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ARCON 3G
ARCON 3G MANUAL
MN026015EN October 2020 www.eaton.com
According to American National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), Arc Fault is a
“dangerous condition associated with the release of energy caused by an electrical arc”
as part of an Arc Fault, a type of electrical explosion or discharge that results from a
low-impedance connection through air to ground or another voltage phase in
electrical system.
Arc fault errors are the most powerful faults, which can occur in electrical installations.
Although serious precautionary measures that are given due consideration and
implemented in advance, these faults happen. They can be caused by a multitude of
factors, such as aging of the insulation, environmental conditions as well as operating
errors (human faults) or by animals entering in electrical switchboard. Electric arcs can
cause heavy damage to switchgear and present a serious hazard to operating personnel,
including heavily injures and death. In order to prevent this, the most suitable solution is
to foreseen arc fault protection systems inside electrical cabinets. These units detect the
light and increasing current of an emerging arc fault and send a trip signal to the shunt
trip of an upstream protection device such as a circuit breaker.
Figure 1.1 ARC faults errors damage curve
A conventional protection device is not able to clear the fault within a few milliseconds
and to prevent destruction of operating devices. This is where the arc protection system
establishes the connection between a short detection time and a fast response time.
ARCON 3G presents effective modular and compact system for arc protection in
low voltage switchgear assemblies, which successfully provides both, personnel and
assembly protection. ARCON 3G detects an electrical arc caused by a short circuit
through optical sensors and the load current input on the system to employ the fast
clearance of arc faults on an electrical system with a total arc mitigation time less than
2 ms.
Introduction
ARCON
®
3G – General outline
