppression, since the voltage parameters associated with the high equipment voltage often exceed the ratings of potential high speed solid state circuit breakers. Traditionally, this problem of arc suppression in high voltage equipment requires the use of mechanical circuit breakers which do not have the sensitivity or the response time required to protect the equipment against damage from the arc. The Hall-Effect Arc Protector is used to protect sensitive electronics from high energy arcs. The apparatus detects arcs by monitoring an electrical conductor of the equipment for changes in the electromagnetic field surrounding the conductor which would be indicative of a possible arcing condition. When the magnitude of the monitored electromagnetic field exceeds a predetermined threshold, the potential for an equipment- damaging arc exists, and the control system logic activates a high speed circuit breaker. The activation of the breaker shunts the energy imparted to the input signal through a dummy load to the ground. After the arccondition is terminated, the normal signal path is restored. This technology requires only minor modification of the circuit. The device simply clamps on an active circuit of the equipment and requires only the insertion of the arc suppression circuit, a switch, and appropriate ground cables. The device provides arc protection to arc-sensitive equipment operating at high equipment voltages, provides for a variable threshold which must be exceeded by the strength of the arc in order to activate the high speed circuit breaker, and provides for the rapid cycling of the high speed circuit breaker to minimize the off-line time of the equipment. LMITCO is seeking a written indication of interest from industry partners interested in funding a collaborative technology development project and/or entering into a license agreement for the purpose of developing and commercializing this technology. License terms will include an up-front licensing fee and a running royalty based on a percentage of sales. This is not an opportunity to provide goods or services to LMITCO or the Department of Energy. This Request for Interest (RFI) will close to response 30 days after publication. Interested parties should send e-mail to pg2@inel.gov (Paul Grahovac, Account Executive, Technology Transfer Office, LMITCO). If you do not have e-mail access, send regular mail to Paul Grahovac, Account Executive, Technology Transfer Office, LMITCO, P. O. Box 1625, Idaho Falls, ID 83415-3805. Posted 03/10/99 (W-SN306996). (0069)

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