Embry Riddle Aeronautical University has long been a staple of aviation education across the United States. Formed in 1925, It is the largest accredited university system specializing in aviation and aerospace. It has multiple locations with its primary campus residing in Daytona, Florida.

One of the many planes Embry Riddle uses is the new Diamond Aircraft DA42 L-360. This twin engine propeller plane from Austrian company Diamond Aircraft was chosen because it offered so many advantages over prior-generation designs. This includes an all-composite construction, state-of-the-art Garmin G1000 glass panels, and reliable Lycoming 180-horsepower engines. While each new DA42 L-360 comes equipped with an advanced glass cockpit, the ERAU fleet has been upgraded to include an Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) traffic and weather system.

One other important part of the DA42 is the CPI X2003-506 thermal switch used in the engine compartment fire detection systems. “The X2003 is really made for fire detection applications,” says Pete Gagliardi, CPI’s regional sales engineer, “a slow make/break device with a set point from 0F to 1750F that is ultra reliable and accurate.”

A Look at CPI Rod & Tube Thermal Switches

The X2003 thermal switch belongs to a class of stand alone Rod & Tube style, bi-metal Thermal Switch products where contact movement is achieved via differences in the coefficients of expansion of two materials, in this case the outer tube and the inner rod. This family of switches is characterized by very rapid response time and very high temperature sensing.which operate completely independently of any external control system. The switch has seen many deployments in aircraft over the years, where remote sensors and control systems are not a good or reliable option.

These thermal switches can be procured in multiple rod lengths and multiple contact configurations. They have been used in helicopter engine exhaust, plastics extrusion, aircraft brake applications, among many other demanding applications for the industrial, aerospace, and military industries.

For more information call a CPI engineer today.

This blog originally published at https://www.cpi-nj.com/blog/cpi-thermals-help-young-pilots-fly-safe/

In the world of industrial grade weatherproof switches, you have to worry about more than just water mixing with your electrons.

Mac Stuhler, Vice President of Business Development for CPI, puts it this way. “We learned a long time ago that manufacturers were buying our switches because they are waterproof, but that they were going into applications that required many more dimensions of robustness to be viable solutions.”

Over a period of 70 years, CPI has provided switches that are not only truly waterproof, but that stand up to extreme environments better than almost any other switch in the world.  Here’s why that’s important.

What Really makes a Switch Weatherproof?

In a typical deployment for an industrial grade weatherproof switch, it is more than water folks are worried about.

1. Vibration – In most deployments of our waterproof switches, whether it is on a mountain bike, or providing neutral safety in a transmission, high vibration is the norm. In your average switch, vibration can wear down and deform internal parts, loosens connections, and can dramatically cut short the number of cycles before actuation becomes unreliable. CPI switches are engineered and sealed in such a way as to be almost impervious to the most severe, high frequency vibration.
2. Wind Blows Tiny Little Things – In some types of switches like ball switches or plunger switches the actuation can allow tiny windblown particulates like dust and sand, to sneak into the housing. Nothing brings a faster death to your switch operation except maybe a live explosive… This is why the CPI J4 Ball/Plunger switch has a patented double exclusion seal with such a tight tolerance that it actually removes particulates from the housing with each depression. One million cycles later, these switches are still typically, ticking.
3. Temperature – Keeping your switch cool is important and CPI switches can run to 85C with the proper rubber housing. Even more impressive however is that they run cold without freezing up in conditions down to -40F.
4. Pressure Tolerant – Sometimes its not just rain you worry about. Our waterproof switches are commonly deployed as safety switches on work trucks and emergency vehicles that get power washed regularly.
5. Yes, Waterproof – Well yes, of course they need to be waterproof. Truly waterproof, i.e. submergible, not “splashproof” or “water resistant”.  Sealed in either neoprene or santoprene our E series pendant switches are completely waterproof. Even where the leads attach is sealed at the factory. We can provide leads of any length with any termination you require, even a waterproof one.

Weatherproof, waterproof, and just generally hard to kill. That’s all our CPI switches.

Give us a call today to discuss whether your application is tough enough for our switches.

This blog was originally published at https://www.cpi-nj.com/blog/weatherproof-switches-more-than-just-waterproof/