What is an electrical panel?
With the development of technology and the ever-increasing need of mankind for various types of natural energy, including electrical energy, new inventions in the field of protecting natural resources, reducing the consumption of electrical energy and similar energies, as well as protecting industrial, residential and administrative facilities and equipment, have been invented by humans and are used Among the most important of these inventions in the field of control, protection and management of the consumption of electric currents and electric energy in various industrial and non-industrial uses is the design and construction of panels. The switchboard is one of the most advanced human inventions in the field of control and management of electric energy consumption, and it is designed in various models and used in industrial and non-industrial uses.
Maybe you have seen the big boxes that have a big danger sign in various internal and external environments of buildings, these big metal containers that can be installed for the purpose of installing and systemizing electronic, control and protection equipment inside or outside industrial, residential and office buildings. are called electrical panels. Each switchboard is made of various components and equipment, based on the structural components, appearance and even how to install this switchboard in the environment, different types of switchboards can be defined.
Classification of types of electrical panels in terms of application
LV boards, or weak pressure, are divided into the following categories according to the type of use:
- Main boards
- Sub-hand or sub-panels
- DB panels include lighting and offices that are usually wall mounted
- Control or intermediate boards such as PLC boards
- Capacitor bank panels
- MCC boards
- Sliding boards
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Now we explain each of these types of panels briefly and completely:
1. Main panels or MAIN
These boards are placed after the transformer and they are responsible for the main power supply of the whole system, which are designed as one input or two inputs and coupling, one of these inputs can be from the transformer or generator. In this board, control and protection circuits are usually included. They are placed a lot to minimize the possibility of error, and most of the feeders of this board are of the type of air switches.
2. Under-hand or sub-main panels
Subordinate switchboards are fed from the fuses of the main switchboards and distribute energy to different parts. In these switchboards, the inputs and outputs are usually using complete switches, and the protection of the fuses is provided by the internal mechanisms of the switches. The boards do not need logic or a special command circuit.
3. DB boards
Most of these panels are used for offices and are usually made on the wall to occupy the least possible space. The input and output of these panels are mostly with miniature switches or MCB.
4. Control panels or plc
SUB MAIN is used for communication and control of main panels and MCC in some cases and depending on the type of system, it can be designed from fully automatic to semi-automatic and manual control in systems that have high sensitivity and the production line is continuous. Such as steel factories, glass factories, oil companies, etc., where the system must be constantly under control, these boards are mostly used. Also, the other advantages of this system are reducing the volume of electrical and mechanical parts and circuits, and making troubleshooting, maintenance, and fault tracking easier. is created in the system.
5. Sliding switchboards
One of the advantages of this electrical panel is that it can place a large number of fuses with volume control circuits in one cell. Also, during maintenance, the desired fuse can be easily removed from the cell and the reserve fuse can be placed inside the cell. And it provides the possibility of quick repairs in the minimum time of fuse failure.
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Types of electrical panels in terms of voltage level
The experts and technicians of the electronics department classify electrical panels into three general categories based on the voltage level:
Low voltage or weak pressure switchboard
The electrical switchboard with a maximum voltage of 1 kV is known as low pressure switchboard or low voltage switchboard. Generally, low voltage switchboards are used to protect low voltage systems and circuits. Various parts and equipment are used in the construction of these panels, such as low voltage circuit breakers, earth circuit breakers, load disconnectors and switches. Also, the low pressure switchboard can be classified according to its use in different systems as follows:
- Low pressure electrical panels are often used in the construction and production of motor control panels.
- Weak pressure panels are often used for the construction and production of industrial distribution panels, and usually these panels are used to distribute electric current in an industrial unit.
- One of the most important applications of capacitor bank switchboards is to modify the power factor of workshops, which is usually used in the construction of capacitor bank switchboards from weak pressure switchboards.
- Residential distribution boards are used to distribute electric currents in a residential unit, and low pressure electrical boards are usually used to make these boards.
- In the construction of industrial control panels or PLC panels, a weak pressure electrical panel is used, and these smart panels are usually used for the automatic control of industrial processes.
Medium voltage or medium pressure switchboard
These switchboards have a voltage of 3 to 36 kV and are known by the abbreviation MV. Among the most important applications of this switchboard, we can mention the control of the electric current of the circuit in fault conditions. This switchboard quickly cuts off the electric current in the circuit when any error is observed to prevent various problems and damages caused to the systems by controlling the current.
Also, the medium pressure switchboard can be used in various cases such as normal switching on and off of the current, short-circuit current interruption, switching of capacitor currents and switching of analog currents.
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High voltage or high pressure switchboard
To protect systems that work with voltages above 36 kV, high-voltage or high-voltage switchboards are used; Because in the building High voltage switchboards High voltage circuit breakers have been used so that these panels protect users’ systems and equipment by controlling the intensity of the current produced by switching operations in electrical circuits.
In fact, considering that the voltage level of the circuits is effective on the intensity of the currents produced by the switching operation, therefore, it is necessary to install a system to control the electric current in the high voltage circuits in order to ensure the safety conditions for the equipment and users with a special and unique function. they provide For this purpose, high voltage switchboards or HV switchboards are used to control the flow of high voltage systems.
Types of electrical panels in terms of structure and installation in different environments
As mentioned, switchboard is one of the electronic equipment that is used today to control, protect and monitor the operation of electrical equipment and circuits. Now we are going to examine the types of electrical panels based on the shape of the external structure and how to install them in different office, residential and industrial environments.
Electrical panels are divided into two categories, standing and wall panels, in terms of appearance and how they are installed in different environments of buildings. It is also possible to divide the types of electrical panels into three categories of fixed, sliding and modular panels based on their appearance.
It is also possible to divide the types of electrical panels into three categories of fixed, sliding and modular panels based on their appearance.
These signs are wall and standing signs and are usually designed in different shapes. Various equipment such as control, protection and information-communication equipment can be installed on fixed panels.
Sliding boards
These boards are designed as sliding and are used in large companies. One of the important advantages of these boards is the quick and easy access of users to all parts of the engine control and power center. Also, these panels have a higher price than other electrical panels.
Modular boards
These switchboards are actually an advanced type of fixed-standing switchboards and are usually designed as panels. Also, access to the cable sections of modular switchboards is often done in two ways: access from the front and access from the back.
Required parameters in the design of electrical panels
- The consumption current of the panel should be calculated with about 20% excess current
- The instantaneous flow of motor consumers is an important criterion in the selection of equipment
- Short circuit tolerance or board stability against short circuit current
- Protection against the entry of IP objects
- How to access the main output keys
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